12 Oct 2026
TEN RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GENDER-EQUAL LEADERSHIP
After a year of conversations with students, leaders and organisations across Västra Götaland, the project Leadership for Gender-Equal Societies presents ten practical steps for moving from intention to action.
Who gets promoted, who chairs the board and whose voice carries weight in a meeting are decisions made every day in workplaces across the region.
Throughout 2026, WIN WIN Award brought students, business leaders and public actors together in Gothenburg, Trollhättan, Borås and Mark to look at the structural barriers that still stand in the way of gender-equal leadership, and at what it would take to overcome them.
Seminars, workshops and roundtable discussions drew on research as well as lived experience from academia and business, gathering perspectives from established leaders and from those whose careers are still ahead of them.
The ten recommendations that came out of this work are written for anyone in a position to shape leadership, recruitment or workplace culture. At a time when many sectors find it harder to attract and keep talent, more inclusive leadership is also one of the most effective ways an organisation can strengthen its resilience over time.
“Gender equality rarely fails because people oppose it. It fails when nobody owns it after the conference ends. These ten recommendations are written for the manager deciding who gets promoted and for the board choosing its next chair. In parts of the world equality is being rolled back right now. Västra Götaland has every reason to move the other way, and to do it in practice,” says Madeleine Jonsson, Chair of the Environment and Regional Development Committee, Region Västra Götaland.
Jenny Claesson of Add Gender, who contributed to the project as an expert and lecturer, sees gender equality as a foundation for wider progress.
“The UN reminds us that no global goal outweighs another, but some are foundations for all the others to succeed. Gender equality is one of them. That is why the ten recommendations matter, and why they have the potential to influence the region’s decisions, strengthen leadership, and make a real difference in people’s lives. Gender equality on the agenda is crucial for sustainable development to succeed.”
Read the ten recommendations: