Although the FTSE 100 index only holds one female CEO and one female chairperson,
when it comes to directorships women are finding career advancement much more
successful.
While the FTSE 100 only holds one female chief executive officer (CEO), for director level positions the times appear to be changing with women on UK boards hitting the 100 mark for the first time, suggest new figures.
Since last year the number of female directors has increased by 20%, claims the Cranfield School of Management’s Centre for Developing Women Business Leaders study, with directorships currently numbering 101.
Nine in ten of the top 20 companies in the FTSE 100 have female directors, while only eight of the 20 firms at the bottom of the FTSE list – by market capitalisation – can say the same.
There are still 32 companies with no women directors at all and the number of female executive directorships has only risen by two over the year. Marjorie Scardino of Pearson remains the only female CEO and Baroness Hogg of 3i the only female chairperson.
AstraZeneca and Marks and Spencer both boast four female directors and women comprise a third of their boards, a direction in which all firms should be moving, said Susan Vinnicombe, director of the Centre for Developing Women Business Leaders: ‘The increase in the number of women directors this year is very positive. What is particularly pleasing is that 22 companies now have multiple women on their boards. These women can now be seen as individuals as opposed to "the token woman",’ she said.
Dr Val Singh, co-author of the report, said today that the statistics were encouraging but that there was ‘…still much to do to identify and deal with the barriers for women in middle management, the next generation of women business leaders: ‘So many companies seem surprised that high-flying women leave or stagnate in mid-career. More research is needed to understand this phenomenon, and what employers can do to retain and develop the women to full potential,’ she said.
Recent research by Eve-olution and Vielife suggested that senior female managers were being hampered in getting to the top through employers reading accepting flexible working options as signs of weakness.
While one in three women, according to the CIPD, feel that they have had to downgrade their career ambitions as a result of having children, the Eve-olution/Vielife suggests nearly three-quarters of women are fearful of taking flexible options: ‘Firms have become aware of the need to introduce flexible working to encourage women to stay in employment, and have made positive steps to offer these options to staff. Yet the real steps have to be taken now to make sure that these initiatives do not impede career development.
‘This will only be achieved if the elemental values of the work/life balance issue are understood and appreciated by all. They are not gender specific, and if applied appropriately, can significantly increase the performance of individuals and organisations,’ said Clive Pinder of Vielife.