Gender representation on corporate boards of directors

Gender representation on corporate boards of directors refers to the proportion of men and women who occupy board member positions. To measure gender diversity on corporate boards, studies often use the percentage of women holding corporate board seats and the percentage of companies with at least one woman on their board. Globally, men occupy more board seats than women. As of 2018^[update], women held 20.8% of the board seats on Russell 1000 companies^[1] (up from 17.9% in 2015).^[2]^[3] Most percentages for gender representation on corporate boards refer only to public company boards. Private companies are not required to disclose information on their board of directors, so the data is less available.^{[citation needed]}

The reasons behind the disproportionate gender ratio of directors is a subject of much debate. A survey of more than 4000 directors found that male directors over the age of 55 cited a lack of qualified female candidates as the main reason behind the stagnant number of female directors.^[4] In contrast, in the same study, female directors and younger male directors considered the male-dominated networking that often led to the appointment of directors to be the reason behind women's slow progress.^[4]

Given that gender diversity on boards is an issue rooted in the principle of equality of treatment, inequality in gender representation on boards can be combated through equality of opportunity reforms, equality of outcome reforms, or by spreading information on gender bias. Governments and corporations have attempted to address the disproportionality of gender representation on corporate boards through both types of reform measures, including legislation mandating gender quotas (a reform based on the principle of equality of outcome) and comply or explain guidelines (a reform based on the principle of equality of opportunity).

^ "2018 Progress of Women Corporate Directors by Company Size, State and Industry Sector" (PDF). www.2020wob.com. 2020 Women on Boards. Retrieved 16 May 2019.
^ "Gender Diversity Index" (PDF). 2020 Women on Boards. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2016..
^ "Contact Vell Executive Search" (PDF).
^ ^a ^b Groysberg, Boris; Cheng, Yo-Jud; Stuart, Spencer; Bell, Deborah; The WomenCorporateDirectors Foundation. "2016 Global Board Survey". WomenCorporateDirectors Foundation. Retrieved 19 May 2016.

[1] "2018 Progress of Women Corporate Directors by Company Size, State and Industry Sector" (PDF). www.2020wob.com. 2020 Women on Boards. Retrieved 16 May 2019.

[2] "Gender Diversity Index" (PDF). 2020 Women on Boards. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 May 2017. Retrieved 5 May 2016..

[3] "Contact Vell Executive Search" (PDF).

[:4-4] Groysberg, Boris; Cheng, Yo-Jud; Stuart, Spencer; Bell, Deborah; The WomenCorporateDirectors Foundation. "2016 Global Board Survey". WomenCorporateDirectors Foundation. Retrieved 19 May 2016.

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