Analysis looks at representation of women in voting positions on a company’s board
Gender equitable boards account for 8.8% of the global list with Europe coming in on top at 65% and Asia with only one company having women’s representation
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y., March 22, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The SHE Mark, the most inclusive of gender equality certification marks in the world, today released the results of the SHEgoverns™ Awards: 2023 Women on Boards Report. The report reviewed gender representation on voting governance boards across the S&P Global 1200. The analysis of the current gender equity of the 1200 companies looks at whether a company’s board of directors or supervisory board has half or greater representation of women and/or gender diverse people in voting positions. The full report can be found by accessing the link here.
Key highlights from the report show that only 8.8% of companies on the global list have women equitably represented on boards. European companies account for 65% of the 8.8% with Asia having only one company on the list. The report shows that 18% of companies across the S&P Global are just one board seat away from a gender equitable board.
Some of the most recognizable companies on the list include Accenture (Ireland), Auto Trader Group (United Kingdom), BNP Paribas (France), Citigroup (United States), Coca-Cola Co. (United States), Credit Suisse Group (Switzerland), Diageo (United Kingdom), General Mills (United States), Hasbro (United States), and Heineken (Netherlands).
“We focused this report on the positive by highlighting the largest market cap businesses around the world that are currently living the gender equitable future we imagine,” said Sterling Champion, Co-CEO of The SHE Mark. “They are the change we wish to see in the world and are actualizing on a global call for gender equity, specifically on boards. While we do have a long way to go to reach gender equality in the boardroom, we feel it is important to celebrate those who are doing the work today by bringing us closer to worldwide gender parity, and hopefully attract those that want to join the movement and be part of the change.”
Additional findings include:
- France has the most awarded companies at 20, followed by the US at 19, the UK at 12, Australia at 8, Germany and Netherlands at 7, and Canada at 6.
- Japan has 1 awarded company out of 150.
- By far, the most represented sector is the financial sector with 29 awardees. Second is communication services with 13 awardees.
- Less than half (41.5%) of awardees have women in titled roles on the board.
- Boards with women in titled roles have, on average, 6.7% greater women’s representation on the board than those with no women in titled roles.
- Around 60% of companies on the S&P Global have at least a third women on the board.
“Highlighting companies that are led by women empowers all of us to impact economic gender equality with every purchasing decision we make,” said Ilana Broad, Co-CEO and General Counsel of The SHE Mark. “Step one in accomplishing this goal is identifying those companies. All of our SHE Marks do this, and we’re excited to add SHEgoverns to our suite of marks.”
The SHE Mark’s framework for qualification under this report matches that of the newly-announced certification mark, SHEgoverns™ which indicates 50+% representation of women and/or gender diverse people with voting positions on a board. In addition to highlighting the SHEgoverns Awardees, the report also looks at women in titled roles, employee representation on boards, GICS sector breakdown, average board size and breakdown, intersectional insights, and more.
The SHE Mark is proud to release this research publicly, and to use this report to highlight and call attention to the SHEgoverns Awardees - to celebrate their accomplishment of gender equitable board representation - and to call-in all other firms listed on the S&P Global 1200 and other indices worldwide.
About The SHE Mark
The SHE Mark is a benefit corporation that verifies (at least) equal inclusion of all women in the course of business. The SHE Mark makes it easier to communicate those efforts using four business certification marks: SHEruns™, SHEmakes™, SHEowns™, and SHEgoverns™ The SHE Certified Community™ is inclusive: SHE Certified™ companies may be male-owned, small and local, or publicly traded; while some may be majority owned by women, our array of marks recognizes the many ways in which women and gender-diverse people can impact a company. The SHE Mark is on a mission to empower everyone to contribute to building a more gender-equitable economy by driving money, attention, and support towards SHE Certified companies. More information can be found by visiting www.theshemark.com.
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