From DEI to Feminist Leadership: What’s Next?
By Jennifer Hutchinson, Founder & Principal Consultant, Transform Together Consulting
For the past decade, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives have reshaped workplaces. They opened conversations, created accountability, and pushed organizations to ask hard questions about representation and belonging.
But as many of us know firsthand, representation alone is not transformation. Having diverse voices at the table matters, but if the structures of decision-making remain rooted in hierarchy and “power-over” dynamics, then inclusion risks becoming tokenism.
So the question in 2025 is: What’s next?
The Limits of DEI
DEI brought important wins:
Hiring practices became more inclusive.
Training raised awareness of bias.
Boards and leadership teams became more diverse.
And yet, many staff—especially women, people of color, LGBTQ+ employees, and those impacted by trauma—still report cultures of burnout, silencing, and systemic harm. Why?
DEI often lives in HR policies and one-off trainings rather than in the day-to-day practices of leadership. Representation without a shift in how power is shared is not enough.
Enter Feminist Leadership
Feminist Leadership Principles (FLP) offer the next step. They don’t replace DEI; they deepen and extend it. Where DEI asks, “Who is in the room?”, FLP asks, “How do we share power once we’re here?”
Key shifts include:
👉 From inclusion → to shared decision-making
👉 From representation → to collective care
👉 From numbers and compliance → to liberatory impact
Feminist Leadership is not a program. It’s a practice that changes how teams work, how supervisors lead, and how organizations measure success.
What It Looks Like in Action
When organizations adopt Feminist Leadership Principles:
Meetings start with grounding and agreements, so all voices are safe to contribute.
Supervisors move from command-and-control to trauma-informed coaching.
Success isn’t just output—it’s whether the process was sustainable and liberatory.
The result?
✔ Staff who feel trusted and invested.
✔ Faster, more creative problem-solving.
✔ Cultures that support long-term impact, not short-term extraction.
Why It Matters Now
In a time of burnout, political polarization, and constant change, organizations can’t afford to lose their people. Feminist Leadership helps retain talent, build resilient teams, and align daily operations with the values of justice and equity.
The future of leadership isn’t just about who gets to lead. It’s about how we lead together.
Ready to Move Beyond DEI?
If your organization is asking, “What comes after DEI?”, the answer is here: Feminist Leadership Principles.
✨ I’ve created a free Feminist Leadership Toolkit with practical strategies you can start applying right away.
👉 [Download the Toolkit here]
Let’s build organizations rooted in power-with, not power-over.
About Jennifer Hutchinson
Jennifer Hutchinson is the Founder & Principal Consultant of Transform Together Consulting, helping mission-driven organizations build collaborative, trauma-informed systems that center power-with leadership. Drawing on decades of executive experience and a deep commitment to equity, Jennifer partners with leaders to create healthier teams, stronger programs, and greater impact. She is the creator of the Feminist Leadership Principles framework, guiding changemakers to shift from power-over cultures to sustainable, people-centered leadership.