Almost 40% FTSE 100 Board Roles Now Held By Women

Around 40% FTSE 100 board positions in the UK are now held by women, compared to just 12.5% ten years ago, according to a new report.

The findings, published by the Government-backed FTSE Women Leaders Review, demonstrate a major sea-change in attitudes to getting women leaders to the top table of business in the UK; with women’s board representation increasing in 2021 across the FTSE 100 (39.1%), FTSE 250 (36.8%) and FTSE 350 (37.6%).

The UK has climbed to second in the international rankings for women’s representation on boards at FTSE 100 level, confirmed the body; which monitors women’s representation in 24,000 positions on FTSE 350 Boards and in leadership teams of the UK’s biggest companies.

The report also highlights the success of the UK government’s voluntary, business-led approach to setting targets for getting more women on boards; as the UK progressed from fifth to second in the international rankings at FTSE 100 level. In fact, the UK leapfrogged countries such as Norway, which enforces a mandatory quota system on businesses.

MORE WOMEN IN CHAIR ROLES

“UK businesses have made enormous progress in recent years to ensure that everyone, whatever their background, can succeed on merit; and the findings highlight this with more women at the top table of Britain’s biggest companies than ever before,” commented UK Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng. “However, we should not rest on our laurels. The FTSE Women Leaders Review will build on the success so far of our voluntary, business-led approach to increasing women’s representation on boards and in leadership, without the need for mandatory quotas.”

The number of women in Chair roles across the FTSE 350 rose to 48, up from 39 in 2020. There is also a significant decrease in the number of ‘One & Done’ boards to just six this year; as British businesses take action to diversify their boardrooms.  UK businesses have also continued to drive progress in their leadership teams in 2021, despite challenges faced in response to Covid-19. There are over 700 more women in leadership roles in the FTSE 350 companies this year; increasing women’s representation to 31.5%, an increase of two percentage points year-on-year.

TACKLING INEQUALITY & LEVELLING UP

While there has been remarkable progress at boardroom level, the report also shines a light on areas where there is still more to do. For example, only one in three leadership roles and around 25% of all Executive Committee roles are held by women; and there are very few women in the CEO role. Equally, there are still many companies yet to hit the former 33% target set by the Hampton Alexander Review. 

“It is excellent to see the progress being made; but we know there is more to be done,” highlighted Minister for Women and Equalities, Liz Truss. “This Government is committed to levelling up all parts of our country, working to tackle inequality and promoting equality of opportunity; including at senior level, so everyone can thrive. We will shortly put forward a range of measures to advance equality for women at work; increasing opportunity, and tackling the issues that are holding women back as we look to ensure that everyone can reach their full potential.”

BOLD RECOMMENDATIONS

To ensure British companies continue to raise their game and open up opportunities to everyone, the latest FTSE Women Leaders Review report has set out bold new recommendations. They include:

• The voluntary target for FTSE 350 Boards & for leadership teams is increased to a minimum of 40% women’s representation by the end of 2025
• FTSE 350 companies to have at least one woman in the Chair, Senior Independent Director role on the Board and/or one woman in the Chief Executive Officer or Finance Director role by the end of 2025
• Extending the scope of the FTSE Women Leaders Review beyond FTSE 350 companies to include the largest 50 private companies in the UK by sales

These recommendations aim to increase gender balance further, bringing new focus to the appointment of women at the highest levels of British business; particularly in those companies that are still lagging behind.

ENSURING MORE WOMEN AT THE TOP

“The FTSE Women Leaders Review announces four new Recommendations for this next stage; which will embed the progress and hard-won gains of the last decade and take business further on the journey to gender balance in the boardroom and in leadership,” explained Denise Wilson, Chief Executive of the FTSE Women Leaders Review. “We know there is much more work to do; and no shortage of experienced, capable women, ambitious for themselves and their company across all sectors of business today. So while we continue to build on progress for women on boards, we need to firmly shift focus in this next phase to women in leadership roles at the top of the organisation.”

The Government also announced that KPMG and Lloyds Banking Group will be the corporate sponsors for FTSE Women Leaders Review in this next phase; providing important support to increase the number of women at the top of British business.

INCREASING WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP

“While the representation of women in leadership roles has continued to improve, the need to maintain momentum and continually challenge remains. Forty is the new thirty when it comes to women’s representation targets on boards and in senior leadership roles,” stated Bina Mehta, Chair of KPMG in the UK. “But beyond the numbers, it’s just as important to ensure that the overflowing pipeline of well-qualified and capable women translates into more women Chairs, SIDs, CEOs and CFOs. I’m delighted KPMG UK is co-sponsoring the FTSE Women Leaders Review; helping to make truly inclusive leadership cultures a reality for all businesses.”

Adding to her comments,  Fiona Cannon, Group Sustainable Business Director, Lloyds Banking Group, said: “Lloyds Banking Group is pleased to co-sponsor the FTSE Women Leaders Review.  We firmly believe that gender equality provides a real competitive advantage and companies with diverse leadership teams see increased performance and make better decisions. We welcome the new target to achieve a minimum of 40% women on Boards and in leadership teams; and are particularly pleased that there will be a strong focus in the Review on increasing the number of women in leadership positions. There is no shortage of talented women; we need to ensure the opportunities are there for them to succeed.”

Download the latest report here. More than one-quarter of board seats in the Russell 3000 now belong to women, according to a recent US report.

Companies with women CEOs make a huge difference for other female executives as it means those firms tend to have significantly more women in leadership roles and on the board, confirmed a new global study. Click here to read more.