Power play
As men dilly dally, women take the lead in the boardroom and at home
BLAME it on the stats showing that Jamaica has the highest proportion of women managers globally at 59 per cent; the stats showing that more girls complete higher education than boys; or just the Caribbean being historically matriarchal — whatever the reason, the traditional blueprint of relationships is being rewritten, and women are the ones holding the pen.
No longer confined to passive roles within domestic spaces, the modern woman is stepping into her position of power, influence, and independence, not just in the workplace, but at home. For many, the household has, in many cases, become a new kind of boardroom — one where women are not only managing the daily operations, but also making executive decisions about property, finances, and the future.
“This shift is not merely symbolic; it’s tangible. Women are increasingly the ones initiating the purchase of homes, managing family investments, and taking charge of life-altering decisions — divorce included,” said counsellor Annette Palmer-Lowe. “Studies show that women account for a growing percentage of first-time homebuyers, many of whom are single and financially stable. They’re not waiting for a partner to build a life with — they’re building it themselves and deciding if or when someone is allowed to join.”
Enter Janet P, a 45-year-old mother of four.
“Were it not for me stepping in, my husband wouldn’t have bothered to show interest in purchasing our home, getting life insurance, signing the children up for the right schools, and the activities that will propel them forward, or just generally have the incentive to be the leader in the house,” Janet said of her 10-year union.
“It’s like I met a man, but all he had was sweet talk. And when he saw that I was handling things, instead of being embarrassed and stepping up, it’s like he entered his ‘soft girl’ era, and started doing the things I, as the woman, should be doing.”
Life coach Beth-Ann Falconer said with women often forced into this type of “empowerment”, the ripple effects are being felt in relationships.
“Men, traditionally cast as the providers and decision-makers, are now more likely to find themselves in roles that were once considered ‘feminine’— caretaking, supporting, and following rather than leading,” she said. “In some relationships, the man becomes the quieter partner, the one adjusting, compromising, and in some cases, being financially dependent.”
But for 38-year-old Lorraine G, though her husband has taken on the more submissive role, “after my salary exploded past his”, she sees the reversal in responsibilities as more of a recalibration of roles than anything unsavoury and radical.
“Women like me were once expected to sacrifice ambition for domesticity, but we are now merging the two on our own terms,” she said. “We’re running our homes with the precision of a CEO — scheduling, delegating, budgeting — while also pursuing our careers and personal goals unapologetically. I don’t believe it’s fair to expect men to have that same drive, because, to be frank, we have evolved way past them.”
Meanwhile, gender professional Carlissa Hewan said even divorce, once seen as a social failure, has also become a declaration of agency for women.
“Women are more often the ones initiating it — not out of rebellion, but out of a refusal to settle,” she said. “They’re choosing fulfilment over tradition, peace over pretence, and autonomy over endurance.”
It’s a decision 26-year-old Arianna F has no regrets about.
“By the end of the second year of my marriage I re-evaluated the whole idea of ‘til death…’,“ she explained. “I was not willing to continue in a marriage that was not 50/50. And so, without batting an eye, I took up the phone, called around to a couple attorneys, and had my divorce in a year, with no regrets.”
Hewan said the new power shift doesn’t mean that all men are lost or left behind, as many are adapting, supporting, and thriving in this new dynamic.
“Some women jokingly call it the ‘soft guy era’; but it does mean that the narrative of relationships is no longer one-sided,” she said. “The reins are now shared — or, in many cases, passed to women who are redefining what leadership looks like at home.”
She said the question is no longer whether women can have it all, it’s whether the rest of the world is ready to follow their lead — at the dinner table and the boardroom alike.
