Why Women Supporting Women Still Feels Rare in Corporate Leadership
- Anca Alexandra Pasareanu
- Jun 29
- 8 min read
Updated: Oct 11
Contents
Note: This article contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you).
Introduction
In my professional life, the idea of women’s empowerment is always present. It’s mentioned in strategy meetings, featured in industry panels, into webinars, and plastered across social media feeds. You see it in polished corporate videos celebrating trailblazing female leaders, in HR slides about equity, and much more.
On the surface, it looks like we’re making real progress. And part of me truly believes we are.
But then, I zoom in a little.
Not at the public-facing celebrations, not at the all-hands meetings or glossy LinkedIn updates. I look at the subtle stuff—the side glances in team meetings, the way conversations shift when promotions are in the air, the energy in the room when only one leadership seat is left up for grabs. I start to notice what’s beneath the surface.
And what I find there isn’t always unity.
Sometimes, instead of support and solidarity, I feel something else: hesitation, quiet competitiveness, distance. In some moments, it’s a passive sort of tension—women holding back their praise, guarded looks when one of us steps forward. Other times, it’s overt—undermining dressed as critique, exclusion masked as formality.
It’s not all the time, and it’s not everyone. I’ve also been lucky to witness moments of deep mentorship and true allyship among women. But too often, those moments feel rare. And that realization unsettled me.
I used to think that once we made it into the room, we’d hold the door open for the next woman. That we’d lock eyes and nod in unspoken agreement: We’re in this together.
But time and experience have shown me a gap between the vision and the reality.
When Sisterhood isn’t a Given
This gap sparked a deeper question: Why do women sometimes fail to support other women, even in spaces that champion empowerment?
It's an uncomfortable question—but an important one. Exploring the cultural and emotional factors that undermine women supporting women in leadership helps us unlearn what we’ve inherited.
It’s not that women don’t want to support each other. I don’t believe that. But many of us—myself included—have internalized a scarcity mindset in corporate culture: the belief that success is limited and competition is inevitable. That there’s only one seat at the table. That someone else’s win might mean my loss.
We don’t always voice this belief. But it shows up. It shows up in silence when praise is deserved. In side-eyes instead of celebration. In reluctance to mentor, share, or collaborate.
And that’s what makes it so complex. We can attend every workshop about “women supporting women” and still carry that fear quietly inside us. That fear that there’s not enough room for us all to thrive.
Researchers have found that scarcity mindset is often reinforced by workplace structures—promotion quotas, budget cuts, and the unspoken rule that there’s “only room for one.” In male-dominated industries, this competitive framing can be even sharper, unintentionally pitting women against each other instead of fostering female allyship in the workplace.
Without intentional policies and cultural shifts, even well-meaning organizations can create environments where women feel the need to protect their own advancement at the expense of collective progress.
Scarcity isn’t Our Story — It was Someone Else’s
Here’s what I’ve come to believe, after sitting with all this discomfort: the scarcity mindset didn’t originate with us. It was inherited.
For generations, women have been allowed into leadership roles on the condition that they’re “the exception.” We’ve been the token. The one. The rare. The first. The only.
And when you’re told there’s only one seat for someone like you, you learn to guard it. You protect it. You fear someone else might take it before you’re ready.
But I’ve also learned something else: true empowerment isn’t about clinging to that seat. It’s about creating more of them.
Because every time a woman rises and is visible, she expands the possibilities for the rest of us. She becomes proof of what’s possible—not competition, but precedent.
In fact, studies on mentorship and sponsorship programs for women in leadership show that when women actively advocate for each other, the entire organization benefits. Employee engagement increases, retention improves, and companies become more attractive to top talent.
Sponsorship—where a senior leader actively opens doors for a junior colleague—has been identified as one of the most effective ways to accelerate women’s careers. When these sponsorship relationships happen between women, the ripple effect can transform a company’s culture from guarded to collaborative.
When Ambition Feels like a Threat
Of course, the tension isn’t that simple. We are ambitious. We do want to succeed. And that’s not something to apologise for.
But somewhere along the way, ambition and support got framed as mutually exclusive, like backing up another woman somehow dims your own light. And that belief is still quietly playing out across several workplaces.
It’s a tricky line to walk. Especially when we’ve been taught to measure our worth through individual achievement. When performance reviews, bonuses, and promotions are zero-sum games. When scarcity isn’t just a mindset, but a structural reality in some companies.
So yes, it’s nuanced. Supporting other women doesn’t mean pretending we don’t want to win. It means redefining what winning looks like.
Redefining success in this way often means shifting from a purely competitive lens to one of collective achievement. In inclusive corporate cultures for women, leaders intentionally celebrate team accomplishments alongside individual wins, reinforcing the message that lifting others does not weaken your own position.
In these cultures, ambition is reframed—not as a solitary climb, but as a group ascent where each person’s progress strengthens the whole.
Lead With Generosity, Not Fear
If I had to name one change that’s helped me start to unlearn this scarcity mindset, it would be this: choosing generosity even when fear whispers otherwise.
When I feel that pang of comparison, I pause. I ask myself, What would it look like to respond with generosity right now?
Maybe it’s saying out loud, “That was a brilliant idea,” even if I’m feeling insecure about my own contributions. Maybe it’s mentoring someone even though I’m still climbing myself. Maybe it’s forwarding that job opportunity instead of hoarding it.
It’s uncomfortable sometimes. But the discomfort is part of the undoing.
Practicing this consistently has taught me that generosity compounds over time. A single moment of public praise can open doors for another woman. A recommendation can lead to a life-changing promotion. And just as important, generosity creates psychological safety—a workplace condition where people feel secure enough to take risks, speak up, and share ideas.
For women navigating competitive corporate spaces, this safety net can be the difference between staying silent and stepping forward.
Building Female Allyship Through Intentional Mentorship and Amplifying Voices
Lately, I’ve started offering mentorship more proactively, especially to junior women who remind me of earlier versions of myself. I don’t wait to be asked. I reach out.
In meetings, I try to amplify women’s voices. If someone makes a great point that gets overlooked (which happens more often than we admit), I circle back to it. I repeat their name. “I really want to highlight what Aisha just said.”
This is how we build true female allyship in the workplace—by intentionally amplifying other women’s achievements in rooms that often overlook them. It’s a small gesture, but I’ve learned that it matters. Sometimes, someone else’s courage needs your voice beside it.
I’ve also begun building informal peer networks—small groups of women at similar career stages who meet monthly to share challenges, workshop ideas, and offer each other resources. These groups aren’t just about networking; they’re about building authentic professional relationships between women that go beyond the transactional.
Over time, these connections create a culture of trust that stands in contrast to the scarcity-driven environments many of us started in.
The Illusion of Inclusion
Corporate culture often sells inclusion as a checkbox. It’s a line in the mission statement. A slide in the onboarding deck.
But the real work? It’s quieter. Less quantifiable. It happens in the micro-moments. In who we praise. Who we promote. Who we stand beside when no one’s watching.
We celebrate the presence of women in leadership. But we rarely examine the culture those women are navigating once they get there. And if we’re honest, that culture still hasn’t evolved as much as the marketing suggests.
We need more than diversity stats. We need inclusive corporate cultures for women, where women feel supported, seen, and safe. Not just from the top-down—but beside each other.
Creating these cultures requires more than policy—it requires practice. Leadership must model collaborative behaviour, reward collective wins, and dismantle systems that pit employees against each other. Training in gender equity and unconscious bias is a starting point, but without reinforcement in daily operations, progress stalls.
Metrics that track not only representation but also retention, promotion equity, and cross-gender collaboration can give organizations a more honest picture of inclusion in action.
A Line that Sticks
“Empowerment isn’t about taking space — it’s about making space.”
True empowerment creates room for authenticity, connection, and growth—not just for ourselves, but for others too. It’s less about competing for attention and more about cultivating an environment where everyone can thrive.
A Reader Challenge
Think about the last time you celebrated another woman at work—genuinely, publicly, without hesitation.
If it’s been a while, ask yourself:
What held you back? And what might shift if you chose generosity instead?
You don’t have to wait until you’re in a position of power to make a difference. Every woman who chooses collaboration over competition plants a seed. And over time, those seeds grow into workplaces where women lift each other up, mentor, share, and succeed—not alone, but together.
So here’s my challenge to you: in the next week, find one concrete way to advance another woman’s career. It could be nominating her for a high-visibility project, introducing her to a valuable contact, or simply endorsing her skills on a professional platform.
These may seem like small steps, but collectively, they shift workplace culture toward one where women supporting women in leadership is the norm, not the exception.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can women practice allyship in the workplace?
Women can build effective workplace allyship for career advancement by:
Publicly acknowledging achievements of other women
Offering mentorship proactively
Amplifying voices in meetings
Sharing high-visibility opportunities
Consistent actions cultivate a culture where women supporting women in leadership becomes the norm.
What is the impact of sponsorship programs for women in leadership?
Sponsorship programs—where senior women actively advocate for junior colleagues—have been shown to increase employee engagement, retention, and promotion equity. These programs demonstrate how mentorship and sponsorship among women create collective organizational success.
How does generosity help women support each other at work?
Choosing generosity over fear—such as praising, mentoring, or sharing opportunities—creates psychological safety. This allows women to take risks, speak up, and grow together, reinforcing the principle that empowerment isn’t about taking space, but making space.
Can ambition coexist with supporting other women?
Yes. Women can pursue career ambition while advocating for peers. Shifting from a zero-sum mindset to one of collective achievement allows each woman to succeed without diminishing others, creating stronger networks of collaboration.
Why is visibility important for female leaders supporting peers?
Amplifying the contributions of other women increases recognition, encourages sponsorship, and helps create inclusive work environments for women in leadership. Small gestures—like repeating someone’s name or highlighting an overlooked idea—can have lasting impact.
