The Economic Case for Closing the Gap

Recent projections show that advancing women’s full participation in innovation could add trillions to global GDP. At a time when countries are competing for leadership in emerging industries, failing to fully engage half the talent pool is not just inefficient—it’s risky.

The innovation gap exists because women-led ventures receive a fraction of venture capital funding, hold fewer patents, and face systemic barriers in scaling their ideas. This creates a bottleneck in the innovation pipeline. Fewer ideas reach the market, fewer solutions are tested, and fewer breakthroughs are realized.

Closing this gap is not optional. It is a prerequisite for maintaining national competitiveness in an increasingly innovation-driven economy.

Our focus on women entrepreneurs is designed to connect women entrepreneurs—especially women of color—with venture capital, partner organizations, plus we offer resources such as our Women’s Capital Summit and Fundamentals of Capital webinar series. The webinar series was developed in conjunction with Babson College’s Center for Women’s Entrepreneurial Leadership and Wells Fargo Bank to provide an educational resource that will expose women in academic and practical settings to capital structure, uses and types of capital, capital prioritization, and pitching for capital.

Women Leading in Climate Technology

Nowhere is the need for inclusive innovation more urgent than in climate technology. The transition to a sustainable economy requires rapid development of new systems, materials, and infrastructure. Women entrepreneurs are stepping into this space with solutions that are both scalable and community-focused.

From clean energy platforms to circular economy models, women-led ventures are addressing inefficiencies that traditional systems have overlooked. Many are designing solutions that consider not just environmental impact, but also economic accessibility and long-term resilience.
WBC has been instrumental in amplifying these voices, connecting founders with networks, capital, and policy conversations that help bring their ideas to life. By doing so, it is helping ensure that climate innovation reflects a broader range of perspectives—and ultimately produces more effective outcomes.

AI Ethics and the Future of Technology

Artificial intelligence is another area where the innovation gap carries significant consequences. As AI systems become more integrated into daily life, the question is no longer just what we can build, but what we should build.

Women entrepreneurs are playing a critical role in shaping AI that is ethical, transparent, and accountable. They are developing tools to reduce bias in algorithms, improve data governance, and ensure that AI systems serve diverse populations.

Without this perspective, the risk is clear: technology that reinforces existing inequalities rather than solving them.

WBC’s leadership in this space highlights a broader truth. Innovation is not just about speed or scale. It is about direction. Who is building the future matters just as much as what is being built.

Through key partners, WBC amplifies this direction. Mission Impact Academy is an online AI-learning platform that trains women as AI users and builds supportive communities. The National Association of Women’s Business Owners had developed an AI bot tailored for women entrepreneurs; and the woman-led online platform My Cabinet is a medical technology solution assisting elderly patients with their medication.

Structural Barriers, Structural Solutions

The challenges facing women entrepreneurs are not due to a lack of ambition or capability. They are structural. Access to capital, mentorship, networks, and visibility all play a role in determining which ideas succeed.

WBC approaches this challenge with a systems-level mindset. It is not just supporting individual entrepreneurs—it is working to reshape the ecosystem around them. This includes advocating for equitable investment practices, fostering cross-sector partnerships, and creating platforms that elevate women-led innovation.

Here our Women Entrepreneurs and Access to Capital initiative again comes into play, linking women entrepreneurs—particularly women of color—with venture capital firms, partner networks, and key resources like the Women’s Capital Summit and the Fundamentals of Capital webinar series.

This kind of leadership is essential because the innovation gap cannot be closed by isolated efforts. It requires coordinated action across business, policy, and finance.

A Competitive Advantage We Can’t Ignore

There is a tendency to frame gender equity as a social goal, separate from economic strategy. That framing is outdated.

In reality, the two are deeply connected. Economies that fail to harness the full spectrum of talent will fall behind those that do. Innovation thrives on diversity of thought, experience, and perspective. When those inputs are limited, so are the outcomes.

By championing women entrepreneurs in sectors like climate tech and AI, WBC is not just advancing equity. It is strengthening the foundation of future economic growth.

As a powerful collective, WBC amplifies this impact through initiatives like the Women’s Capital Summit, which convenes investors, leaders, and innovators to unlock funding pathways. By supporting its partners—such as Babson College and Wells Fargo—WBC scales access to mentorship, capital education, and networks, creating a multiplier effect that empowers women entrepreneurs to drive sustainable, inclusive prosperity across industries.

Looking Ahead

The next wave of innovation will determine how we address climate change, manage technological disruption, and build resilient economies. The question is whether we will approach that future with a narrow lens or a wide one.

Closing the innovation gap is one of the clearest opportunities to accelerate progress. It unlocks new ideas, expands the talent pipeline, and increases the likelihood of breakthrough solutions. WBC’s work makes one thing clear: when women entrepreneurs are fully supported, the impact goes far beyond individual success stories. It reshapes industries, strengthens economies, and creates a more competitive and sustainable future.

It is for this reason that the WBC is hosting the Women’s Capital Summit. This summit is building the ecosystem to ensure capital and investment is provided to women led business in climate, tech, manufacturing and beyond.

The path forward is not complicated, but it does require commitment. Invest in women. Remove structural barriers. Expand access to opportunity.

Because the cost of leaving innovation on the table is simply too high.

A New Era of Women in Philanthropy

Across the philanthropic landscape, women are playing an increasingly transformative role in shaping how capital is deployed for social progress.

Leaders such as Melinda French Gates, MacKenzie Scott, and Laurene Powell Jobs have demonstrated how philanthropy can move beyond traditional models to become a catalyst for systemic change.

These women have reimagined what giving can look like:

• Melinda French Gates has focused her philanthropy on advancing gender equity, recognizing that empowering women is one of the most powerful drivers of global economic growth and social stability.
• MacKenzie Scott has challenged conventional philanthropic models by providing large, unrestricted gifts to organizations working on the front lines of equity and opportunity—trusting leaders and communities to deploy resources where they are needed most.
• Laurene Powell Jobs, through Emerson Collective, has invested in education, immigration reform, and social innovation, demonstrating how philanthropy can blend policy, entrepreneurship, and social impact.

These leaders represent a broader shift: women are not only giving more—they are giving differently.

Women philanthropists are increasingly focused on:

• Systems change rather than incremental change
• Investing in leadership pipelines
• Supporting community-driven solutions
• Catalyzing partnerships across sectors

Philanthropy and Women’s Economic Equity

Philanthropy plays a critical role in advancing women’s economic equity—especially in areas where traditional systems often move too slowly.

At Women Business Collaborative, philanthropy allows us to:

• Support women athletes transitioning into business leadership through the Athlete Business Academy
• Build leadership pathways for women veterans
• Strengthen ecosystems that support women entrepreneurs

These initiatives do more than help individual women succeed. They strengthen the leadership pipeline across industries and ensure that women’s talent and expertise are fully represented in the economy.

The Give and Gain Mindset

The theme of Give and Gain reflects a deeper truth about philanthropy: when we invest in opportunity for women, the benefits ripple outward.

Companies gain stronger leadership teams.
Communities gain economic growth.
Families gain stability and opportunity.

And society gains a more inclusive and resilient economy.

In many ways, philanthropy has always been a quiet force behind women’s progress. But today, it is becoming a more visible and strategic engine for change.

A Call to Action

As we celebrate Women’s History Month, we are reminded that progress does not happen by accident. It happens because individuals, organizations, and communities decide to invest in a better future.

Philanthropy is one of the ways we make that investment.

At Women Business Collaborative, we invite leaders across sectors to join us in this work—because building a future where women hold equal position, pay, and power requires collective action.

The truth is simple: when we give to advance women’s leadership, we all gain.

The New Workplace Reality

The workplace in 2026 is characterized by three defining shifts.

First, skills are becoming more important than titles. Organizations are increasingly focused on agility, problem-solving, and the ability to operate in uncertainty. Leadership is no longer about tenure—it is about the ability to make decisions, lead teams, and drive results in real time.

Second, career paths are no longer linear. Today’s workforce is moving across industries, roles, and sectors. Leaders must be able to translate their experience and apply it in new contexts.

Third, human-centered leadership is critical. In a world shaped by AI and automation, the most valuable skills are uniquely human—resilience, collaboration, communication, and strategic thinking.
These shifts demand a new approach to talent.

Expanding the Definition of Leadership

For too long, leadership pipelines have been narrow—drawing from the same schools, industries, and networks. As a result, companies are missing out on extraordinary talent that already exists.

Women athletes and women veterans represent two of the most powerful—and underutilized—leadership pipelines in the economy today.
These women have already demonstrated what the future of leadership requires:

• Resilience under pressure
• Team leadership and accountability
• Strategic decision-making in dynamic environments
• Discipline, execution, and performance

These are not theoretical skills. They are practiced daily—on the field, in competition, and in service.

The opportunity is not to train these women to become leaders.
They already are.

The opportunity is to translate their leadership into business and economic impact.

From Experience to Enterprise

At Women Business Collaborative, we are focused on bridging this gap.

Through initiatives like the Athlete Business Academy and Women Veterans Lead, we are building structured pathways that translate operational leadership into business leadership. These programs equip women with the tools, networks, and opportunities to step into corporate roles, launch and scale businesses, and contribute to economic growth.

This is not just about career transitions. It is about unlocking leadership at scale.
When women athletes and veterans enter the workforce, they bring with them a mindset of performance, accountability, and teamwork that strengthens organizations. When they start businesses, they create jobs, drive innovation, and contribute to local and national economies.

The Business Case for Change

The data is clear: diverse leadership drives stronger performance, better decision-making, and increased innovation. Yet women remain underrepresented in leadership roles and underfunded as entrepreneurs.

At the same time, companies are struggling to find talent that can lead in today’s environment.

These are not separate challenges—they are the same opportunity.
By expanding leadership pipelines to include women athletes and veterans, companies can:

• Build stronger, more adaptable leadership teams
• Access proven, high-performing talent
• Strengthen their culture and employee engagement
• Drive business growth and innovation

And by supporting women-owned businesses, companies and investors can:

• Unlock new markets
• Build resilient supply chains
• Drive economic growth

A Call to Action

The workplace of 2026 requires us to think differently—not just about work, but about leadership itself.

We must move beyond traditional pathways and recognize the leadership that already exists across our communities.

At Women Business Collaborative, we are committed to building those pathways—connecting talent to opportunity, and ensuring that women are not only participating in the economy, but leading it.

The future of work is not just about technology or transformation.
It is about people—and the leaders who will shape what comes next.
Women athletes and veterans are ready.

The question is whether we are ready to invest in them.

2025: A Year of Strategic Investment in Women’s Leadership

Across industries—from boardrooms to locker rooms, and veteran communities to entrepreneurial ecosystems—WBC has strengthened the networks, visibility, and pathways available to women.

We have continued to expand our programs and convenings that amplify voices, elevate actionable solutions, and drive impact for women in business. With every partnership, every program, and every initiative, we move closer to an economy where women can access the capital, mentorship, sponsorship, and leadership opportunities they deserve.

Women in Sports: Turning Athletic Excellence Into Executive Leadership

This year, WBC sharpened its focus on women in sports—an arena rich with leadership, discipline, and strategic thinking. Through the In the Arena: Women’s Leadership in the Sports Industry initiative and the development of the Athlete Business Academy, we are working to bridge the gap between athletic skill and corporate ascent.

Women athletes are leaders. They manage risk, adapt under pressure, strategize in real time, and influence teams. In 2026 and beyond, WBC will continue building the career pathways that translate athletic talent into executive power—so women who lead on the field also lead in the boardroom.

Women Veterans: Skills Forged in Service, Ready for Business

Our support for women veterans is grounded in a simple belief: service is leadership.

Women who have led in uniform bring resilience, discipline, and mission-driven focus into the workplace. WBC is committed to helping them secure access to employment, mentorship, and entrepreneurial opportunity. Through our growing resource network and partnership development, we are building the infrastructure to help women veterans transition to industries where their expertise is valued, visible, and economically rewarded.

2025 was a year of groundwork. 2026 will be a year of expansion, collaboration, and career mobility for more women veterans nationwide.

Women-Owned Businesses: Driving Capital, Growth & Innovation

Women entrepreneurs continue to define the future of business. They innovate, reinvest in community, and build economies that work for everyone. Yet access to capital and scale remains a challenge—one WBC is working relentlessly to correct.

Through our Women Entrepreneurs & Capital Access programs, competitions, summits, and corporate partnerships, WBC is creating channels for investment, mentorship, and systemic change.

We know that when women receive capital, companies grow, communities strengthen, and economies accelerate. In 2026, we aim to widen these channels even further.

Meeting the Moment Ahead

As we close this year, WBC stands ready for what comes next.

We are expanding our work, deepening collaborations, and building measurable pathways for women to lead across industries. With a focus on women in sports, women veterans, and women-owned businesses, we are not just responding to the moment—we are shaping it.

The future demands leadership that is diverse, adaptive, and boldly innovative. Women are ready. WBC is ready.

Together, we enter 2026 with purpose. With action. With momentum.
And with the unwavering belief that women belong everywhere decisions are made.

Through the creation of the Women Cyber Governance Collaborative (WCGC), Women Business Collaborative is tackling the leadership gap head-on, to equip women board directors and executive leadership with the capability to effectively govern the real and growing risks to organizations from cyber threats.

The High Stakes of Cyber Leadership

According to the IBM “Cost of a Data Breach Report 2025”, the average cost of a data breach in the U.S. hit US $10.22 million in 2025 — a 9 % increase year-over-year and a record high. Today, women hold only a fraction of cyber governance positions across corporate boards and C-suites. This underrepresentation leaves a critical leadership blind spot and a missed opportunity. Research shows that diverse leadership leads to better decision-making, broader risk assessment, and improved performance. In cybersecurity, where innovation and adaptability are essential, those benefits are amplified.

Enter WBC and the Women Cyber Governance Collaborative

Recognizing the urgency of bringing more women into cyber governance, in 2022 WBC launched the WCGC—a strategic initiative designed to:

• Identify and elevate women with cybersecurity expertise for board and executive roles.
• Build a robust pipeline of board-ready women leaders through mentorship, visibility, and training.
• Drive awareness and accountability across companies, investors, and stakeholders for more inclusive cyber leadership.

WBC doesn’t just talk—it acts. The WBC and its partners have already connected dozens of women leaders with board opportunities, supported public boards in diversifying their cyber oversight, and helped shape the narrative around what cyber leadership should look like in 2025 and beyond.

Women Leaders Are Already Making an Impact 

WCGC’s cohort includes women CISOs, CTOs, risk officers, and former government leaders who bring technical insight and strategic foresight to the table. By championing their leadership, WBC is not only addressing gender inequity, it’s strengthening our collective cyber resilience.

Having women in these roles brings broader lived experiences, critical thinking, and risk frameworks to bear. That leads to better security outcomes and stronger governance overall.

How You Can Support the Mission

Whether you’re a company looking to strengthen your board, a woman leader in cyber seeking opportunities, or an ally who believes in inclusive leadership, there are ways to get involved:

• Explore the WCGC network: Connect with a growing group of cyber-informed women leaders ready to lead at the highest levels.
• Join WBC: join the largest and unique alliance of companies, individuals and organizations dedicated to inclusive workplace leadership
• Champion inclusive board recruitment: Push for cyber governance expertise and gender diversity in board searches.
• Amplify the message: Share the work of WBC across your networks to expand its impact. WBC also publishes a monthly report on women’s public board appointments.

As the business landscape is evolving, and so must leadership—WBC is showing the way forward—where women are not only part of the conversation on cybersecurity but leading it.

As we navigate an era defined by digital transformation and digital threats, the question isn’t whether we can afford to have more women in cyber leadership—it’s whether we can afford not to.

Snapshot: Still Way Too Few Women CEOs

According to the 2025 report, women currently average 9.2% of CEOs across the Fortune 1000, S&P 500, Russell 3000, and private firms over $1B in revenue. This is both a milestone and a reminder: progress is steady but incremental.

In the Fortune 500 alone, women now lead 55 companies, about 11% of all CEOs in that group. That indicates growth, but also points to the vast equity gap at the top of corporate America. Growth is simply not happening fast enough.

This year’s report adds a new dimension to the narrative: 10.2% of women CEOs have a background in competitive athletics (collegiate, professional, or elite-level). That data suggests the qualities honed in sports — discipline, persistence, strategic thinking, teamwork, composure under pressure —bring real value to executive leadership roles.

Why Women CEOs Are Critical Now

 

1. Driving Business Performance And Innovation
   In a complex, fast-changing environment, firms led by women are better able to navigate ambiguity with broader perspectives. Numerous studies correlate gender-diverse executive teams with stronger financial performance, better risk management, and greater innovation. 
2. Closing the Legitimacy Gap
   Organizations that reflect their employees, customers, and communities in their leadership are more trusted and resilient. Women are 50% of the U.S. workforce and drive 70–80% of consumer purchasing decisions.  As movements for racial, gender, and social equity intensify, having women at the top is a crucial signal that leadership is inclusive, grounded, and credible. 
3. Harnessing Leadership Qualities Honed in Sports
   When women with athletic experience ascend to the C-Suite, they bring mindsets forged in competition: resilience in setbacks, an orientation toward goals, adaptability and the ability to lead under pressure. These traits are not soft skills — they are core capabilities for transformation.
4. Accelerating the CEO Pipeline
   Representation at the top matters, but so does the pipeline. By focusing on women in earlier leadership roles — for example, ensuring more women are considered for CEO roles — organizations can begin to shift hiring, development, and succession systems structurally. WBC has also identified targets around women in line roles, P&L responsibilities, and C-Suite positions as key levers for change. 

Findings to Watch and Leverage

• Sector Concentration: The report notes that 62% of the women CEOs with athletic backgrounds are in healthcare, consumer goods, and technology — sectors that prize performance and adaptability.
• Athletic background as a differentiator: While only about one in ten women CEOs have athletic experience, that shared athletic participation and resulting characteristic traits are powerful in signaling alternative or advancing pathways to leadership.
• Stagnant gains in some indexes: The overall share of women CEOs across major indices remains under 10%, demonstrating both incremental progress and persistent structural barriers.  We need to accelerate this progress.

Final Word: Action

The Women CEOs in America 2025 report reinforces a simple but urgent truth: women at the top matter.  By investing in women’s pathways — whether through sports, leadership development, or equitable pipelines — we don’t just chase parity. We strengthen business performance, deepen social trust, and unlock a future where women lead across industries. The findings from WBC’s report are not just a snapshot of where we are — they are a call to action for where we must go.

According to the 2025 Wells Fargo’s Women Owned Businesses report, women own nearly 14.5 million businesses in the United States, generating $3.3 trillion in revenue and employing more than 12.9 million people. Despite these impressive numbers, women, especially women of color, face persistent barriers when it comes to accessing capital, scaling operations, and gaining visibility in competitive markets.

This is where the work of WBC becomes not just important—but urgent.

The Ecosystem Women Business Owners Deserve

Supporting women-owned businesses isn’t about offering one-time grants or checking a box for supplier diversity. It’s about building an ecosystem — a comprehensive infrastructure that enables women entrepreneurs to start, scale, sustain, and succeed. That ecosystem must include:

• Equitable access to capital: From venture capital to government contracts, we must ensure that women receive their fair share of funding and opportunities.
• Mentorship and networks: Peer-to-peer learning, cross-sector mentorship, and executive coaching help women business leaders accelerate growth.
• Policy support and public investment: Federal, state, and local governments must prioritize procurement, incentives, and technical assistance for women-owned enterprises.
• Visibility and market access: Amplifying women-led businesses in supply chains, marketplaces, and the media is essential to unlocking growth.

At WBC, we’re committed to driving these changes through partnerships, programs, and policy advocacy. From our Women’s Capital Summit and our roundtables on capital access and supplier diversity, we are convening the right people, and pushing for the right policies, to create an economy where all women business owners can thrive.

Women-Owned Businesses Fuel Inclusive Growth

Investing in women isn’t a feel-good initiative — it’s a smart economic move. A Pepperdine University study showed that twenty-five Fortune 500 firms with the best record of promoting women into high positions were up to 69 % more profitable than the median firms in their industries. When women-owned businesses grow, jobs are created, families are supported, and communities are strengthened. And when we support women from historically marginalized communities, we drive inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

We know what works. We’ve seen the power of collaboration. But now is the time to scale.

A Call to Action

As we look ahead, we need corporate leaders, investors, policymakers, and community organizations to join us. We need bold investments and intentional partnerships. We need to challenge outdated systems and embrace innovative solutions.

Most importantly, we need to believe in and bet on women.

At Women Business Collaborative, we’re not just imagining an economy that works for everyone—we’re building it, one woman-owned business at a time. 

Join WBC for its 2025 Action for Impact Summit to learn more from members of our community. Let’s keep moving forward — together.

I was delighted to host several WBC events to honor the film’s producers and directors, and to showcase the importance of Lilly Ledbetter and this film. She passed away in 2024, but her name is forever immortalized as a warrior and crusader for equal pay for women. We at WBC are privileged to keep the battle going.

Far from there yet

Despite great strides thanks to Lilly’s efforts and the resulting legislation, 16 years later pay equity is far from a reality for women. On average, women continue to earn 84 cents for every dollar their male counterparts make. The numbers are even worse for women of color, with Black women and Latinas earning 66 cents, and 59 cents respectively when compared to white, non-Hispanic men.

Action steps to move the needle on gender pay equity:

Adapt existing policies and processes to:

• Prohibit retaliation or discrimination against employees who disclose or discuss salaries
• Not inquire about previous salary history while recruiting
• Include salary ranges in all job postings
• Disallow salary negotiation for new hires unless predetermined pay bands are published

Conduct and publish analyses of raw and adjusted pay for underrepresented populations, wherever it is legally permitted

• Include part-time, contract, and full-time workers, as well as temporary hires made through third-party staffing agencies.
  Report progress annually
• Set aside funds to support the work the company is doing to equalize pay

Publish the number and percentages of women and minorities in each pay band.

• Develop and use objective criteria to determine pay standards (salary ranges or “levels”)
• Ensure criteria can be backed up by an accessible pay calculator
• Be transparent about both methodology and findings

A Final Note: Watch the Movie

Lilly is now out in theatres and streaming on a number of platforms, including Amazon Prime. It is enlightening, inspiring and entertaining, with an Oscar-worthy performance by Patricia Colson in the title role.

As I watched Lilly, I was heartened that she realized she couldn’t do it alone and joined forces with like-thinking women and men. It reinforced for me our WBC mantra of #FasterTogether, and the unwavering importance of a collaborative approach to achieving gender pay equity. Many are in the trenches with us. Hope you will be too!

Gwen Young
CEO, WBC

P.S.: It’s important to note that none of Lilly Ledbetter’s actions following the Supreme Court loss, did anything to overturn the ruling against her. She fought the fight for other women.