Looking ahead to this Saturday International Women’s Day (IWD), MainStreet Partners’ Allegra Ianiri (pictured) tells us why it’s important to challenge the ‘confidence myth’ to break through barriers. In this article, Allegra highlights the need for systemic change over individual empowerment if we are to achieve true gender equality and really #accelerateaction across the profession.
Telling women to “be confident” has become a dominant message in discussions about gender equality, particularly in professional environments. Motivational books and career webinars urge women to lean in, take risks, and assert themselves harder. In finance, an industry where less than 20% of senior roles are held by women, confidence is often framed as the key to breaking through barriers. But while self-assurance is important, it’s just the tip of the iceberg, and this focus on individual confidence dangerously shifts the blame away from systemic gender bias and onto women themselves.
The confidence narrative overlooks the influence of cultural and social environments on traits like competitiveness and risk-taking. This can be seen in a study by Gneezy, Leonard, and List (2009), who examined two societies with starkly different gender norms.
In a patriarchal society where men dominate decision-making, women exhibited significantly lower levels of competitiveness than men. In contrast, among the Khasi in India, a matrilineal society where property and inheritance pass through the female line, women were more competitive than their male counterparts. This difference is due to social norms, not willpower.
Women’s confidence and competitiveness are shaped by societal expectations—when encouraged to lead and control resources, they thrive; when restricted, these traits are suppressed. The financial sector is no different: when firms implement policies that actively support women’s leadership, gender disparities narrow. Yet, progress remains slow, highlighting the need for structural interventions rather than individual fixes.
According to the UN, globally, nearly 90% of people—both men and women—hold biases against women, and the World Economic Forum (WEF) estimates that gender parity remains 131 years away at the current pace. The idea that women simply need to “be more confident” ignores the systemic barriers that limit their opportunities.
Real progress requires structural change, starting with early education. By age six, children internalise gender roles, making early intervention essential. Schools must integrate gender-neutral teaching, anti-bias training, and exposure to diverse role models to reshape perceptions and encourage more young women to pursue male-dominated fields.
In the workplace, pay transparency, and data-driven diversity tracking help reduce bias, while equitable parental leave, flexible work policies, and sponsorship programs that actively position women for leadership roles have proven more effective than traditional mentorship in closing gender gaps.
Firms that implement these measures see improved diversity and outperform their peers, with studies showing that companies in the top quartile for board-gender diversity are 27% more likely to outperform financially than those in the bottom quartile[1].
Beyond corporate policies, shifting public discourse from individual empowerment to systemic reform is key to lasting change. The confidence gap is not of women’s making, nor is it theirs to fix alone. The real solution lies in industry-wide initiatives and policy reforms that guarantee fair treatment and equal opportunities for all.
[1] Source: McKinsey, Diversity matters Report, Dec 2023
