The Journey of Women in Leadership: Past, Present, and Future
For centuries, women have battled societal norms, workplace discrimination, and systemic biases to carve out a space for themselves in leadership roles. The journey from being overlooked to becoming influential decision-makers has been long and challenging, yet undeniably inspiring. While significant progress has been made, the road ahead still demands relentless efforts to defy limitations, break barriers, and drive lasting change.
The Past: A Struggle for Recognition
Historically, leadership has remained a male-dominated domain, often due to societal biases and traditional emphases on physical ability. Women were confined to the domestic sphere, with limited opportunities to participate in governance, business, or academia. However, the early 20th century saw avant-garde women breaking stereotypes—pioneers such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Clara Zetkin, Savitribai Phule, and Oprah Winfrey demonstrated that leadership transcends gender. Despite their triumphs, these women faced severe scrutiny and resistance in their respective fields. The corporate world continued to pose challenges, with women experiencing limited representation in boardrooms and executive leadership roles.
The term “glass ceiling” emerged to describe the unseen obstacles blocking women from reaching top leadership positions. Many workplaces resisted offering equal opportunities, often relying on outdated assumptions about women’s leadership capabilities. Factors such as wage disparities, insufficient maternity support, and gender-based biases further restricted career advancement.
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Aparna Giriprasad, Senior Manager of Technical Product Support at Sabre, reflects on the urgency of these initiatives: “This year’s Women’s Day theme—#AccelerateAction—speaks to the urgency of our time. While progress has been made in bringing women’s voices to the table, we are still far from achieving true equality. It remains limited to a few sectors and roles, and the path ahead is long. To accelerate our efforts, we need all genders to come together in conscious action—educating, empowering, and creating equal opportunities for women. This Women’s Day, I am hopeful; though the summit of equality may seem distant, together, we rise to reach its peak.”
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The quote by Aparna Giriprasad was originally published as part of a story on BW People. This quote also additionally appeared in ET Government, and VAR India.