Women in Power: Lived Realities of Leadership in Family Enterprises

Women in Power: Lived Realities of Leadership in Family Enterprises

From Women in Family Business by Women in Family Business

March 8, 2026 · 35 min

About this episode

This episode discusses the findings of the Women in Power report based on a survey of women in family enterprises, exploring their leadership experiences and challenges.

This is a special episode in which we launch our Women in Power report. It is based on a groundbreaking survey of 106 women from family enterprises around the world who shared their lived experiences. Our host, Ramia, is joined in this discussion by her report co-author, Marina Vaughan Spitzy from Tecolote Advisory, to discuss what we've learned about leadership, authority, and the unspoken challenges women face in family enterprises. The numbers tell a compelling story. Only 70% of the respondents in this survey knew in advance that they would inherit ownership, while nearly half entered leadership roles unexpectedly, often to support their families. What does this mean for how family enterprises prepare the next generation? From informal entries to hard-won authority, we’ll explore the patterns, the surprises, and the lessons that emerged from this global survey.

People in this episode

Host: Ramia

Guest: Marina Vaughan Spitzy

Topics covered

  • women in leadership
  • family enterprises
  • inheritance
  • authority
  • challenges faced by women

Keywords

  • women in power
  • leadership
  • family business
  • inheritance
  • survey
  • challenges
  • authority

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Tecolote Advisory

More episodes of Women in Family Business

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Women in Family Business podcast page.