Fortune: The finance sector remains a male-dominated space. How does it feel to be one of the women recalibrating that balance as you rise?

Enye B. Kidanu: In finance, advancement is often something women must claim, not simply receive as an opportunity. It is a space where you have to assert your value through multiple layers of challenge, regulatory, cultural and professional. But I find energy in navigating that complexity. Recalibrating the balance is not simply about securing my own seat at the table. It is about changing the institutional energy so that the next generation of women does not have to fight for what should already be an open door.

Q: Beyond the statistics, why do you think this industry has remained so stubbornly monochromatic for so long?

While many women enter the sector in junior roles, the drop-off at the executive level reflects a systemic failure. We still rely too heavily on opinion-based discussions about gender instead of action-based structural change. McKinsey research has found that companies with gender-diverse executive teams are 25pc more likely to outperform on profitability. Institutions have to move beyond rhetoric and build support systems that address the double burden many women carry.

Q: What are the unwritten constraints you have had to overcome as a woman to secure your seat at the executive table?

The assumption that a woman’s priorities or tolerance for risk may somehow be different. I have countered that by insisting on data, structure and logic rather than opinion. When you bring system-based solutions to the table, gender becomes secondary to the value you deliver. I chose to become a thought partner, proving in a masculine landscape that inclusive leadership is not a social nicety but a strategic asset for financial stability.

Q: Was there a sliding-doors moment that steered you towards the C-suite?

My certification in transformational leadership was a turning point. It shifted my mindset from simply managing tasks to transforming people and, ultimately, institutions. That transition enabled me to work not merely as a problem-solver but as someone intent on changing the system that produced the problem. Once that happened, the move from participant to system architect made the C-suite feel like the only logical destination.

Q: There is a persistent myth that a career in finance requires exceptional mathematical ability. How much of that is reality, and how much is branding?

Mathematics is the language of finance, but logic is the story. Being good with numbers is only the baseline. The real executive skill lies in financial literacy - understanding the wider economic system - and in leadership, which means seeing the strategic narrative inside the numbers. The field often overstates calculation, when leadership in finance is really about understanding the system behind the maths, anticipating risk and spotting opportunities for growth.

Q: If you could sit down with your 20-year-old self, what is the one piece of non-career advice you would give her?

I would tell her to walk more, worry less, and become the architect of her own ideas. I have learned that peace of mind is the foundation of success. I would tell her to stop seeking external validation, because structured logic is a more reliable compass than the noise of public opinion. I would want her to become a true idea person, someone bold enough to design her own future. Most of all, I would tell her that vision is not static but a living document. You must follow your design, but also have the humility and agility to revise it as you gain knowledge and skills.

Q: Whom do you credit most for the architecture of your success?

My family. My father was my foundation. He raised me with total freedom and always told me I was destined for greatness, a person of stature, someone meant to lead. That early removal of any mental ceiling gave me the confidence to move from my business roots into a professional career without hesitation.

Q: When was the last time you saw another woman in action and thought, "I want to be like her?"

I look at global leaders such as Kristalina Georgieva at the IMF. Her boldness and the way she handles global stability under pressure are deeply inspiring. She does not simply manage a fund. She manages global impact. Seeing a woman lead at that level reinforces my determination to bring world-class strategic thinking to Ethiopia’s financial sector.

Q: Did you always visualise yourself in this position, or was it a destination you discovered along the way?

In some ways, I was raised for it. But I made a deliberate choice to become a professional rather than simply run the family business. I did not just want to participate in the economy. I wanted to help build the systems that govern it. My postgraduate studies in leadership were part of that decision. I wanted to ensure that, when I reached this level, I had a structured approach to problem-solving and action. I have always preferred systems thinking to polarised thinking. The skills that enable ambition are as indispensable as ambition itself.