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What Makes an Inclusive Leader?

Jennifer Kim,
Ronit Kark,
Lisa Mascolo

Five key behaviors that set them apart.

Leaders play a critical role in fostering inclusivity within their organizations. They account for a difference of up to 70 percentage points in employees’ experience of belongingness and psychological safety, and inclusive leaders see a 17% increase in team performance, a 20% increase in decision-making quality, and a 29% increase in team collaboration. Inclusive leaders also cut down employee attrition risk. If inclusive leaders are so influential, then inclusive traits like humility, curiosity, and empathy should be treated as critical leadership capabilities rather than simply desirable. The authors conducted structured interviews with 40 DEI award–winning or peer-nominated exemplary inclusive leaders from a wide variety of job functions, organizations, and industries. They identified five key behaviors that help leaders make their organizations more inclusive.

Organizational leaders are increasingly leveraging inclusion to attract talent, retain employees, and motivate high creativity and excellence. Indeed, inclusive organizations are 73% more likely to reap innovation revenue, 70% more likely to capture new markets, up to 50% more likely to make better decisions, and up to 36% more likely to have above-average profitability.

Wei Zheng is the Richard R. Roscitt Endowed Chair Professor in Leadership at Stevens Institute of Technology. Her research, teaching, and practice focus on leadership and diversity. Her research work has appeared in top scholarly and practitioner outlets. She is currently co-leading Stevens Inclusive Leadership Certificate Program to train inclusive leaders and Stevens Leadership Portal that disseminates actionable insights at the intersection of leadership, technology, and inclusivity.
Jennifer Kim is a research assistant professor at Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development, Tufts School of Medicine. Her research and consulting focus on quantifying the impact of DEI initiatives in drug development.
RK Ronit Kark is a full professor of leadership and organizational psychology in the department of psychology at Bar-Ilan University, Israel, and was the founder and director of the Gender in the Field Graduate Program. She is also a Distinguished Research Professor at the Exeter School of Business, UK, and an Anna Boyksen Awardee and Fellow for the Study of Gender and Diversity at the Technical University of Munich (TUM). She sits on different NGO boards to promote diversity and gender equity and is an academic nomad, traveling internationally to give keynote presentations and workshops on leadership and diversity topics.
LM Lisa Mascolo is an accomplished C-suite leader in strategy, business development, change management, IT, and operations. Lisa is an Accenture founding partner and a trustee and graduate of the Stevens Institute of Technology, where she serves as chair of alumni & development and vice chair of nomination & governance. She is a director of the MedStar Washington Hospital Center Board in Washington, DC, and a member of the board of trustees of EWAAB.

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Inclusive Leadership: Why It’s Important and How to Improve It

Business leaders should make inclusion a priority. Here’s why.

Inclusive leadership works to make everyone associated with a company feel welcome and empowered to be themselves. Leading inclusively not only makes employees and customers feel accepted, but also boosts company revenue and workplace satisfaction. Most importantly, it amplifies employee voices that otherwise may not be heard.

Inclusive Leadership Definition

Inclusive leadership is the practice of leading with empathy, respect and an open mind to perspectives and contributions from all team members. Inclusive leaders seek to foster diverse teams and make everyone feel empowered to do their best work.

What Is Inclusive Leadership?

Inclusive leadership involves leading with an openness to diverse perspectives and an awareness of implicit bias . Being an inclusive leader means to make all types of employees, customers and clients feel welcome by fostering an overall inclusive workplace environment . In practice, this can look like making sure benefits are distributed equitably, providing diversity and inclusion training or establishing safe spaces for employees like ERGs .

As an example of inclusive leadership, consider Tori Armendariz. When she chatted with a coworker about her girlfriend, she noticed not everyone was accepting.

“The manager of that location took me aside and said that I couldn’t speak about things like that,” Armendariz, now a technical people operations generalist at Trainual , said. It was made clear that the manager at Armendariz’s previous employer wasn’t accepting of her girlfriend and the LGBTQ+ community.

Armendariz’s experience, though disheartening, inspired her to create an inclusive workplace during her time at Trainual. She wanted no one else to go through the same treatment she did for just being herself — ultimately becoming an inclusive leader.

Why Is Inclusive Leadership Important?

Inclusive leadership is important for many reasons.

Inclusive Leadership Allows All Voices to Be Heard at Work

It ensures the voice of everyone is truly being heard, applied and protected in the workplace, regardless of personal identity or background. Without inclusive leadership, it can be hard for those in underrepresented groups to acquire necessary career resources and support at work.

A Lack of Inclusive Leadership Damages Workplace Culture

Additionally, a lack of diversity and unfamiliarity with the importance of inclusion can unintentionally lead managers and leaders to create a hostile workplace. Even actions like using gendered, heteronormative language in onboarding packets or hosting all-male panels contribute to the problem of an unwelcome company environment.

A Lack of Inclusive Leadership Weakens Customer Relationships

Having a lack of diversity and inclusion isn’t just a culture issue. It can affect the product and in turn create a poor experience for clients too.

For example, according to WebAIM, almost 96 percent of website homepages didn’t fully meet web content accessibility guidelines in 2024. Another study showed that many healthcare algorithm tools assigned Black patients with health risk scores that inaccurately reflected their actual health conditions. When a design team doesn’t welcome diversity of thought or experience, it’s much easier for biases to be written into their code.

Inclusive Leadership and Diversity Leads to Success

Investing in an inclusive and diverse workplace means employees feel connected and supported to do their best work — and deliver results. In fact, inclusive companies are preferred by a majority of job seekers and workers, and can lead to higher work engagement and revenue .

“A diverse workforce that is fully contributing leads to holistically stronger performance,” Lauren Sato, CEO at Ada Developers Academy, said. “Products are better aligned to consumers, financial results are better, and there are higher rates of innovation and resilience.”

Traits of Inclusive Leadership

An inclusive leader often exhibits the following traits and behaviors.

Committed to Diversity and Inclusivity

Inclusive leaders take the initiative to create workplace environments that are diverse and inclusive for every team member. They also make it their responsibility to solve any roadblocks in employee belonging at work.

Humble and Courageous

Inclusive leaders exercise humility and understand they are one piece of a whole team. They acknowledge when mistakes are made, aren’t afraid to receive feedback from employees and look for ways to improve and adapt where necessary.

Mindful of Personal Biases

Inclusive leaders are mindful of their own personal biases, as well as biased practices in the workplaces, and actively work to combat them to ensure fairness. They may advocate for employees to also look inward and be aware of their biases as well.

Open-Minded and Curious

Inclusive leaders practice being open-minded toward everyone they encounter in the workplace. They also remain curious about new perspectives and seek out input from voices that aren’t usually heard.

Culturally Aware

Inclusive leaders demonstrate cultural awareness for themselves and employees around them, and remain aware of how to treat others based on their cultural knowledge. Additionally, they encourage teams to practice cultural awareness.

Collaborative

Inclusive leaders are inherently collaborative, and understand the importance of working alongside others to achieve goals effectively. They often don’t make important decisions without first consulting the opinions of their team members.

Examples of Inclusive Leadership

When companies demonstrate inclusive leadership and build diverse teams that accurately reflect the outside world, everyone benefits. Here’s some examples of how companies can make inclusive leadership a priority.

How to Improve Inclusive Leadership

Pay attention and listen to employees.
Refresh recruitment strategies.
Re-evaluate company policies.
Create safe spaces for discussion.

1. Listening to Employees With Mutual Respect

Diversity and inclusivity, while often spoken in the same breath, are two different things. You can have a company that features a diverse staff, but doesn’t make an effort to make sure those employees are included and heard.

“Ask yourself who is listened to in the room,” Everett Harper, CEO and co-founder of Truss , said. “Do managers unintentionally repeat all the men in the room, and ignore the women? Do men summarize women’s original ideas without giving them credit — and does the manager not recognize that?”

In order to get more honest feedback from employees, managers at Truss made the process more accessible. Rather than asking for feedback in a meeting and hearing from the same people who are comfortable speaking up, the managers and teams use a Google doc. Each team member adds three pieces of feedback and then managers will share them in the meeting.

“According to research on group communication, this tactic enables introverts to contribute, and enables marginalized voices to have an equal platform,” Harper said.

2. Broadening Recruitment Channels and Candidate Pools

Recruiters want to hire top talent and usually look first at graduates of prestigious colleges and bootcamps. With a limited search like that, it could mean a lot of talented candidates are getting overlooked.

“Liberal arts computer science degree programs and software development bootcamps are essentially the only two pathways into tech [for example],” Sato said. “As a society writ large we have made massive investments into these two pathways, both of which, unfortunately, drive down diversity.”

Be open to candidates who are self-taught or come from unconventional backgrounds. A good first step is encouraging diverse candidates to apply, but direct outreach to passive candidates is necessary too. Remote work has opened up a larger pool of candidates, so now companies can more easily broaden their geographical diversity as well.

It’s also worth looking at the balance of senior and junior employees. While it might make sense to hire more experienced engineers in the short term, not having enough young talent and training opportunities is a disadvantage. Making space for new perspectives and talent of varying experience levels produces a well-rounded team.

More on DEI How to Source Diverse Talent

3. Ensuring Equitable Resources and Development Opportunities

Demographics are just one part of developing an inclusive workplace. Be aware of what support is available to employees. Survey compensation rates, benefits packages and DEI funding to see where improvements could be made.

Take stock of your team’s performance: Does anyone seem to be taking more time off than other people? Is anyone participating less in scrums? Instead of criticizing them, question what policies or tools you could implement to help them perform better.

4. Providing DEI Training, Courses and Resources

Some employees may not already be familiar with workplace inclusivity and may not be able to put it into practice without guidelines to follow. To create a baseline of expectations for how employees should treat each other, proper educational and informational resources may be necessary.

Provide access to training tools that cover topics like DEI, anti-harassment and mutual respect in the workplace, and be open as a leader to answer questions regarding these topics. People learn in all types of ways, so it’s important to educate through any avenue possible, from oral instructions and written policies to videos and activities.

More on DEI How to Start Funding More Than Just White Guys

5. Using Inclusive Language

A little goes a long way, especially with how you address and chat with employees. Inclusive language aims to encompass all employees, and not be exclusive to one characteristic or ability.

Inclusive language can look like using the pronoun “they” to refer to theoretical people instead of “he” or “she”, using plain language instead of idioms or metaphors to communicate or using the terms “you all” or “folks” instead of “guys.”

6. Creating ERGs and Safe Environments

Above all else, everyone should feel safe at work. A workplace where everyone is respected will put people in a position to do their best work. Cultivate an environment that welcomes all feedback and allows employees to be who they are at work.

“I think the single best thing that they can do is blameless retros,” Harper said. “The key is to focus on learning, not blame, so that everyone on the team can operate at a higher level.” Don’t be afraid to admit when you’ve made a leadership mistake — owning up to mistakes makes your team more confident that you’re willing to learn and grow.

At Ada Developers Academy, inclusivity depends on a constant practice of accountability, according to Sato. Regular self-reflection enables her organization to stay on top of issues — that constant evolution has turned it into a place where workers from all backgrounds have a strong voice.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is inclusive leadership.

Inclusive leadership is a style of leadership where diverse perspectives and backgrounds are encouraged in the workplace. It emphasizes leading with mutual respect, empathy and an open mind toward other employees.

Why is inclusive leadership important?

Inclusive leadership ensures every employee is properly heard and empowered to contribute their voice at work. Leading with inclusivity in mind can boost company culture and revenue, strengthen business relationships and increase employee retention.

What are the qualities of inclusive leadership?

Some qualities of inclusive leadership include:

Commitment to diversity and inclusivity
Being humble and willing to adapt
Mindfulness of personal biases
Open-mindedness and curiosity
Cultural awareness
Collaborative nature

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The benefits of inclusive leadership

Individual benefits of inclusive leadership: unlocking potential

Inclusive leaders help organizations attract the best talent from talent pools that haven’t yet fully been tapped. This is crucial, not simply because it spells more high-quality talent for your business, but bringing in perspectives and experiences from traditionally underrepresented talent groups provides insight into the perspectives and experiences of underrepresented customer groups as well. This can also help shed light on problems that more homogenous teams have been stuck on and unable to resolve.

But attracting diverse talent is only the start. The biggest advantage of inclusive leadership is that inclusive leaders know how to unleash individual potential and create an environment where all talent can thrive and grow.

A 2019 Korn Ferry Institute survey of talent management, HR, and diversity and inclusion experts identified some of the key ways inclusive leaders can unlock individual potential. Among those surveyed, there was almost universal agreement that inclusive leaders:

Enable individuals to feel free to bring their authentic selves to work
Provide individuals with a sense of empowerment to take risks
Reassure individuals that there is equity and fairness and that they will be challenged with job stretch opportunities

Research shows that leaders who are seen as fair and respectful, encourage collaboration, and value different ideas and opinions are 2.5 times more likely to have effective employees on their teams. In other words, the ability to unlock individual potential benefits everyone that is led by an inclusive leader, but it benefits underrepresented talent even more. Why?

Individuals from traditionally underrepresented groups face additional biases and barriers to their professional development. If they do not feel included in an organization, they are unlikely to reach their full potential. Inclusive leaders help underrepresented people understand that they have the power to take ownership of their own careers and equip them with the specific insights, strategies, and tools they need to drive their development forward.

They do this through mentoring, sponsorship and coaching, and they are advocates for individuals who they think are being treated unfairly. They also help individuals develop greater self-agency, encouraging them to speak up, be heard, and optimize their contributions.

Team benefits of inclusive leadership: unlocking collective intelligence

A study by the Canadian researcher N. J. Adler has revealed that, while diverse teams do indeed outperform and out-innovate homogenous teams, they can also at times be significantly less effective.

Image Source: Nancy J. Adler, International Dimensions of Organizational Behavior, 4th ed. (Cincinnati, OH: Thomson South-Western, 2002).

Why? Because diversity will only lead to better results if it is skillfully managed in an inclusive way. Without inclusion, diverse teams have a high chance of becoming chaotic, leading to lower productivity and engagement, higher turnover, and litigation. It is, after all, much easier to manage a group of people with similar backgrounds and experiences than it is to convince teams made up of diverse individuals to understand their varying thought patterns and behaviors and value them at a deep and personal level.

Even when diverse teams are managed by skilled inclusive leaders, they may be outperformed by homogenous teams in the early stages of working together because disruption and conflict can result when different perspectives, experiences, backgrounds, thinking, and communication styles are brought into a team.

Image Source: Charlotte Sweeney and Fleur Bothwick, Inclusive Leadership: Defining Guide to Developing and Executing an Impactful Diversity and Inclusion Strategy (London: Pearson Education, 2016), 171. Graph is adapted from Katherine W. Phillips, “How Diversity Makes Us Smarter,” Scientific American 311, no. 4 (October 2014): 42–47; and Bruce W. Tuckman, “Developmental Sequence in Small Groups,” Psychological Bulletin 63, no. 6 (1965): 384–399.

Given time, however, a well-managed diverse team can significantly outperform a well-managed homogenous one. The key is having a leader who is a self-aware advocate for diversity and has the inclusive skills to leverage the differences within the team to achieve better performance. This is one of the most important benefits of inclusive leadership for your organization.

Organizational benefits of inclusive leadership: driving innovation and growth

There have been many different studies into the relationship between diversity and inclusion and company performance, and almost all of them have come to the same conclusion. Put simply: diversity and inclusion is good for business.

When compared with their peers, organizations that are truly diverse and inclusive are:

70% more likely to capture new markets, Chief Executive for Corporate Purpose (CECP)
75% more likely to see ideas become productized , Center for Talent Innovation (2013)
19% more likely to see higher innovation revenue , Boston Consulting Group
87% more likely to make better decisions , Korn Ferry Research

Inclusive leaders underpin this competitive advantage. They are the ones bringing organizations closer to their aspirations of being equitable, inclusive, and diverse. They are the ones leading the effort to design systems that unleash the potential of all their talent. They are the ones championing diversity initiatives and affinity groups, advocating for structural changes, acting as role models, and holding other leaders accountable for increasing the pipeline of underrepresented talent. Most important, they aren’t just in it for the short term — they are continuously driving and managing changes that make the organization more inclusive and diverse.

In this way, inclusive leaders are fundamental to company success. The greatest challenge for any business right now is to create growth. And, as the diagram below illustrates, the solution starts with inclusive leaders.

Image Source: Andrés T. Tapia and Alina Polonskaia, The Five Disciplines of Inclusive Leaders White Paper (Korn Ferry, 2020).

Inclusive leaders are critical to success. They unlock individual potential, enhance the collective power of teams, and support your organization’s ability to innovate and grow.

Unsurprisingly, demand for inclusive leadership at all levels of organizations is steadily growing, but finding these leaders is another matter. We recently analyzed 24,000 leadership assessments to find out what proportion of leaders today could be classified as inclusive leaders. The answer? Barely 5%.

The good news is that inclusive leadership attributes can be defined, measured, assess, coached, and developed. So even if your inclusive leader ratio is only 1 in 20 today, tomorrow it could be 2 in 20. Or 5 in 20. Or even 20 in 20.

To find out how you, and other people in your organization can develop your inclusive leadership skills, read our article, “ The Journey to Becoming a More Inclusive Leader ”.

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12 top leaders share how they are redefining leadership to embrace inclusivity

Our idea of leadership is changing. In a world of rapid change and disruption, this is a good thing. Image: Getty Images

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The way we understand and conceive of leadership is rapidly changing.
Today, it's essential that leaders are empathetic and understand the importance of diversity.
12 Young Global Leaders have shared how they embody this new philosophy of leadership in their own work.

In an era marked by rapid technological advancements, shifting global priorities and a growing emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion, the landscape of leadership is undergoing a profound transformation.

As the next generation of leaders emerges and matures, it is imperative that we redefine leadership models to ensure they are inclusive and accessible to all. We explore the emergence of this new leadership paradigm through the work of visionary Young Global Leaders who are championing change in various fields.

Have you read?

How 4 young global leaders balance short-term success with long-term sustainability, meet the young global leaders class of 2023.

'Women will regularly turn a promotion down even if they are perfect for it'

Juliana Chan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Wildtype Media Group

As a female CEO and founder, I would like to share what I have learned about promoting women into positions of seniority. I have discovered that women will regularly turn a promotion down even if they are perfect for it, for a variety of reasons. This is why I have become smarter in how I do this — I will prepare them six months before the promotion, ramping up their visibility and leadership slowly. When I finally offer them the promotion, I show them that they are already executing the future role — and excellently, at that. Since I adopted this format, all promotion offers have been accepted without hesitation.

'What we need in leaders, now more than ever, is a willingness to not become a victim'

Raju Narisetti, Leader, Global Publishing, McKinsey & Company

“Moving into and beyond COP28 and headed into Davos 2024, what we need in leaders now more than ever, is a willingness to not become a victim to the prevailing herd mentality around urgent yet unrealistic timetables. We need to steadfastly recommit to the ‘how to’ as much as the ‘if only,’ in our unwavering quest for a sustainable planet, because inclusive and sustainable growth must be about enhancing both lives (environment) and livelihoods (jobs). Leaders need to marry this clearly felt urgency with a pragmatic realism, and stand up for the best way to get everyone to where we all agree we need to get to, soon.” Says Raju Narisetti.

'As AI transforms many of the tasks my team and I do, my leadership role is now as an educator'

Geoffrey See, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, Poko

“As AI transforms many of the tasks my team and I do, my leadership role is now as an educator. I help my team build the right culture and skills to experiment with AI across all functions, build and deliver AI platforms internally for them as their sandbox, and work with them to bring to life the most promising use cases they propose and pilot. LLMs have made AI more accessible than previous generation models I worked with. I see myself as being in the learning trenches with my teammates as they are now able to ideate and iterate on use cases directly, rapidly increasing our pace of AI adoption.”

'We are embracing inclusive and accessible models such as compassionate leadership'

Ashish J. Thakkar, Group Chief Executive Officer, Y9

“As the next generation redefines leadership, we are embracing inclusive and accessible models such as compassionate leadership, which prioritises empathy and collaboration and transformational and truthful leadership, which inspires positive change and transparency. We also believe in shared leadership with love, where diverse perspectives contribute to decision-making with an ‘everyone should win’ lens. These models reflect my spiritual leader Morari Bapus' teachings of truth, love and compassion.”

'Entrepreneurial thinking enables everyone from all levels to think on the vision and how to get there'

Richard Ettl, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder, SkyCell

“Climate change is one of our generation's biggest challenges. In order to prevent severe consequences, we need to amend a company’s purpose — this calls for returns on the triple bottom line: People, Planet, Profit. In order to achieve this, I have adopted a value-based leadership model. Vision, values and entrepreneurial thinking are at its core. The vision is the reason why the company or organization is doing something. Values act as the guardrails when making difficult decisions. Entrepreneurial thinking enables everyone from all levels to think on the vision and how to get there.”

'A model of leadership that's based on empowerment, not charity'

Shani Senbetta, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Kidame Mar

“In my work supporting rural women in Ethiopia to start their own micro-enterprises, my goal is to make economic opportunities more accessible. We equip them with products to sell, financial resources, education and mentorship. This approach is about more than just giving people tools to succeed; it's about building their capacity to use these tools effectively. It's a model of leadership that's based on empowerment, not charity. To my surprise, the biggest challenge when starting Kidame Mart was the amount of effort required to bring about this mind shift among both my team and the women we work with.”

'Leaders must first recognize their own unconscious biases and then support colleagues to overcome theirs'

Anahita Thoms, Partner in International Trade Practice, Baker McKenzie

“'I treat everyone I work with equally, offering everyone a fair shot based solely on performance' — who wouldn't say that about themselves?

Yet, upon closer look, various groups of people, often based on their race, gender or other characteristics feel excluded from striving at their workplace. They may even face bullying or harassment. This is where leaders can and should make a difference in creating a safe, diverse and inclusive work environment. It starts with self-reflection. We all have unconscious biases. Leaders must first recognize their own unconscious biases and then support colleagues to overcome theirs. This is why we conduct unconscious bias training — to assist clients in spotting underlying structural inequities, addressing them at their roots and effectively creating a thriving business where differences are not just accepted, but celebrated.”

'Discover each and everyone’s zone of genius'

Tiffany Xingyu Wang, Chief Marketing Officer, OpenWeb

“’A leader is a multiplier who can turn a team into a community of belonging and trust. I call it 'community leadership’. First, discover each and everyone’s zone of genius. Second, craft the job around people rather than the other way around. Third, be an ally: navigate ambiguity toward a north star of impact. Last, put tools and processes in place for the talents to grow and shine. Using this framework, I can build a force for good that feels part of a community one can trust and belong to.”

'New generations of consumers are scrutinizing corporations and holding them accountable for their business practices'

Alejo Czerwonko, Chief Investment Officer, Emerging Markets, Americas, UBS AG

“We are living in a period of accelerated transformation — one that calls for multifaceted decision-making. New generations of consumers are scrutinizing corporations and holding them accountable for their business practices. Once-a-century environmental shocks are now occurring multiple times a year. Tectonic plates in world geopolitics are shifting and leading to more frequent and severe tensions. Artificial Intelligence is upending business models across industries. Now more than ever, a narrow-minded focus on the bottom line will no longer cut it. Success will require a wider focus and deliberate action — one that considers the impact of decisions on a broader range of stakeholders and the environment.”

'Global challenges are pressing leaders to adopt frameworks focused on inclusive growth and equity'

Minoush Abdelmeguid, Founder and Managing Director, Mezzan

“Global challenges are pressing leaders to adopt frameworks focused on inclusive growth and equity. Leaders have learned the hard way that choices of one affect the livelihood of many, and that exclusion will not only cause alienation but will create greater inefficiency. Leaders are required today, more than ever, to mobilize resources around a vision of a shared environment, and of a common future. This is the only way that will lead to a better tomorrow.”

'Hope is the driving force, but the way forward is created by solid strategies'

Bárbara Luiza Coutinho do Nascimento, State Prosecutor, Rio de Janeiro State Prosecutor's Office

“As the next generation redefines leadership, my approach focuses on instilling optimism and determination to overcome challenges while building feasible paths to reach our goals. Hope is the driving force, but the way forward is created by solid strategies. I employ methods that prioritize the use of technology and data-driven decision-making processes. The central values of my leadership model are integrity, transparency, accountability, collaboration and innovation. By fostering a hopeful spirit and embracing innovative and adaptable strategies while upholding ethical standards, I aspire to create an inclusive and accessible environment that allows for open, constructive and respectful dialogue.”

'Agile leadership motivates and empowers others towards inclusive, sustainable progress'

Landry Signé, Senior Fellow, Global Economy and Development Program, Brookings Institution

"The Fourth Industrial Revolution is reshaping the world, requiring leaders with agility, digital and ethical values. Agile leaders harness digital leadership and AI-informed leadership to achieve strategic goals and navigate global trends, working towards a more humane world. Agile leadership motivates and empowers others towards inclusive, sustainable progress. Agile leaders excel at addressing the challenges of rapid change, diverse stakeholders, and the need for significant impact. They're mission-focused, innovative, data-driven and inclusive. Agile leaders foster empowerment and continuous learning. These leaders are approachable, creative and responsible, treating everyone with respect and empathy, unwaveringly pursuing their mission and vision for a better future."

The YGL community is made up of more than 1,300 members and alumni, including public officials, business innovators, artists, educators, technology developers, journalists and activists.

The mission of the Forum of Young Global Leaders is to create a dynamic global community of exceptional people with the vision, courage and influence to drive positive change in the world.

Aligned with the World Economic Forum’s mission , they seek to spur public-private cooperation amongst these unique actors to demonstrate entrepreneurship in the global public interest.

Representing more than 100 nationalities, Young Global Leaders are united by the belief that the urgent problems of today present an opportunity to forge a better future across sectors, generations and borders.

Visit the YGL website at: https://www.younggloballeaders.org/

As the next generation redefines leadership, these visionary leaders exemplify the diversity of approaches needed to create inclusive and accessible models. Whether it's advancing gender diversity, addressing environmental challenges, or harnessing emerging technologies, these leaders inspire us to adapt, evolve, and prioritize inclusivity in our leadership journeys.