There may be no quick fix to the current financial crisis, but fostering new perspectives by advancing more women into leadership positions is a sure-fire, long-term resolution, says a new report from Ernst & Young.

“Groundbreakers is about diversity of thought and not necessarily about race, gender, ethnicity or sexual orientation, which we traditionally associate with diversity,” says Lou Pagnutti, Ernst & Young chairman and CEO. “Canada, and the world for that matter, needs business leaders who bring different skills, who think about familiar problems in new ways, and reject the kind of groupthink that may have contributed to the global financial challenges the world is facing.”

In the Groundbreakers report, Ernst & Young brings together research that makes clear the case for more women leaders in business. For instance, the report cites data from Goldman Sachs that found closing the gap between male and female employment rates could boost U.S. GDP by as much as 9%, Eurozone GDP by 13% and Japanese GDP by 16%.

“Investing in women to drive economic growth is not simply about morality or fairness. It’s about honing a competitive edge,” says Pagnutti. “There is opportunity during this time of adversity — it’s time we recognize that, and build women into the leadership fabric of our organizations. Diversity is not a ‘nice to have.’ It’s a business imperative.”

The Ernst and Young report references an Economist magazine report that says over the past few decades, women have contributed more to the world’s GDP than has new technology or the emerging economies of China and India.

The report also cites data from a 2007 Catalyst report that found that on average, Fortune 500 companies with more women on their boards of directors turned in better financial performances than those with fewer women board directors.

According to Ernst & Young, Canadian companies can build leadership capacity for increased competitiveness by creating a deliberate plan to get women into leadership positions, and working towards “functional diversity” by including people with diverse ways of perceiving problems to devise better solutions.

The firm also warns companies not to underestimate the power of critical mass. A 2007 McKinsey study showed companies with three or more women in senior management scored higher than companies with no women at the top over a range of measures for organizational excellence. “It is not just about adding a woman here or there. It is about building the critical mass that gives people the power to speak up, and to have their views heard,” Ernst & Young says.

IE