22.12.2025
On December 10, the Energy Club forum “THE ENERGY OF WOMEN’S LEADERSHIP: Women Holding Ukraine’s Energy Frontline” took place in Kyiv. It highlighted the unique experience of female leaders in the Ukrainian energy sector amidst the full-scale war, their contribution to operational resilience, financial viability, and strategic development of the industry.
Within the framework of the first panel discussion “Facing the Challenge: Leadership on Fire. Crisis Management and Operational Resilience,” Yulia Tolchinina-Burunska – Director of the Legal Support and Property Relations Department and Corporate Secretary of PJSC “Ukrhydroenergo” – delivered a speech. She focused on corporate governance as a key foundation of company resilience and the growing role of women in shaping this managerial architecture – not as a formal requirement, but as a real managerial advantage.
Starting her speech, Yulia Tolchinina-Burunska drew attention to the deep-seated reasons for gender imbalance in corporate governance. According to her, women often screen themselves out at the resume submission stage: “A man reads an ad with ten requirements and, even if he meets only two or three, decides: ‘I fit.’ A woman, seeing two mismatches out of ten, most often does not apply at all.” This behavioral pattern is formed from childhood through attitudes girls hear from parents and society: “this is not for you,” “you won’t need this.” The result is a deficit of confidence and motivation even among highly qualified specialists.
According to the speaker, support and visibility play a key role in changing the situation. Forums like “The Energy of Women’s Leadership” create a space for honest conversation, exchange of experience, and mutual support. This is exactly what women often lack – live stories in which they recognize themselves. “Motivational stories of women need to be published in the media, on social networks, on websites. They are read not only by women but also by men. And this changes attitudes,” noted Ms. Yulia. These changes are already noticeable in practice – particularly during training programs supported by the UN held at PJSC “Ukrhydroenergo,” the speaker recounted. Initially, the topic of gender equality often caused resistance, but over time perception transformed, especially among men who have daughters.
Speaking about corporate governance, Yulia Tolchinina-Burunska emphasized: it is not just about formal procedures, policies, and regulations. Corporate governance is the quality of managing systems, people, risks, processes, and the future of the business. In wartime conditions, the presence of a mature managerial architecture often became the guarantee of business continuity. Where it was absent, enterprises remained without leadership at the most critical moment. Today, energy companies simultaneously face operational, financial, reputational, and communication risks that cannot be effectively managed single-handedly. Moreover, investors and donors are increasingly rigorously evaluating the level of corporate governance as a key condition for financing.
According to the speaker, the circumstances of the war pushed women to the center of management system transformation not by accident. Among the key qualities that are crucial today:
systems thinking and a holistic view of strategy and risks;
adaptability and stress resistance, the ability to stabilize teams in a crisis;
ethics and transparency, development of compliance and a culture of responsibility;
culture of dialogue both inside the company and outside.
Precisely these characteristics form trust – a critically important resource in the war and post-war period.
Yulia Tolchinina-Burunska cited results of international studies confirming the economic effect of gender diversity:
companies with women in higher management bodies demonstrate higher return on equity (16% vs 12%);
net profit growth — up to 14% annually;
according to the Peterson Institute (22,000 companies, 91 countries), 30% women in top management equals +15% to profitability.
Key conclusion: it is not the symbolic presence that matters, but the real participation of women in strategic planning and decision-making.
Among examples of effective female leadership, the speaker mentioned:
Indra Nooyi (PepsiCo) — combining financial results with long-term responsibility and ESG, 162% growth in shareholder returns;
Mary Barra (General Motors) — tough decisions, transparency, and communication that allowed the company to move from multi-billion losses to profit.
These cases prove: women are capable of simultaneously making difficult decisions, building long-term strategies, and restoring trust.
The war exposed systemic problems — a deficit of strategies, weak risk management, shortage of managerial personnel. All this makes the role of responsible corporate governance even more important. “The most important thing today is not to lose female leadership at the moment of reconstruction. Reconstruction is not only infrastructure; it is about the quality of systems and trust,” emphasized Yulia Tolchinina-Burunska.
Summarizing, the Director of the Legal Support and Property Relations Department and Corporate Secretary of PJSC “Ukrhydroenergo” emphasized: women in corporate governance are carriers of a culture of responsibility, system stabilizers, and architects of trust – both within companies and in interaction with partners and society.
Panel moderator Yaryna Skorokhod, Co-chair of the Energy Committee of the European Business Association, added: “In the reconstruction period, new challenges will appear that we do not yet know. But maintaining focus on female leadership is capable of ensuring a positive contribution to the restoration of an economically and energetically strong Ukraine.”
