Four in ten directors appointed by UK companies in 2014 were women, study shows

More women than ever are joining the boards of UK companies, according to research by consultancy firm Korn Ferry.

The firm’s analysis shows that 39% of new non-executive directors appointed by FTSE 350 companies (the 350 largest public companies listed in the UK) last year were women, compared to 11% in 2007.

Earlier this year, the UK government announced its target of at least 25% female boards by the end of the year, which it established in 2011, has largely been reached by the leading FTSE 100 companies. However, this is largely accounted for by non-executive roles, with only 8.6% of executive positions held by women.

The picture is also less positive among the smaller FTSE 250 companies, where fewer than one in 20 executive directors are women. A survey published in July showed that 31% of FTSE 350 companies are not expecting to meet the government target.

There is also considerable variation across different sectors. A separate study has shown the retail sector has the best record for female representation among the FTSE 100, with 32% female directors. At the other end of the scale, the mining industry has only 17%.

IZA World of Labor author Nina Smith has written about gender quotas for boards of directors. Noting that the evidence does not support introducing gender quotas on economic grounds, she argues that: “Policymakers may have to change their focus from requiring quotas for the top of an organization to the much broader task of getting a more balanced gender division of careers within the family, for instance by encouraging more fathers to take advantage of parental leave schemes.”

Read more on this story at the Financial Times.

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