Why are there still not enough women in corporate boardrooms?

A fascinating special report in last week's Economist magazine has the Society office debating the issue of female under-representation at the top levels of big businesses. It reminded us of the TED video above, in which Sheryl Sandberg from Facebook talks eloquently about some of the cultural changes required in order for women to break through the glass ceiling of the commercial world.

The Economist's special report on women and work was published on 26th November and entitled ‘Closing the Gap'. Some of the figures it outlines are genuinely shocking. Women still make up only 3% of Fortune 500 CEOs and only 12.5% of FTSE 100 Board members. At the current rate of change, it will take at least 70 years to achieve gender-balanced boardrooms. At the same time, the gap between male and female pay in identical jobs across the OECD is a staggering 18%, and statistics suggest that it has stopped narrowing in recent years.

The advice Sandberg offers about women raising their hands, sitting at the table and not leaving "until [they] leave" is vitally important, however there are surely things that search firms such as ourselves can do as well. A recent BIS report by Lord Davies of Abersoch made a series of recommendations, all of which Society ascribes to wholeheartedly.

One thing is for certain though: a world in which half of the population is chronically under-represented isn't fair, sensible or sustainable. We hope to play our part in achieving a much better balance.

To read the full Economist special report click here
To read a copy of the Davies Review click here