Executive presence is a hot topic in modern business, but it can also be quite tricky to pin down. According to research, 51 percent of HR practitioners believe executive presence is difficult to define1, but despite this, 81 percent of them believe it’s easy to spot. With this somewhat intangible quality, many of its components overlap with generic leadership qualities. At its core, these combine to create a confidence that gives you the ability to be present, comfortable and confident in your own skin — and in turn be able to convey this sense of self to other people, inspire confidence and security and lead with authenticity. For women, cultivating this charismatic attribute is particularly important — women still hold only around 35 percent of senior leadership positions in the US2 and only one in three leadership roles3 in the UK. This is something that may be exacerbated by unconscious bias around how much they display (or perceivably don’t display) executive presence, say researchers. However, anyone can build and hone it with strategic personal development. So how much executive presence have you got right now — and where do you need to work to boost it? Take our quiz and find out…
