The Future is Female With Shoma Group’s New President, Stephanie Shojaee

While there is no shortage of women qualified for leadership positions in the workforce, there have long been barriers for women to reach their fullest potential. Women make up nearly half of the U.S. labor force, and they outnumber men in earning bachelor’s and master’s degrees. However, displaying a double standard, men are far more likely than women to reach the most prestigious leadership roles. This is slowly starting to shift as women begin taking on more advanced positions in their careers, and women currently hold 23 percent of executive positions, 29 percent of senior management positions, and 37 percent of managerial positions.

One leader that is helping bring about change regarding women in executive positions is Stephanie Shojaee, President of Miami-based real estate development firm Shoma Group.

For decades, male developers have dominated the real estate sector. As one of few women in leadership positions in a predominantly male-focused field, Shojaee has proven to be an inspiration to women all over the world. She has made it her mission to increase the visibility of women in her field as well as hire women to her team and mentor them.

“I especially like to show people the daily happenings in our office and in my work life because I feel it’s important to give visibility to women professionals, particularly in leadership roles,” says Shojaee.

Before becoming President and during her time as the CMO of Shoma Group, Shojaee flipped the script on gender hiring practices, creating the group’s first-ever all-female marketing team. Shojaee’s germane choice proved to have lasting impacts on Shoma Group’s prosperity, as Shoma Group’s women-led team helped boost the company to 30 percent higher annual profits. Now, Shoma Group’s staff sits at a near-perfect fifty-fifty split between women and men, an achievement, thanks to Shojaee, that is almost unheard of at other major real estate developers. In addition to being a paradigmatic leader that all genders and ethnicities can emulate, in a white male-dominated field like real estate, Stephanie blazes a trail for other women as well as Latinas around the world.

The Shoma Group President’s work hasn’t gone unnoticed. In 2022, South Florida Business & Wealth venerated Shojaee as one of their 2022 Prestigious Women Award winners. This award honors members of West Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties who’ve impacted their local communities through their strides toward gender equity and impressive business efforts.

Beyond her proven real estate and leadership skills, Shojaee does not limit herself in any sense. Whether wearing a pink hard hat to Shoma Group construction sites or strutting into business meetings in her signature high-end designer threads, Shojaee’s dedication to staying true to herself and embracing femininity as a superpower has become a strong motivator for other women to stay authentic to themselves throughout their careers. Shojaee’s actions have also inspired other Latinas and real estate professionals to do the same.

Be sure to follow along on Instagram and explore Shoma Group’s website to stay up to date on everything Shojaee is working on.