Maria Rantamaa, Managing Director, KONE (Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait)
How can leadership, particularly CEOs, shape, influence, and measure inclusion across global organizations? What is the role of CEOs and senior leadership in setting the tone for inclusion and ensuring it is meaningfully measured within global organizations?
In a global organization of over 65,000 employees, inclusion cannot remain an aspiration alone, it must be supported through clear targets, metrics, and accountability. But beyond KPIs, leadership plays a critical role in shaping whether inclusion truly becomes part of the culture.
In a global set-up, diversity and inclusion must be treated as a strategic priority. Leaders set the tone by modelling inclusive behaviors, because culture is ultimately built through what employees consistently see and experience from leadership. When leaders visibly support inclusion, it creates a ripple effect across the organization.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach. Every organization’s journey will look different. For us, leadership commitment has been central to creating an environment where people feel valued and empowered. I consider myself an example of that. Our leadership team in the UAE is progressive, open-minded, and modern, and that has enabled opportunities for women like me to lead across multiple markets.
Representation also matters deeply. Appointing one woman to a management team is an important start, but sustainable impact comes when inclusion moves beyond symbolic representation. It becomes easier to influence change and create belonging when there are multiple voices at the table. While initiatives such as the UAE government’s mandate for at least one woman on boards demonstrate strong forward momentum, true transformation requires moving beyond minimum representation toward meaningful participation.
At the end of the day, workplaces should be environments where people can thrive, contribute confidently, and feel a genuine sense of belonging. Inclusion becomes far more powerful when individuals no longer feel like the ‘only one’ in the room.
That is why we at KNOE have set a global target for 2030: for 35% of our management teams to be women. Targets create accountability, but leadership commitment is what ultimately brings inclusion to life.
From your experience leading at KONE, what are some of the bold and innovative steps your organization has taken to advance inclusion and gender equity, and how have these initiatives shaped leadership and culture across the business?
Organizations often speak about building more women leaders, but leadership pipelines are not built through intention alone; they are built through opportunity, exposure, and experience.
At KONE, we have several global and regional programs designed to cultivate both male and female talent. But one principle is fundamental to leadership growth: if we want more women leaders, we must give women the opportunity to take on difficult assignments, lead through complexity, and make high-impact decisions.
Leadership is not developed in theory, through thoughts or dreams. No one becomes a great leader simply by aspiring to leadership. Great leaders are shaped by doing difficult things like taking risks, navigating uncertainty, solving problems, and delivering results over time. Growth only happens when people are trusted with challenges beyond their comfort zone.
When we look at many of the great male leaders in business today, what made them exceptional was not just talent, but the cumulative experience they gained from leading through demanding situations. Women are equally capable of achieving the same outcomes. The difference is often access to opportunity.
That is why leadership commitment matters. Organizations must move beyond conversations about inclusion and actively create pathways for women to lead. Supportive ecosystems, whether through progressive initiatives such as UAE government mandates or organizational commitment within companies like KONE help accelerate that change. Representation creates visibility, confidence, and momentum for future leaders.
Most importantly, this transformation must begin at the top. Modern leadership must recognize that the world of work is evolving rapidly. Women are increasingly shaping leadership across corporate, economic, and government sectors, and this is not a temporary shift – it is the future of leadership itself.As leaders, our responsibility is not simply to support women in the workplace, but to ensure they are given the opportunities, visibility, and trust required to lead at the highest levels. That is how real, sustainable change happens.
