• Companies with women on the board of directors had greater profitability, and decreased the rate of bankruptcy by 20%.
• Companies with the highest gender diversity in their personnel saw higher operating results, a higher return on equity, and stronger stock price growth than companies with fewer women.
Additionally:
• Women are more likely to see and act on entrepreneurial and growth opportunities, driving for results, expanding their perspective and seeing past obstacles —no surprise to our five Nellie Finalist self-starters!
• Women are adept at engaging and developing people, building collaborative environments of trust and cooperation that yield positive results.
• Women leaders also tend to be more holistic problem solvers, able to integrate complex information, see a wide array of options, take input from diverse viewpoints, and ultimately execute more effectively on decisions.
• Women also exhibit higher “executive social skills”, which make them more effective than men at cultivating relationships and trust—necessary attributes for working with employees, clients and partners!
None of these insights are new, however. Many women are getting tired of waiting for their seat at the table and launching their own ventures, particularly in the Seattle area (see statistics, below). Since its founding in 1979, WBO has been supporting and empowering women in business. It provides a peer group for woman entrepreneurs where they can find support, networking, education, and community to help each other achieve business and personal success.
This year’s finalists all cite the importance of collaboration and trust in working with their teams to build company success. They also bring a more flexible perspective than most corporations on balancing work and family, helping engender the loyalty and longevity of valued employees.
Meet the Finalists
Margo Engberg is the founder and CEO of PinkaBella Cupcakes™ and P.B. Franchising. The business got its start in when, after 20 years of running a successful house-cleaning business, she started baking cupcakes for children who had never had a birthday party. From this seed the business has grown to include four local stores, multiple franchise locations, and catering services for large companies. She was selected as Alumna of the Year for Seattle Pacific University, her alma mater, in 2013
Jody Hall is the founder and CEO of Cupcake Royale. She spent the first 10 years of her career at Starbucks Coffee, as one of the first hires in the marketing department back when there were only 30 stores. Her last role at Starbucks was managing music strategy. In 2003, after a short stint at REI, she decided to strike out on her own to found Cupcake Royale—one of the nation's first cupcake bakeries. Now with six store locations across the city and her cupcakes carried in multiple retail food venues. As her next venture, in 2013 Hall founded The Goodship, makers of fine edibles in WA and soon other markets. Her passion is in creating brands and businesses that inspire human connection, are pioneers and category protagonists, and make a difference in our world.
Diana Naramore is the CEO of Sip and Ship. Just as the name implies, you can visit her stores to ship an important package, sip a cup of coffee and even find the perfect gift. With more than 30 years of business industry expertise and fostering leadership within the local business community, Naramore’s job title could most accurately be Chief Problem Solver, second only to Insanely Hard Worker. She gets it done. Before founding Sip and Ship, Naramore attended night school while working full-time as a manager of a call center at Princess and Crystal Cruises in Los Angeles. Naramore earned a Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Business Administration and Business Management from the University of Phoenix and is currently working on ways to improve the use of shipping materials and their environmental impact.