Female Leaders Are More Confident in Handling a Crisis

Worldcom Public Relations Group, the world’s leading independent communication partnership, published the 2020 Confidence Index.  According to the results of the highly anticipated Index, which was conducted in 36 countries including Turkey, female leaders are more confident than their male peers in coping with the pandemic.

Worldcom’s Confidence Index (WCI)  for 2020 reveals interesting shifts in CEO/CMO confidence over the last year.  The Index, which was conducted in 36 countries including Turkey, highlights the topics over 54,000 CEOs and CMOs engage most with. It also reveals interesting shifts in the confidence of the executives.  The study was able to operate at this scale, and in nine different languages, because the data was captured using a breakthrough approach powered by artificial intelligence (AI). The stand-out change from the report since 2019 was the rise in confidence of female leaders by seven percent and the decline in confidence of male leaders by the same figure^. As this covers the pandemic period, the result suggests that female leaders are more confident and effective n handling a crisis than their male peers. Despite the upward shift in confidence for female leaders, overall global confidence in the C-suite declined by eight percent from 2019. The WCI findings provide valuable insights to help organizations plan for the coming year.

The changes to business operations caused by the pandemic seem to have triggered two significant changes in confidence. Confidence in the ability to upskill and reskill rose 15 places to #1 on the WCI. And, not surprisingly given the forced shift due to COVID-19, confidence in using technology to collaborate and innovate moved up 16 places to #2 on the WCI. Both these areas will remain central to success in 2021.

Engagement with crisis management rose 40 percent

The most significant increases in leaders’ engagement with topics did not translate into increased confidence. As might have been expected, engagement with government and legislative change increased 79 percent from the 2019 level, and engagement with crisis management rose by 40 percent. However, both topics remained in the top five topics of concern (lowest confidence) along with global trade agreements and tariffs, the impact on business of the way political leaders communicate on social media, and sexual harassment and other bad behavior.

Optimore Group’s CEO, Seyhan Ayel, believes that the Worldcom Confidence Index provides a clear indication of where business leaders will focus their effort in trying to bounce back from the pandemic. Ayel said: “We can expect the rise of female executives, who embrace resilience and confidence, to continue in all areas. We will be using the local insight provided by the WCI to build communications strategies tat enable our clients to inspire confidence in all their stakeholders.”

Turkish leaders rank 24^th for confidence
The confidence of Turkish leaders ranked 24th, while US leaders came 1^st in the ranking. However, this increased confidence was not experienced across all the business topics in the WCI. For example, U.S. leaders’ confidence in data privacy and protection fell by 23 percent since 2019.  Confidence in the impact and role of the media has increased since 2019. This topic moved from last place in 2019 to #10 on the WCI in 2020. Leaders in France are the most confident, while leaders in Brazil are the most concerned about this topic^.

Video, charts and additional insights
You can get additional WCI insights and charts on the Worldcom website. View the Global results of the Annual 2020 WCI in the .

About The Worldcom Public Relations Group
The Worldcom Public Relations Group (Worldcom) is the world’s leading partnership of independently owned public relations firms, with 143 offices employing some 2,000 staff in 115 cities across six continents. Worldcom partners reported a combined revenue of U.S. $300+ million last year. Established in 1988, the group was formed so that the strongest, most capable independent firms could inspire direct action from stakeholders in a way that delivers immediate results and lasting outcomes– wherever in the world a client needs support. Learn more about Worldcom at www.worldcomgroup.com 

About Optimore Group
Established in 1996, and originally trading as , the Optimore Group was formed in 2021 to satisfy the special needs of different markets and organizations. The group has five specialist divisions under its roof, OptimumBrand, Optimum Health, Optimum Representation, Optimum Direction to provide strategy / positioning services, and Optimum Startup with its tailor-made services for startups. The Optimore Group, serves a wide range of local and international clients and provides branding, marketing consultancy, strategic corporate communications, consumer communications, media relations, digital and content marketing, crisis communications and internal communications services.  Positioned as a strategic partner to its clients for all marketing communication needs, Optimore Group plays an active role in the establishment of marketing strategies and achieves groundbreaking results. For more information www.optimoregroup.com