Analysis: Charisma is rewarded in both the workplace and attention economy, but it seems women don't always get the same credit for it
Imagine two leaders giving the exact same speech. They use the same words, the same tone, the same energy. Both speak in a way that draws people in, telling a compelling story and using vivid language to bring their ideas to life. One is seen as charismatic. The other is not.
We often talk about charisma as if it's a kind of magic, an "it factor" that some leaders have and others don’t. It’s what makes people seem inspiring, persuasive or worth following.
In fact, charisma may be less mysterious than we think. Researchers have identified specific charismatic communication techniques that can make leaders more engaging and persuasive. These include telling stories, using vivid language, asking rhetorical questions and speaking with conviction.
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For example, a leader might describe a challenge through a brief story, pose a question that invites the audience to reflect, or frame a goal as a shared mission. These are not fixed traits, but skills that can be learned and practiced over time.
But here’s the catch: do these same behaviours produce the same results for everyone? Much of what we know about charismatic leadership comes from studies that only include male leaders. This broader pattern in research is often referred to as the "gender data gap," where knowledge is built primarily on men’s experiences and then assumed to apply more broadly.
But as our findings suggest, that assumption doesn’t always hold. To see whether these techniques are as effective for women as for men, we designed a series of experiments to recreate this scenario: two leaders delivering the same speech with the same charismatic behaviours, with only one difference: the leader’s gender. Participants watched these speeches and evaluated the leaders, their charisma, and made decisions about whether to donate in support of the organisation the leader represented.
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What we found surprised us. Encouragingly, charismatic communication techniques did work for women leaders. When women used these techniques, they were often just as charismatic and effective as men, and in some cases even more effective. For example, charismatic speeches delivered by women generated 19% more in charitable donations than men’s speeches.
That wasn’t the full picture, however. Charismatic behaviours were most effective for women who were already described as formal leaders such as managers or other people in positions of authority. In these cases, charisma reinforced their image as a leader.
When women were not described as formal leaders, the same exact communication techniques were less effective. Interestingly, this pattern didn’t hold for men, who benefitted similarly from charismatic communication regardless of whether they were described as a leader or not.
It's not just what is said; it’s who is saying it.
Critically, this means that while charisma is a powerful leadership tool, it may not be as beneficial for women who are trying to break into leadership roles compared to women who are already established leaders.
We also found that industry context was important. Women saw the most benefit from charisma in settings that are more traditionally feminine compared to male-dominated contexts. So for example, even identical women giving identical speeches would be seen as more charismatic at an event focused on world hunger compared to one focused on open science.
Taken together, these findings suggest that charisma is not a one-size-fits-all leadership strategy. The same exact behaviours can be interpreted differently depending on who is using them and in what context. It’s not just what is said; it’s who is saying it.
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Why is charisma so important for leaders? The data shows clearly that charisma is a valuable tool in the workplace. Leaders who communicate using charismatic techniques tend to be evaluated more positively and they can motivate stronger performance from their teams. In some cases, the effect of charisma is even more powerful than financial incentives like pay for performance.
But while these communication techniques can be learned by anyone, charisma isn’t always consistent across situations. Charisma is rewarded both in the workplace and in the attention economy, but it seems women don't always get the same credit for their charisma. Women may benefit just as much - or more - in some contexts, but not in others.
So what can be done? One step is to pay closer attention to how leadership potential is evaluated. More structured and transparent evaluation processes - and where possible, redacting information like gender - can help keep the focus on candidates’ skills and suitability for leadership.
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Simply increasing our awareness of this discrepancy can also help. We acknowledge that the same behaviours are interpreted differently based on who is displaying them. When we recognise this pattern, we can help our organisations and leaders to make more deliberate and equitable decisions about who is selected to lead and who is promoted into leadership roles. Imagine again those two leaders giving the exact same speech. If one is seen as more charismatic than the other, it may not be because they spoke any differently - but because they were seen differently.
Understanding how charisma works - and for whom - is an important step toward fairer and more effective leadership. In a landscape where women already face additional demands at work compared to men and are more likely to feel undervalued, ensuring women’s leadership potential is recognised consistently is more important than ever.
Charisma may not be the mysterious "it factor" we often imagine. But it’s definitely not entirely neutral either. The same words, delivered in the same way, are perceived as more or less charismatic depending on who is speaking and where.
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The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
