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Women Leadership: Examine the Capacity of Women as Leaders

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DOI: 10.35335/enrichment.v12i5.924

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 Enrichment: Journal of Management, 12 (5) (2022)
Published by: Instiute of Computer Science (IOCS)

Enrichment: Journal of Management

Journal homepage: www.enrichment.iocspublisher.org

Women Leadership: Examine the Capacity of Women as

Leaders
Ahmad Muktamar B
Institut Lamaddukkelleng Sengkang, Indonesia

ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT

Article history: This study describes women's leadership with a focus on examining
women's capacity as leaders. The aim is to identify whether
Received Nov 26, 2022
leadership is more effective and has better performance than male
Revised Dec 03, 2022
leadership. This type of research uses library research with analytic
Accepted Dec 17, 2022
descriptive methods. The data in this study were obtained from
books, journals, websites and other references related to the research
Keywords: topic. The approach used in this study is a feminist approach that
Leadership focuses on gender issues related to leadership. Another approach is
Women Leadership the philosophical approach, as well as the historical approach. In this
Gender study it was found that women taking leadership are related to
Leadership Style feminine character, namely 1) Caring, 2) Vision, 3) Collaboration, 4)
Courage, and 5) Intuition. It was also found that there are four
factors that influence women's leadership, namely: Mother,
Seductress, Pet and Iron Maiden. In addition, women are also
supported by a transformational style and feminism in their
leadership. Meanwhile, women's success in leading is supported by
feminist ethics, namely 1) Maternal Thinking, 2) Caring, and 3)
Ethich of Care.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC license.

Corresponding Author:
Ahmad Muktamar B,
Manajemen,
Institut Lamaddukkelleng,
Jl. Bosowa Utara No. 1 Palaguna, Sengkang, 90971, Indonesia,
Email: [email protected]

INTRODUCTION
The debate between whether or not women are allowed to hold leadership positions in an
organization, company, or country has been a long discussion in various study forums. The
fundamental question that is often the topic of discussion is the role of women at the top of the
managerial, that whether women as individuals have the capacity or ability to manage an
organization or institution with all its dynamics.
Although many parties still doubt the ability of women to hold leadership positions, the
fact is that the number of women occupying top positions in organizations shows an increasing
trend from year to year. In the last ten years, in the United States, almost 50% of the talent pool was
occupied by women, and more than 51% held managerial positions (Akmala, 2022).
As Windsor et al noted that female leaders tend to be more successful and gain trust with
regard to solving complex problems. His compassionate and relatable approach in communicating

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makes the public feel comfortable in his leadership. This study noted that countries led by women
have fared better than countries led by men during the pandemic (Windsor et al., 2020).
Research conducted by Women in the Workplace 2021 by McKinsey & Company, found
that women's leadership in the business and public sectors can create healthier organizations. The
research also shows that women's leadership is able to produce comprehensive and inclusive
decisions because it considers various aspects. Women's sensitivity is considered capable of
formulating company strategies that suit consumer needs and encourage increased company
financial performance (Hamdani, 2022).
Juwita was quoted by Handayani, revealing that Indonesia is ranked fourth with the most
female leaders in the world with a percentage of 37% (Handayani, 2021). Akmala, for example,
noted that in Indonesia currently, 6 important positions in the Advanced Indonesia cabinet are
occupied by women (Akmala, 2022). Meanwhile Hartati described that 38% of the leaders of
private tertiary institutions in Jakarta were held by women (Hartati, 2022).
But unfortunately, women's leadership in Indonesia is still not ideal (Hamdani, 2022),
especially when compared to the female population itself. As noted by Narimawati and Praratya,
that the percentage of women as leaders compared to the female population as a whole is much
lower than the percentage of men as leaders. Another fact is related to the proportion of women in
the work force and business, from the past until now, trade business has been quite attractive to
women. However, when it comes to obtaining business expansion assistance, women
entrepreneurs are included in the recipient group with small and medium capital (Narimawati &
Praratya, 2022).
Data from The Gender Social Norms Index, UNDP, 2020, shows the fact that almost 90% of
men and women themselves still have some sort of bias against women (Hamdani, 2022). The 2020
World Economic Forum (WEF) report shows the Global Gender Gap score (based on population) is
at 68.6%. This means that there is still a 31.4% gap which is homework for the global community.
According to the same source, Indonesia is ranked 85th in terms of gender gap. Meanwhile, data
from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) for 2019, which published the Gender Empowerment
Index using a measuring instrument for placing women as professionals in Indonesia, shows
figures in the range of 35% to 55% (Handayani, 2021).
In a patriarchal culture, women are positioned in a marginal corner, where male hegemony
is a being of superiority who considers women as subordinate and inferior to men. The patriarchal
system places the role of men as the sole ruler, central and main controller, while women have no
rights, are shackled and receive discriminatory treatment (Sakina & A, 2017).
The cultural aspect places women as parties who are subject to patriarchal power relations,
both personally and through state arrangements. Since ancient times, the culture of society in
various parts of the world has placed men at the top of the hierarchy, while women are positioned
at the lowest class. This can be seen in Roman civilization, since birth a woman is completely under
the power of her father. After marriage, power passes into the hands of the husband. This includes
the authority to sell, expel, abuse or kill women. In Chinese civilization, a woman's life follows the
death of her husband, who must be burned alive along with the burning of her husband's body. In
the practice of Hindu society in the Vedic era in 1500 BC, women did not receive inheritance.
Whereas in the tradition of the Buddhist community in 1500 BC, women were married off before
reaching the age of puberty, and did not receive education, so most of them became illiterate
(Sakina & A, 2017).
In Indonesia, during the Dutch and Japanese colonial eras, the situation for women was no
less bleak. Women are used as sex slaves for foreign soldiers who are on duty in Indonesia. As well
as women are prohibited from receiving education, except for those who come from the nobility or
priyayi (Sakina & A, 2017).
In 1805 British legislation emphasized the husband's right to be able to sell his wife
(Narimawati & Praratya, 2022). In 1882 British women did not yet have the right to own property

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and the right to be prosecuted in court. Meanwhile in the United States, the situation for women is
no better. Elizabeth Blackwill, the world's first female doctor who completed her studies at Geneve
University in 1849, had to suffer the bad luck of being boycotted by her own friends on the pretext
that it was not natural for women to obtain higher education. At the same time, discriminatory
behavior was also carried out by a medical professional organization in Philadelphia which
rejected the establishment of a women's medical institute. The organization has threatened to
boycott all doctors who are willing to teach on the campus (Narimawati & Praratya, 2022).
As human civilization progresses, views that tend to marginalize women gradually begin
to erode. The term women's emancipation and the demand for gender equality began to emerge
and were fought for massively in almost all over the world. Although the reality is not easy to
achieve, because this emergence infects patriarchal constructions that have been going on for
generations, where patriarchy has always distinguished the roles of men and women (Budiarta,
2022).
In the Indonesian context, the gender justice movement began in the 1980s. In 1978, the
role of women in Indonesia's development was included in the GBHN. It mandates that women
have equality with men regarding rights and obligations as well as equal opportunities to
participate in development. Likewise with guarantees to be fully and effectively involved and
equal opportunities to lead at all levels of decision-making in social, political and economic life
(Nurmi et al., 2019).
After the passing of the law, women's representation in political parties opened up
opportunities for women to engage more broadly in the public and political spheres. With this
development, it is undeniable that the role of women has experienced a new pattern. Although
their involvement in formal institutions is not encouraging enough. The percentage of women as
leaders compared to the population, which reaches half of the population, is still much lower than
the percentage of men as leaders (Narimawati & Praratya, 2022).
One factor is the low percentage of women as leaders, is the view that being a leader is still
associated with biological aspects based on gender differences (Yulianti et al., 2018). The
emergence of this construction of thought is triggered by the existence of gender stereotypes which
contain beliefs about what behavior is appropriate for men or women to do. Likewise, the
stereotype that women do not seem to have strong and capable characters as leaders (Budiarta,
2022). There is also a growing assumption that women do not need to be involved in making or
making political and public decisions, because roles have been mapped out for men. men in the
public sphere, while women are in the domestic sphere.
In the midst of the onslaught of stereotypes against women, nowadays the gender
perspective has relatively shifted and is no longer the dominant factor in determining the roles of
men and women (Yulianti et al., 2018). The phenomenon of many jobs that were previously only
done by men can now be done women very well, as if supporting Yulianti's view. Various types of
work are now also carried out by women, such as military service, police, pilots, taxi/bus drivers,
heavy equipment drivers, OJOL drivers, mining foremen, gas station attendants, workers in the
field of construction, and so on, which proves that men and women have the same capabilities,
including the role of women as leaders in the public, political, organizational and institutional
spheres.
In an organization or institution, the dominance of men as leaders is still very strong. But
in reality, women also have potential that is not inferior to men in terms of leading (Fitriani, 2015).
Figures like RA Kartini, Cut Nyak Dhien, and Andi Ninnong are examples of women who have
strong historical roots as leaders. Today, not only are leaders at the village and sub-district levels, it
is now no longer difficult to find areas at the district or provincial level, where the leadership is
held by a woman. Likewise, the highest position in government has been held by Megawati
Soekarnoputri, the first female figure to have served as president in Indonesia. The phenomenon of
Indonesian women in the modern era who appear to be leaders by occupying various important

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positions both in the public and domestic spheres shows that their personal abilities are on par
with men.
Leadership is inseparable from the personal abilities of individuals who act as leaders.
Personal ability is the capacity of an individual to carry out various tasks in leadership (Sinaga,
2018), which is obtained thanks to potential and innate talent in the form of a leadership base.
Thus, the value that is considered the most dominant in leadership is personal quality related to
capacity and skills.
Naturally, a person or member of a group wants others to guide, direct, motivate, and
supervise them. Because the success of a leader is determined by the quality of his leadership in
carrying out these functions (Muktamar B, 2022). Thus, leadership has nothing to do with gender,
instead women and men are equal in the concept of leadership.
Organizations are usually led by a man, but in reality now, women are also required to be
able to take part as organizational leaders. But the problem is whether women's leadership is more
effective and has better performance than male leadership? Therefore the discussion on women's
leadership is discussed further in this article to describe how far the capacity of women to become
leaders.

RESEARCH METHOD
The type of research in this paper is library research with analytic descriptive method. The data in
this study were obtained from books, journals, websites and other references related to the research
topic. The approach used is a feminist approach that focuses on gender issues related to leadership.
In addition, a philosophical approach is used to highlight women's leadership from a value or
ethical perspective. This study also uses a historical approach to examine the historical
development of women's leadership in the past compared to current conditions. Relevant data
were collected, then analyzed content, critical discourse, deductive and inductive. Content analysis
was carried out to read various references based on their essence. Critical discourse analysis is
used to examine discourse related to women's leadership. Meanwhile, deductive and inductive
analysis is carried out to obtain data through searching at the beginning and at the end of the data
which can be used as a certain conclusion.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Women and Gender Analysis
Understanding the meaning of women cannot be separated from physical and psychological
problems. From a physical point of view it is based on the biological structure, composition and
development of the physical elements of the body. While psychic is based on nature, masculinity or
femininity. Women in the psychic or gender context are defined as traits that are attached to a
person to be feminine. Whereas women in a physical sense are one of the sexes which are
characterized by reproductive organs in the form of the uterus, egg cells and breasts, so that
women can get pregnant, give birth and breastfeed. In Javanese it means "wani ditata" which
means daring to be arranged. In the Encyclopedia of Islam, women come from the Arabic al-
Mar'ah, while the category of jamak "al-nisaa" equals adult women or adult daughters, namely the
opposite sex of men. The word an-nisaa' means the female gender, equivalent to the Arabic word
al-Rijal which means the male gender. The equivalent in English is woman (the form of jamak
women) as opposed to the word man (Narimawati & Praratya, 2022).
Discussing women's issues, one important concept that should not be forgotten is the
concept of gender. This is a crucial problem because gender stereotypes in its application still tend
to favor certain genders, namely men. These advantages can be seen in various forms of social and
cultural arrangements that apply to societies adhering to a patriarchal culture, which image the
inferiority of women in the social structure.

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Gender is not enough just to refer to the characteristics that are physical or biological.
Because after living in society, men and women experience things that are different from one
another. Humans or society then gives certain characteristics based on their interpretation of the
functions and abilities of both men and women. In every culture, humans provide or complement
these biological characteristics with non-biological (social) characteristics related to characteristics,
characteristics, work, norms and appropriateness (values) for men and women (Wiasti, 2017).
Many people perceive that gender is the same as sex, but in reality the two have different
meanings. Gender is a biological difference; which is the nature of God and therefore permanently
different between men and women. Meanwhile, gender can be interpreted as a social construction
of sex, into social roles and behaviors. Gender comes from the Latin "genus" which means kind or
type. Gender can be defined as a condition in which individuals who are born biologically as male
and female then acquire social characteristics through the attributes of masculinity and femininity
which are supported by values or systems and symbols in society. Gender is a visible difference
between men and women when viewed from values and behavior, or it can also be referred to as
behavioral differences that are attached to men and women (Fauzia, 2020).
Gender differences are related to the characteristics of masculinity and femininity. The
nature of masculinity is that men are considered strong, productive, public, rational and assertive,
the main breadwinners, so often in society there is a gender bias where men are considered taboo
when doing housework such as cooking, cleaning the house and taking care of children.
Meanwhile, femininity, that is, women are known to be gentle, reproductive, domestic, emotional,
motherly, affective, and irrational, additional breadwinners who often have gender bias, such as
women doubt their ability to occupy a position in work.
Gender characteristics are traits that can actually be exchanged. For example, women are
known as gentle, emotional and motherly. While men are considered as strong, rational, mighty. In
Yulianti's notes, et al, that there are men who are emotional, gentle and motherly. Vice versa, there
are women who are strong, rational and mighty (Yulianti et al., 2018). These changes can occur
from time to time, in various situations and from place to place.
Gender differences between men and women occur through a very long historical
selection. The formation of gender differences is due to many things including; formed, socialized,
strengthened and even constructed socially or culturally either through the state or religious
teachings. Through this long process, many people who do not know, then consider gender
characteristics, as God's decrees that seem to be biological and cannot be changed anymore, so that
gender differences are considered and understood as the nature of men or women (Fauzia, 2020).
One example of the confusion in understanding society that is not in place, where social
construction related to the characteristics of gender differences is actually considered as nature
which means God's provision. For example educating children, managing and caring for
cleanliness and all domestic affairs are considered "Women's Nature". In reality, that women have
a gender role in educating children and doing all domestic affairs is a cultural construction in
certain societies. Therefore, perhaps the affairs of educating children and keeping the house clean
can also be done by men.
Women's Leadership
Leadership is an object of discourse that is widely discussed by management experts. Leadership
can be interpreted as a process of influencing, inviting, moving, encouraging, guiding or guiding
others to think, behave, act in accordance with predetermined goals (Muktamar B, 2022).
Etymologically, the term leadership comes from the word lead, which means to demand or guide,
hence the verb "to lead" was born which means to guide and mentor (Muktamar B, 2022).
Whereas women's leadership is defined as the ability of a woman to carry out activities of
influencing, moving, directing, inviting, motivating, ordering, advising, guiding, prohibiting and
even (if necessary) punishing, and fostering with the intention that members or subordinates want
to work to achieve common goals. effective and efficient (Sugiyanto, 2020)

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Women's leadership is related to feminine character and traits. Etymologically, femininity

comes from the Latin word femina which is translated into English as feminine, meaning that it has
the characteristics of a woman. The combination of leadership and feminist traits or characteristics
gives rise to a concept called "feminist leadership". Feminism refers to attitudes, while leadership
refers to action, so feminist leadership can be interpreted as actions carried out by leaders based on
feminist characteristics (Sugiyanto, 2020).
Smit explained the five "feminist" attributes consist of: 1) Caring, defined as a commitment
to act on behalf of others, caring exists in relational leadership that shows concern and compassion
for all members, colleagues or subordinates. 2) Vision, namely the ability to articulate and
formulate original ideas through a process facilitated by motivation. Visionary leaders create a
work environment that is pervaded by mutual trust, collaboration and participation among
members, colleagues and subordinates. 3) Collaboration, namely the ability to work in groups,
support group members, and create an energetic environment. Collaboration involves inclusivity,
sharing of ideas, connectedness and cooperation. 4) Courage, intended as the ability to move
forward, seek new ideas in the world of practice. It also includes a willingness to take risks for the
betterment of the team and individuals. 5) Intuition, namely the ability to give equal weight to
experience and abstraction, mind and heart. Intuition acts as an initiator of mind and heart
capacities that cannot be separated from Smit's relational leadership approach (Smit, 2017).
Sugiyanto noted the results of Eagly and Carli's research, that women's leadership is more
effectively applied in areas with low masculinity conditions. The findings of the study show four
trends in the effectiveness of women's leadership (Sugiyanto, 2020), that 1) women are less
effective than men as long as leadership positions are dominated by men; 2) women are less
effective than men where there is an increase in the proportion of male subordinates; 3) women are
less effective than men if a greater proportion of men are among the leaders of the effectiveness
raters, 4) women are substantially less effective than men in military organizations, and slightly
more effective than men in education, government organizations , and social services; from a
relational leadership approach. The effectiveness of women's leadership is influenced by several
factors. Nurmi mentioned Kanter's view, that there are four factors that dominantly influence
women's leadership, namely: Mother, Seductress, Pet and Iron Maiden (Nurmi et al., 2019).
Mother, what this means is that a woman sometimes finds herself becoming a mother in a
group or organization she is involved in where she is a leader. It is assumed that women are
sympathetic, good listeners, and easy to talk to about personal problems. However, the role of
women as leaders of this type of mother has negative consequences for their performance, namely:
(a) the reward given is not for the results of their own actions but for the organization they
manage, (b) the dominant aspect, is expected to be "the good mother" where the mother is to keep
himself as an uncritical person. Even though this critical attitude is an indicator that can develop a
better work environment.
Seductress, shows that the leadership role of women is more than that of the mother,
where her behavior tends to be filled with elements of competition and jealousy. The mother has
the opportunity to have many children, making it difficult for her to act professionally because of
her sexuality. The perception that the role of the “sex object” is potentially seducing, even though
the woman herself may not be aware of whether her behavior is as an encouragement or as a
seduction. This seductress' behavior has the potential to cause conflict in the organizational
environment she leads. While Pet, is a beloved character adopted by employees as something to be
entertained to show prowess in female leadership. With this character, a female leader may admire
the male figures in the organization she leads, but not to have a serious relationship with them.
While Maiden, is a change in the present, a role where strong women take an important
role. Far compared to the previous three roles of women. The role of the iron maiden is shown by a
female leader who socializes her capacity to be competent openly as a leader who is equal to
anyone.

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Female Leadership Style

The tendency of humans as social beings makes their daily life inseparable from being together in
groups to achieve goals. Among them need someone who is considered to have the ability to lead
among its members because of human nature which has certain limitations and advantages.
Leaders have a major influence on the success of the organization. Leaders are a key element in
organizational effectiveness, because the quality of an organization can be seen from the
cooperation between members of the organization and its leaders. Not only that, leaders also create
a condition, in which a leader motivates members or subordinates to do better as expected.
Leaders are figures who play an important role in the future of an organization or
company. A leader is declared successful and has effective leadership if in his leadership he
succeeds in carrying out tasks and achieving goals according to organizational goals. Every leader
has different leadership styles. This certainly affects the performance of members or subordinates
and the achievement of organizational goals. Leadership style is the embodiment of a leader's
behavior, which concerns his ability to lead. Its manifestation usually forms a certain pattern.
Leadership style is a method used in the leadership process that is implemented in one's leadership
behavior to influence others to act in accordance with the wishes of a leader. (Muktamar B, 2022).
Although there is no agreement on leadership styles that are widely recognized today,
there are five types of leadership styles that are currently recognized and widely known, namely
charismatic, democratic, paternalistic, autocratic, and laissez-faire (Muktamar B, 2022). As for
women's leadership, that transformational style and feminism, are the most relevant for identifying
women's leadership styles (Faturrahman, 2018).
Transformational is the ability to inspire and motivate followers to achieve results that are
more than originally planned and for internal rewards (Narimawati & Praratya, 2022). In practice,
transformational leaders motivate members or subordinates to do better, by challenging
subordinates to sacrifice themselves for the benefit of the organization, followed by providing
adequate rewards to subordinates (Faturrahman, 2018).
Feminism is also a style attached to women's leadership. Today, femininity is a style that is
needed today, as a counterweight to the domination of masculine ethics. Women with a feminist
style place more emphasis on planning and organizing work using an empathetic approach rather
than emphasizing "must win at all costs". In addition, women prefer to use parenting to be
involved, communicate in leading (Sugiyanto, 2020)
The explanation of the role of feminism actually originates from the concrete experiences
experienced by women. This concrete experience differentiates her from men, namely experience
as a mother, starting from conceiving, giving birth, breastfeeding, and caring for children. It is
these experiences that are raised as feminist ethics to balance masculine ethics. Nugroho and
Mudhofir, describe the ethics of feminism, namely Multi Tasking, Caring, and Ethich of Care.
(Nugroho et al., 2017). An explanation related to the ethics of feminism is presented below.
Maternal Thinking, is not related to one's existence to become a mother, but rather to a
way of thinking, which is not only dominated by men, but also by women. So that women have a
role in various issues and problems without resorting to violence. Why non-violence? Because
humans are inherently gentle. The ability to act without violence is actually a maternal experience,
which is specifically owned by mothers. Thus, the mother can actually be a source for creating
peace. So maternal experience is not only related to children's problems, but also about the world.
The maternal way of thinking actually offers a way to build peace. Because the values developed
such as concern and love can be used to solve national and even international problems, especially
war, terrorism and acts of fundamentalism. Carring is a comparison between ethics and rational
principles such as the principles of proposition, justification, and justice. The rational approach is
regarded as the father's role as brave, strong, and dashing. So that children tend to distance
themselves from their father. This approach leads to discipline, it can even lead to violence in the

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name of moral principles. Noddings offers a different approach that is rooted in receptive,
relatedness, and responsiveness.
Meanwhile, the Ethic of Care is a thought related to the benchmarks of the moral
development of men and women, which are fundamentally different. These differences include;
the foundation of women's morality is based on the principle of unification, namely the existence
of relationships with other people. Men are more autonomous, emphasizing freedom and
independence. Men emphasize justice more, treat others objectively and openly. Meanwhile,
women put more emphasis on caring and women will be more concerned about the suffering of
others.
Basically, women have the basic traits to be successful as leaders. They tend to be more
patient, empathetic, and multitasking. Women have a talent for networking and negotiating.
Women are also responsible and like to overcome challenges in their work. Since ancient times,
women and men have done different jobs. The tasks they do require different skills. It is cultural
factors that influence how women and men act and think. Men are required to be assertive in
leading. But when a woman is assertive, she is often called aggressive. Women in leadership tend
to be more democratic, they encourage participation, share power and information and try to
increase the benefits for their followers. On the other hand, men tend to use a type of leadership
that is based on control and orders, they are more based on positions of formal authority as the
basis for their influence.
Some of the factors that impede the advancement of women in leadership are the lack of
policies in organizations that support balance between family and work, especially for women who
have families. Nevertheless, many companies have started to be women friendly. The company
provides opportunities for women to pursue their careers, and produces women who are
successful in their careers and families. They are aware that providing opportunities for women to
rise to leadership positions is a strategic and humane step to advance the organization.
The success of women in managing the household can be an asset as well as an advantage
in leading. There are at least six advantages of women which are the capital of success in leading.
These advantages are: 1) More sensitive to the needs of others, 2) More commitment to upholding
the needs and rights of women, children, the elderly, disabled groups, minorities, and
marginalized and persecuted groups; 3) Caring more about health and reproduction, child care,
education, welfare, and the environment; 4) Tend not to be materialistic and act peacefully (non-
violent); 5) More realistic, practical in work, more flexible in changes; 6) It's easier to do solid
teamwork, be more thorough, diligent, thrifty, careful, honest, neat, and more tolerant
(Narimawati & Praratya, 2022).
Based on some of these opinions, it can be understood that women are creatures capable of
doing many things (multi-tasking) and all of them can be done with the same concentration. This is
not found in men who are less able to deal with the complexity of problems and tend to fix them
one by one, while women want everything to be done quickly and understand the problems to be
prioritized so that solutions can be faster.

CONCLUSION
The debate between whether or not women are allowed to hold leadership positions in an
organization, company, or country has been a long discussion in various study forums. The
fundamental question that is often the topic of discussion is the role of women at the top of the
managerial, that whether women as individuals have the capacity or ability to manage an
organization or institution with all its dynamics.
Women's leadership is still not ideal, as seen from the percentage of women as leaders
compared to the population, which is still much lower than the percentage of men as leaders. This
is caused by the construction of the thought that being a leader is associated with biological aspects
based on gender differences. The existence of gender stereotypes is the main trigger, namely

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4060  ISSN 2087-6327 (Print)|2721-7787 (Online)

impressions or beliefs about what behavior is appropriate for men or women. As well as the
stereotype that women don't seem to have a strong character and are qualified as leaders. Along
with the times, the gender perspective has relatively shifted and is no longer the dominant factor in
determining the roles of men and women. Jobs that were previously only done by men can now be
done by women very well. Likewise with the phenomenon of women in the modern era who
appear to be leaders by occupying various important positions both in the public and domestic
spheres, demonstrating their personal abilities on a par with men.
The application of the right leadership style encourages the realization of effective
women's leadership. Transformational and feminism are the styles that are most attached to or
relevant to women's leadership. Transformational leadership inspires and motivates members to
achieve planned results. Meanwhile, feminism is a leadership style that is needed today, as a
counterbalance to the domination of masculine ethics. It was found that there are five feminist
attributes attached to women's leadership, namely 1) Caring, defined as a commitment to act on
behalf of others; 2) Vision, namely the ability to articulate and formulate original ideas; 3)
Collaboration, namely the ability to work in groups; 4) Courage, intended as the ability to move
forward, seek new ideas in the world of practice; and 5) Intuition, namely the ability to give equal
weight to experience and abstraction, mind and heart.
It was also found that there are four factors that influence women's leadership, namely:
Mother, Seductress, Pet and Iron Maiden. Mother, is a woman who sometimes finds herself
becoming a mother in an organization. Meanwhile, Seductress shows that women's leadership
roles are more filled with elements of competition and jealousy. While Pet, is a favorite character.
Then Iron Maiden, is a change in the present, a role where strong women take an important role.
The success of women with a feminist style is rooted in concrete experience as a mother.
This becomes a feminist ethic that women 1) Maternal Thinking, where the way of thinking is not
dominated by men but women too; 2) Carring is a comparison between ethics and rational
principles such as the principles of proposition, justification, and justice; 3) Ethich of Care is related
to the standard of male and female moral development which is fundamentally different. Men are
more autonomous, emphasizing freedom, independence, justice, objective and open. Meanwhile,
women put more emphasis on caring, especially caring about the suffering of others.

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Ahmad Muktamar B, Women Leadership: Examine the Capacity of Women as Leaders

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