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Women in Corporate Governance: Breaking the Glass Ceiling
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Women are gradually succeeding in positions of decision-making and power in companies. Thus, in 2024, 44% of the 120 largest French companies listed on the stock exchange reached the objective of 30% of women in their management teams1.
However, obstacles to progress in the feminization of corporate governance remain numerous, as evidenced by the rate of women holding the position of CEO at the head of CAC 40 companies.2, which was still only 6.25% in 2023.
What challenges do women still have to overcome in order to reach leadership positions?
What impact do quotas and diversity policies have on gender parity?
Let's take a few moments to take stock of the situation of women in corporate governance, while demonstrating by the facts why their presence is essential to ensure the development and sustainability of these organizations.
The United Nations has included gender equality as one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of its 2030 agenda. And, good news, the feminization of executive and management committees of large French companies is progressing.
As we have already mentioned, 44% of the largest French companies already comply with the Rixain law of 2021, which imposes this threshold from 2026 for all companies with more than 1,000 employees.
In addition, the boards of directors have almost reached parity, with an average of 46.4% of women on the boards of SBF120 companies. This rate exceeds the objectives set by the Copé-Zimmerman law of 2011 (20% in 2014 and 40% in 2017).
This feminization also affects the internal committees of SBF120 companies. In these committees, women represent:
Better still, they are now in the majority in the presidency of several essential bodies:
Finally, they occupy 76.6% of CSR committee positions.
In order to understand all the challenges of women's access to the most important positions in companies and to accelerate efforts in this direction, it seems essential to study the benefits that their presence brings.
The quotas for women imposed by the French State have beneficial effects that go well beyond the mere feminization of management bodies. Indeed, these objectives encourage firms to question their recruitment and promotion methods, which is profoundly changing the composition of teams and boards.
The result: rejuvenation and a greater diversity of career paths and training courses.
However, various reports show that companies that value diversity within their teams tend to increase their productivity by 25%.3.
In addition, recent studies show that the presence of women in management bodies makes it possible to improve the economic performance of companies, in particular by promoting more strategic acquisitions, but also by reducing fraud.
It has been shown that more mixed governance, especially in terms of gender, is a key factor in sustainability in business. Indeed, investors are particularly sensitive at this point.
How can we explain such interest? Because women are much more voluntarily involved in issues related to social and environmental responsibility (CSR).
However, these issues are becoming increasingly important in corporate strategies, as the CSR policy adopted has a strong impact on corporate brand image, on investor confidence, on employee commitment, and ultimately on their survival.
As proof of the impact of feminization in the field of CSR: after the introduction of quotas in 2011, the environmental and social performances of companies showed a marked improvement, with an average increase of 12%.
This correlation between the feminization of governance and the progress of companies in terms of CSR thus highlights the valuable expertise that women have developed in areas such as ecological transition.
They therefore actively participate in increasing the value of the company where they occupy a position of responsibility.
Whatever the reasons that prevent women from occupying leadership positions, one thesis seems to be confirmed: if, as seems likely, women and men are equally talented, the shortage of talented women in these positions of power deprives some executive firms with better skills than some of their male counterparts.
It therefore appears that, when female employees are more successful in holding these management positions, they will participate in increasing the performance of organizations and in boosting the economy.
Moreover, if it must be demonstrated by the figures, a study conducted by Women Equity Partners on 25,000 French SMEs and ETIs shows that the companies in this panel, which were headed by women in 2019, saw their turnover grow by 5.5% compared to 4.8% for firms run by men.
In 2023, although women represent more than half of the French population (52%) and almost half of the working population (49%), they still only occupy 25% management positions. This figure even drops to 17% for large companies (ETI and GE).
Thus, if the share of women in the governance bodies is increasing, while the feminization of leadership positions is progressing slowly.
This trend is increasing according to the size of the company, since 26% of women are managers of microenterprises compared to just over 6% for CAC40 companies.
How can we explain this lack of parity? Why do we meet so few women business leaders?
According to Claudia Goldin, winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Economics, this under-representation of women in management positions is partly explained by family constraints that weigh even more heavily on women than on men.
Thus, many women prefer jobs that are more flexible, and therefore less well paid, but which allow them to reconcile work and family responsibilities.
In addition, according to the 2022 INSEE report on gender equality, gender inequalities persist in domestic tasks, with women taking on a greater part of these responsibilities.
In recent years, legislators have taken steps to encourage the feminization of corporate governance. Several quotas have thus been imposed to allow the gradual establishment of parity in the decision-making and enforcement bodies of companies.
This is the case in particular for:
These laws have led to an acceleration of the feminization of boards of directors and executive committees.
However, these guidelines would benefit from being extended to businesses with less than 1,000 employees, as such an advance would contribute to a fairer governance and better durability.
It is therefore essential for SMEs and ETIs to promote gender diversity, not only to comply with standards (CSRD 2022) and to improve their brand image, but above all, as we saw earlier, to take advantage of the skills of talented women and thus strengthen their competitiveness.
While impostor syndrome affects both women and men, women are more likely to experience this feeling (50% Against only 39% for men).
It is therefore important for companies to create a climate of trust and caring, where each employee, male or female, feels valued.
Such an effort will help women feel legitimate in their ambition to run for positions of governance or management, where years of stereotypes may have made them question their abilities.
More concretely, adopting a caring attitude implies valuing the work done, thanking, or even rewarding the employee concerned. In addition, it is important to give everyone the opportunity to speak out, to share their experience, but also to make decisions.
The stereotypical representations that the ability to manage is based solely on qualities such as authority, combativeness or a taste for risk are well established in both female and male mentalities.
Fighting against these representations is therefore essential, by highlighting that leadership can also be based on traits such as empathy, tact and the ability to listen, qualities that are just as crucial for effective and human management.
How can a company help its employees overcome gender stereotypes? By using mentoring, coaching or training on female leadership.
Such devices can, in fact, allow women to develop their potential and assert themselves in contexts dominated by men.
VISCONTI Partners has long encouraged parity within companies and offers several coaching to help all talents develop their leadership or even for Help leaders improve their performance and thrive.
Recruitment can become a powerful lever for gender equality, provided it is managed proactively.
Thus, with regard to recruitment, it would seem appropriate to change the process of identifying future managers, which is generally carried out among managers aged 30 to 40.
However, this age group often corresponds to a pivotal period for women, especially that of motherhood, which can hinder their access to career development opportunities.
To limit this impact, it could therefore be a good idea to extend the period of talent identification to a wider age group, for example from 25 to 45, in order to better include women in these promotion processes.
Moreover, recruiting more women is not enough if they then run up against a glass ceiling or if they do not feel fully legitimate to seek positions of high responsibility.
Supporting the promoted in taking office and developing their potential can therefore prove to be a major asset for the company she manages.
To attract more female talent to positions of responsibility, one of the levers is to highlight inspiring careers.
Broadly disseminate concrete examples of successful women leaders makes it possible not only to give women confidence in their ability to access key positions, but also to change mentalities on the place of women in decision-making spheres.
Offering men the opportunity to become more involved in parenting contributes to a better work-life balance and alleviates the burden that mothers have traditionally had.
With this in mind, paternity leave was increased from 11 to 25 days in 2021, allowing fathers to take on a greater role in the education of their children.
However, many still find it difficult to allow themselves to take this time, and even more so to apply for parental leave, for fear of a negative impact on their careers.
It is therefore clear that human resources have a key role to play in this area in encouraging these practices in order to redefine a more equitable sharing of family responsibilities between women and men.
Promoting parity at work also means ensuring equal access to training opportunities and responsible positions for all.
However, in 2023, 81% of French people still consider that women face more obstacles4 than men to succeed professionally. It is therefore essential that companies adopt mechanisms that allow everyone to progress according to their skills and ambitions, without discrimination.
The valorization of women in the company also requires a fair and transparent salary and promotional policy to ensure real equality of opportunity between men and women.
Talent and performance should therefore be the only evaluation criteria.
Too often, the selection criteria for promotions remain unclear and may unconsciously favour certain profiles at the expense of others. A clear policy, with clear development criteria that are accessible to all, ensures real equality of opportunity.
In addition, it is essential to question certain recruitment and promotion practices that disadvantage female employees, such as co-optation between men.
This form of networking, which is much more widespread than one might imagine and is based on a form of camaraderie, often consists in promoting men and relationships.
Thus, rethinking these selection methods is essential to build a more equal and diversified professional environment.
To conclude, the place of women is constantly growing in corporate governance, but challenges remain. While quotas have made it possible to accelerate the feminization of several bodies, management positions are still largely male.
However, studies show that diversity stimulates the performance and sustainability of organizations.
To allow female employees to authorize themselves to run for the positions of company directors or to give them the opportunity to access them, it is essential to:
Remember that this fight for more feminized governance is not only a question of equity, but above all it is a real springboard for growth and competitiveness.
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