Does gender make a difference in running a creative agency? Critical Mass and WCRS CEOs discuss

While Edwards said that he believed that his gender did not really play any role in his team, describing himself as “calm…almost to the point of being emotionless”, Wilkins admitted that there were some ‘female’ elements to her behaviour.

Stating that this was something that had been mentioned in senior leadership discussions, Wilkins discussed how she has a “read” on situations, but did not fit with some other stereotypes of women, such as indecisiveness; “I’m impatient…not fantastic at nurturing,” she revealed.

She went on to note that when people met her for the first time and heard that she was a CEO, there could be a mixed response, with some people “surprised that it’s a chick in charge” although most of the reaction, she felt, was positive.

But this was not just an issue faced by women: Edwards admitted that he sometimes faced a similar double-take upon meeting new people due to his young appearance for someone with 20 years agency experience.

“Maybe there’s a difference in the types of leaders that occupy our business, the creative agency businesses versus construction,” he suggested, adding that the agency relied on collaboration and reputation, so a “stereotypical macho” approach wouldn’t work and that empathy was also required.

While affirming that empathy was most often seen as a female trait, Wilkins believed that this was something that all leaders needed.

Edwards also posed the idea that agencies themselves could actually be categorised as more male or female in their approach, based on the culture of the organisation.

He added that the key is getting balance in team, not from a gender but personality perspective.

The full conversation between the two can be viewed in the video above.