The uncomfortable truth about women RECENT political events have given rise to much soul searching among those concerned about the role women play in modern Australian society, and rightly so. While the Abbott government purports to be pro-women, the appointment of just one female cabinet minister would suggest otherwise. Then there is the experience of Julia Gillard. When referring to the role gender played in her time as Prime Minister and Labor leader, Julia Gillard said, "It doesn't explain everything. It doesn't explain nothing. It does explain some things. So what does it explain? According to the 2012 Australian Census of Women in Leadership, the potential for women to become leaders in business has stagnated and this is unlikely to improve in the short term because women are under-represented in the pipeline to senior management. The census finds that Australia lags countries with a similar corporate governance structure, including, New Zealand, the US, Canada and South Africa in relation to numbers of female executives. The number of women in senior executive positions is actually going backwards, having peaked at 12 per cent in 2006 and falling to 10 per cent last year. There are only 12 women CEOs in the ASX 500 and over 50 percent of ASX 500 companies do not have a single woman director. What is going wrong for women in business in Australia and should we be concerned? The answer is a clear yes. A recent World Economic Forum study shows that C-Suite executives are being kept awake at night by large-scale global challenges such as volatility in food and financial markets, corruption, lack of access to water, and climate change. These "wicked" problems - interconnected, intractable and complex - go well beyond the "tame" challenges that traditional business models and command-and-control leadership styles are equipped to deal with. They can only be addressed through collaboration, experimentation, and doing more of what seems to work while doing less of what doesn't. There is a growing body of research showing that women excel at precisely these ways of operating. A comprehensive study by Zenger and Folkman surveyed 7280 leaders, rating them on their overall effectiveness. At every level, women were rated higher in overall leadership effectiveness than their male counterparts, with the greatest gap evident at the highest executive levels. In addition to overall leadership effectiveness, the leaders were also rated on 16 core competencies top leaders exemplify. Not only did women excel at the "nurturing" competencies, such as developing others and building relationships, but at all levels, women were rated higher in 12 of the 16 competencies that comprise outstanding leadership. Moreover, two of the traits where women outscored men to the highest degree - taking initiative and driving for results - have long been considered to be particularly male strengths. Decision-makers are beginning to notice, too, the growing body of academic research proving that gender-balanced leadership teams perform more effectively. A report by McKinsey & Co. entitled, "The Business of Empowering Women," shows that gender-balanced executive committees have a 56 per cent higher operating profit compared to companies with male-only committees. Similarly, the research organisation Catalyst found a 26 per cent difference in return on invested capital between companies with 19-44 per cent women board representation, and the companies with zero women directors. It also found that across industries, businesses with three or more women on their boards outperform peer institutions, producing higher returns on equity, sales, and invested capital. A 2011 report by McKinsey & Company substantiates the idea that cultural changes must take place to create enabling and supportive environments that dispel misperceptions about the roles and contributions of women. Companies that wish to survive and thrive in a complex world will need to actively promote these changes, ensuring that women are mentored and included in networks that promote innovation and creativity (regardless of gender), as well as encouraged to obtain training in burgeoning areas such as communications and information technology. Additionally, to develop these leaders, policy-makers, society and private companies alike must work to support women's economic empowerment lifecycle at all stages, beginning early and reinforcing often. This cycle starts in the beginning with the critical physical, emotional, and intellectual shaping that occurs in infancy, childhood, and adolescence. Each phase of a woman's economically productive life, from income readiness to employment and entrepreneurship, and, ultimately, to financial security and leadership presents additional opportunities to put more women on the path to economic empowerment. We know that women have powerful skills and abilities but that to shatter glass ceilings, they will need more than just a can-do attitude. We need to provide women around the world with deliberate, positive support to break down barriers and become the leaders we so urgently need if we are to solve our increasingly complex problems successfully and sustainably. Gayle Peterson is the co-program director of Women Transforming Leadership at Saїd Business School, University of Oxford.