How To Empower Women in the Workplace During Women’s History Month and Beyond

If you’re looking for ideas on how to celebrate Women’s History Month at work, you’re in the right place. As Director of Sales at TeamBonding, I talk with HR leaders and executives every week about culture, performance, and retention. A common question I hear is how to empower women in the workplace in a way that lasts.

Celebrating and empowering women in the workplace is not a one-time moment. It’s a leadership choice that shows up in day-to-day decisions, from who gets visibility to who gets promoted. Women’s History Month can spotlight progress, but real female empowerment in the workplace is built through policies, growth opportunities, and a leadership pipeline that includes women.

In this article, I’ll share how to celebrate Women’s History Month at work, women’s month activities in the office, and how to empower women in the workplace all year. I’ll also highlight what helps women move into leadership positions, not just receive recognition.

Building a Workplace Culture of Female Empowerment

In the podcast episode, “Building a Workplace Culture of Female Empowerment,” leadership coach and Bridgewell LLC CEO Asia Bribiesca-Hedin shared valuable insights on female empowerment in the workplace.

I lead a national sales team, so this conversation resonated with me. Culture is not what you say once in March. It is what you reinforce through hiring decisions, promotions, mentorship, and who gets a seat at the leadership table.

“It starts with self-mastery and distinguishing what’s most important to you and why. And then how you want that expressed in your leadership. How you want that expressed in how you show up. How you elevate others as well as get clarity on what’s important for your role,” said Bribiesca-Hedin.

That line about elevating others is what leadership is all about. Empowering women in the workplace means asking: Are we mentoring emerging female leaders? Are we giving them visibility on high-impact projects? Are we normalizing women in executive roles so it feels expected, not exceptional?

If you’re ready to create a foundation for women to thrive in the workplace, give Asia’s podcast episode a listen. Then take a hard look at your leadership structure. Representation in management matters more than most companies realize.

This article provides practical women’s history month event ideas for work and strategies that help retain female employees for long-term growth. When women advance into leadership positions, everyone wins.

Why Empowering Women in the Workplace is Important

Empowering women in the workplace is not only the right thing to do, but it’s also good for business.

Teams with strong female leaders communicate more clearly, collaborate more intentionally, and build trust faster. When women feel supported, they don’t just contribute, they drive momentum.

Women’s contributions to the workplace are significant and measurable. According to Catalyst research, companies with higher percentages of women in management report profitability levels 35% higher than those without.

That statistic alone should shift how we think about empowering women in the workplace. Female employees are also more likely to stay in their jobs longer, less likely to leave due to dissatisfaction, and contribute more hours when working from home. When organizations intentionally develop women into leadership positions, that stability compounds over time.

Empowering women in the workplace can have several positive effects on a company as well, including:

• Improved communication and collaboration
• Greater innovation and creativity through diverse perspectives
• Enhanced team morale and engagement
• Increased productivity and profitability
• Better talent retention and attraction

From my seat in sales leadership, I can tell you this: top talent pays attention. If women see other women leading, closing deals, running departments, and shaping strategy, they are more likely to picture themselves staying and growing within your organization.

To achieve these benefits, employers need to create a workplace environment that supports female employees at every stage of their careers, especially as they step into leadership.

Understanding the Challenges Faced by Women

Before we discuss work event ideas for Women’s History Month, we need to understand the barriers women still face.

Women face a wide range of discrimination and marginalization in daily life from a young age. That conditioning doesn’t disappear when someone receives a job offer.

Asia notes in her podcast episode,

“Little girls versus little boys are socialized to be like, ‘It’s okay to be a little bit louder if you’re a boy, it’s okay to be rambunctious.’ We never say that about girls.”

I see that dynamic play out in leadership meetings. Women sometimes hesitate to speak up, not because they lack insight, but because they have been conditioned to be agreeable. Empowering women in the workplace means intentionally creating space for their voices and reinforcing that their perspective belongs in the room.

These challenges continue throughout women’s lives and careers.

The “Gender Pay Gap”

Women’s earnings continue to trail men’s on average. In 2023, women working full-time earned about 83.6% of what men earned, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (83.6%).

That widely cited figure reflects aggregated earnings across all occupations. It does not compare men and women in identical roles at the same companies. Researchers note that differences in hours worked, career interruptions for caregiving, and concentration in different industries all influence the overall number. For example, occupational segregation and industry distribution play a measurable role in earnings patterns, as outlined by the Washington Center for Equitable Growth.

Caregiving responsibilities also affect long-term income accumulation. Data summarized by the National Conference of State Legislatures highlight how workforce interruptions and reduced hours contribute to earnings disparities over time.

At the same time, economists have found that even after adjusting for occupation, education, and experience, a smaller gap often remains, as the Economic Policy Institute notes.

If your goal is empowering women in the workplace, the practical step is not debating national averages. It’s reviewing your own compensation structure. Transparent pay bands, clearly defined advancement criteria, and equal access to high-impact leadership roles are what drive results within your organization.

Sexual Harassment

Women continue to face unwanted and unacceptable behavior in the workplace. For example, 34% of female employees say they’ve experienced sexual harassment from a colleague. That’s over one in three women.

As a leader, those numbers are unacceptable to me. Empowering women in the workplace means building reporting systems that are safe, confidential, and taken seriously. It also means modeling respectful behavior at the leadership level.

That harassment can disrupt their success and employer’s job retention. Of the women who have been harassed, 38% say it contributed to their decision to leave a job early, and 37% say it interfered with their career advancement.

If you’re wondering how to empower women in the workplace, start by asking whether your culture actively protects them.

Work-Life Balance

Women often face unique challenges in maintaining a healthy work-life balance. According to a Pew Research Center report, 34 percent of working mothers report difficulty balancing work and family responsibilities.

In leadership roles, I’ve seen how flexible policies can make or break someone’s ability to stay and grow. If women believe they must choose between advancement and family, you will lose strong leaders.

Empowering women in the workplace means designing systems that support parents, caregivers, and ambitious professionals.

Burnout

The challenges discussed above increase the risk of burnout for women in the workplace.

In high-performance environments such as sales, burnout can set in quickly, especially when women feel constant pressure to prove themselves.

“Burnout is just doing things, spending your time on things of little importance, and doing the wrong things. Burnout can also occur even when we’re doing the right things and see that our work matters… Eight hours slips into 12 hours slips into 15 hours and we don’t even notice because we’re so in it,” said Bribiesca-Hedin.

Empowering women in the workplace means setting sustainable expectations. It also means recognizing leadership potential early and distributing responsibility so high-performing women are not silently carrying more than their share.

When we talk about how to empower women in the workplace, especially during Women’s History Month with this year’s theme, “Leading the Change: Women Shaping a Sustainable Future,” sustainability applies internally, too. Sustainable leadership means women can rise, lead, and thrive without burning out.

How to Celebrate Women’s History Month at Work 

Before we dive into our favorite Women’s History Month ideas for the workplace, let’s talk about some tips for how to make it work: 

• Pick inclusive, accessible events 
• Focus on actionable outcomes 
• Ask for feedback from female employees 
• Connect activities to year-round initiatives 
• Measure and share the impact of these events 

Now, let’s discuss our favorite Women’s History Month activities in the office! Each of these ideas can also be hosted for virtual and hybrid workplaces. 

Essential Pieces 

TeamBonding’s Essential Pieces activity is built to highlight how every individual contributes to the bigger picture. That’s exactly why I recommend it for Women’s History Month activities in the office.

Participants use a custom app to collaborate on a multi-sensory puzzle that blends conversation, problem-solving, and creative expression. The experience reinforces a simple but powerful message: every piece matters.

Impact Online

With Impact Online, your team focuses on real-world impact tied to the 17 Sustainable Development Goals from the United Nations.

Several of those goals align naturally with Women’s History Month activities, including gender equality, quality education, inequality reduction, and economic growth. It’s a meaningful way to connect celebration with action.

Corporate Feud

If you want something interactive and energizing, Corporate Feud adds a playful element to your Women’s History Month games.

Team members answer questions about colleagues, company culture, and shared experiences. It’s fun, fast-paced, and builds connections across roles and departments.

Summit to Success

In Summit to Success, participants compete in a points-based challenge as they work toward reaching the peaks of 12 virtual mountains.

It’s a motivating, goal-oriented experience that pairs well with conversations about growth, resilience, and career progression.

How to Empower Women At Work Year-Round  

Learning how to celebrate Women’s History Month at work is important. Sustained empowerment, however, requires ongoing leadership commitment.

Here are practical strategies that support female empowerment in the workplace long after March ends.

Offer Flexible Work Options

Many women balance professional responsibilities alongside family commitments. Offering flexible work options helps remove barriers and supports long-term career growth.

Provide Leadership Opportunities

Create clear opportunities for women to lead projects and initiatives so their voices are represented at every level. This is a key part of creating an inclusive work culture.

As Asia shared, “Get really curious when having women in places of power or certain groups or characteristics in places of power are still outliers in your organization.” That curiosity should lead to action.

Offer Professional Development

Invest intentionally in training and advancement opportunities. Women do not always receive equal access to high-visibility assignments or executive exposure.

Professional growth, including stretch roles with support, helps women build confidence and leadership capability over time.

Encourage Networking and Mentorship

Networking and mentorship accelerate development and create clearer pathways to advancement.

Programs such as mentorship initiatives, tuition reimbursement, and professional development workshops signal that growth is supported and expected.

Host Regular Female Team Building Activities

Team building strengthens connection and engagement. Ask the women on your team what types of activities they value most.

Experiences like Laughter Yoga can support stress relief and team cohesion. The key is ensuring women have input in shaping the experience.

Maintain Fair Policies

Conduct regular reviews to ensure policies promote equity and advancement. This includes:

• Equal pay initiatives
• Family-friendly benefits
• Flexible and hybrid work arrangements
• Clear career advancement paths

How to Attract and Retain Female Employees in Your Company

If you want to attract and retain female talent, the changes do not have to be dramatic. They do have to be intentional.

As leaders, we set the tone. Empowering women in the workplace starts with accountability at the top. Promoting your company’s core values only works if leadership models them consistently in hiring, promotion, and day-to-day decision-making.

Offer Family-Friendly Benefits

Family-friendly policies attract better talent and help women remain in full-time roles long term. They also support career continuity, which directly impacts advancement into leadership and board positions.

Promote a Positive Company Culture

A strong workplace culture supports retention across the board, but it plays an especially important role for women balancing professional and personal responsibilities.

Create an environment rooted in respect, collaboration, and inclusion. Then reinforce it through policies and leadership behavior, not just messaging.

Moving Forward With Female Empowerment in the Workplace 

As you think about how to empower women in the workplace, keep purpose at the center. Women, like all professionals, want their work to matter. When leadership connects daily responsibilities to a bigger mission, engagement rises.

Asia captures that idea clearly: “It’s about being true to yourself because from there, you’re showing up in a way that others respond to even better.”

I encourage you to listen to the entire podcast with Asia Bribiesca-Hedin. It offers practical insight into what empowering women in the workplace really looks like and how leaders can build environments where women thrive.

Ready to Celebrate the Women in Your Workplace?

Women’s History Month is a powerful moment to recognize contributions and spark meaningful change. It is also the ideal time to commit to long-term female empowerment in the workplace.

If you’re ready to connect celebration with action, explore our team building programs. Each experience is designed to strengthen relationships, build trust, and create cultures where women can lead with confidence.

If you’d like help planning women’s month activities in the office or ongoing initiatives that support women in leadership, contact us. I’d be glad to help you design something that makes a lasting impact.