Breaking Through

Part IIVoices of Women Business Leaders

THE RANGE OF VIEWS PRESENTED in this part can be summarized in a few clear and constructive messages:

• Entrepreneurialism is not gender specific: women, as well as men, have the talent to create and develop companies.
• Women are a rich resource for companies—and companies that have understood this are now more productive and equitable.
• Women are the victims of negative stereotyping: this comes from cultural inequalities and is increasingly apparent to both women and men; but measures to redress this may be seen as tough (such as quotas) and are not always implemented.
• Mentoring, in all its forms, can leverage this situation: for both women entrepreneurs and women employees, it's the most effective way for women to break through the glass ceiling and mend the leaky pipeline.