European Women on Boards Gender Diversity Index 2019

This project is co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme of the European Union

Content

04 Executive summary 06 Terminology 07 Foreword 08 Introduction 10 19 22 68 Annex – Methodology

EUROPEAN WOMEN ON BOARDS GENDER DIVERSITY INDEX 2019 03 600 GDI STOXX EUROPE COMPANIES GENDER DIVERSITY INDEX

Perfect gender 33% equality women on boards 1 27% women in general Only 30 leadership functions companies with a GDI of 0.8 or more 0.8

16% 97 companies woman in executive level of 0.7 with a GDI of company decision-makers 0.7 or more

0.53 Average Only 28 companies have a female CEO

companies have 99 0.3 at least one female 53 companies member of the C-suite with a GDI of 0.2 0.3 or less

Only 7% 22 Chairs of Boards companies are women with a GDI of 0.2 or less

0 When woman 27% of women CEO, CFO or COO at executive level

This project is co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme of the European Union Executive summary

There is still a long way to go for European companies to achieve gender-balanced leadership.

Women comprise one third (33%) of board members in STOXX Europe 600 companies. increasing the share of women on boards. However, gender diversity at other levels of Even in those companies where the overall corporate governance is still a mirage: share of women is rather balanced, the share of women in executive roles lags behind. Only just over a quarter (27%) of leadership positions are occupied by women. The average Gender Diversity Index of companies analysed is 0.53, with 1 being the women (removing double-counting when value representing perfect gender equality. Only 30 companies (5%) are close to having the top layers of governance, as well as on gender-balanced leadership with a GDI value board committees; that is 0.8 or more. On the other hand, 53 companies in the dataset (9%) have Women are much less likely than men to be strongly male-dominated boards with a in executive positions: only 16% of leaders GDI of 0.3 or less. In 2019, there are still three in the second layer of corporate governance companies out of 598 which have no woman and, where they exist, in the third layer of represented in any of their leadership roles. corporate governance, are women; Companies from , and Only 28 companies covered in this study are closest to having gender-balanced (4.7% of the dataset) have a female CEO; governance. Of the top 20 companies according 99 companies, representing 17% of to the Gender Diversity Index, 7 are French and the dataset, have at least one female 5 are Swedish. Although Norway has relatively member of the C-suite (only counting CEOs, few companies in the index (only 15), these CFOs or COOs); companies tend to achieve a good score and two of them are in the top 20. Swiss companies, Women are much less likely to hold on the other hand, have the least diverse chair positions then men at all layers leadership. Of the bottom 20 companies in the of governance. Only 7% of Chairs of Boards Index, 10 are Swiss. are women. Companies that have a woman as CEO, CFO or services, technology and media and “other” (i.e. COO tend to have more women in executive utilities and travel and leisure) tend to have positions. The 99 companies analysed that greater gender balance in their leadership have a woman in one of these three positions have 27% of women at executive level

EUROPEAN WOMEN ON BOARDS GENDER DIVERSITY INDEX 2019 5 Terminology

ABSOLUTE COUNT OF WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP EXECUTIVE LEVEL Absolute number of