The High Price of Silence: What Women’s Silenced Voices Really Cost Business

Silence is Expensive

Every year, businesses bleed billions because women are being silenced.
Not by lack of talent — but by bias, broken systems, and the motherhood penalty.

This isn’t “a diversity issue.” It’s a performance leak.
And the cost shows up directly in your bottom line.

The Broken Rung: Your Pipeline is Leaking Talent

For every 100 men promoted to manager, only 87 women are (McKinsey/LeanIn, 2023).
That’s the first “rung” on the ladder — and it’s broken.

If your future leaders never get their first promotion, your leadership bench is running at 20% capacity.
Would you accept that from your IT system?

This is why organisations bring in specialists like me: to ensure women don’t just get promoted, but arrive with presence, authority, and confidence to lead.

The Motherhood Penalty: Qualified Women, Lost Returns

Mothers face a 31–44% lifetime earnings hit and are 79% less likely to be hired when parenthood is visible (OECD, Cornell).

That’s not lack of ambition — that’s systemic bias.
And when women leave under pressure, replacing them costs ~£1.2M per 1,000 employees annually (CIPD).

I work with leaders who want to keep this talent — by helping mothers and caregivers step into leadership with a sustainable voice and visibility strategy, instead of burning out or dropping out.

The Authority Gap: Ideas Ignored, Profits Lost

Women are interrupted twice as often as men in meetings (Harvard). Their ideas get re-phrased by male colleagues and rewarded elsewhere.

Translation: you’re paying for intelligence you never use.
Who’s getting credit for your smartest ideas?

My coaching cuts through this — giving women the tools to claim the room, hold their ground, and make their ideas land where they belong.

Attrition Costs: Talent Walking Out the Door

Companies with women in leadership see up to 48% higher operating margins (Peterson Institute).
Yet exclusionary cultures push women out.

For a 10,000-employee company, that’s a £12M annual leak in recruitment and lost productivity.
Would you tolerate that from your supply chain?

This is where leaders I work with flip the script: instead of losing women, they create cultures where female talent grows, stays, and leads.

What Leaders Must Do Now

Leaders who want to win in the next decade need to do more than tick a diversity box.

• Audit your culture. Who gets promoted? Who speaks uninterrupted? Who leaves?

• Fix the broken rung. Transparent promotion criteria. Equal access to stretch projects.

• Invest in women’s development. Presence, voice, leadership training — not token gestures.

• Protect parent talent. Parental leave, flexibility, no penalty for care.

This isn’t about charity. It’s about competitive advantage.
And it’s exactly the work I do with CEOs, boards, and leadership teams who are ready to act.

The Competitive Edge

Your competitors who amplify women’s voices are already outperforming you.
Not tomorrow. Today.

The question is simple:
👉 How much longer are you prepared to pay for women’s silence?

Because fixing this isn’t theory — it’s my daily practice.
For 25 years I’ve coached leaders and rising stars to find their voice, hold the room, and change outcomes.

If you want to stop paying for silence — and start profiting from women’s full power — let’s talk.