UK listed companies in the FSTE 100 have been urged to set targets to aim for a minimum of 25% female board member representation by 2015.
In an independent review into Women on Boards launched today by Lord Davies, companies were called on to set targets for 2013 and 2015 to ensure that talented women can get into the top jobs in businesses across the UK.
In 2010 women made up just 12.5% of members of the corporate boards of FTSE 100 companies, compared to 87.5% of men. While this figure is up from 9.4% in 2004, Lord Davies has argued that the rate of increase is too slow, and at the current rate it would take as long as 70 years before board-rooms in the UK achieved a gender-balance.
Lord Davies has called for chairmen to announce these goals in the next six months and chief executives to review the ratio of women they aim to have on their executive committees in 2013 and 2015.
Lord Davies said: “Currently 18 FTSE 100 companies have no female directors at all and nearly half of all FTSE 250 companies do not have a woman in the boardroom. Radical change is needed in the mindset of the business community if we are to implement the scale of change that is needed.
“This is not about aiming for a specific figure and is not just about promoting equal opportunities but it is about improving business performance. There is growing evidence to show that diverse boards are better boards, delivering financial out-performance and stock market growth.”
Many organisations have welcomed the review, saying that women would bring greater diversity to boardrooms and help in the decision-making process.
John Peace, chairman of Standard Chartered Bank commented: "Lord Davies’ review addresses a very important topic. It is essential that women are able to succeed at all levels of an organisation, and companies should strive to create the opportunities for women to achieve their aspirations. This will in turn create a more diverse pool of leaders for appointment to boards."
© Crimson Business. Ltd 2011