Research

Women in Management: Quick Take

Aug 07, 2019

GLOBAL

The Share of Women in Senior Roles Globally is Increasing Incrementally1
  • In 2019, 29% of senior management roles are held by women, the highest number ever on record.2
  • 87% of global businesses have at least one woman in a senior management role in 2019.3

The proportion of women in senior leadership differs by role:

  • 43% of human resources directors are women compared to 17% of sales directors and 16% of chief information officers.4
The proportion of women in senior leadership differs by region:5
Region Percentage of Senior Roles Held by Women
Eastern Europe 32%
Asia Pacific 28%
The European Union 28%
North America 31%
Latin America 25%

Asia Pacific

In Australia, Men Dominate Senior Levels of Management6

In 2018, women represented just over a third (36.3%) of all managers in Australia.7

It is projected it won’t be until 2039 for women to reach parity in key management personnel roles if the current rate of progression remains constant.8

Women are less likely to reach the top levels of management. In 2018, women accounted for:9

  • 32.4% of senior managers
  • 29.0% of executives
  • 29.0% of key management personnel
  • 16.8% of CEOs/Heads of Business
Nearly Half of Indian Women Leave the Workforce Between Junior and Middle Management Levels10
  • In 2018, women held only 20% of all senior roles in India.11
  • In 2017, women held only 7% of senior management (CEO/Managing Director) roles.12
Japan Has Set Targets for Increasing Women in Leadership Positions by 202013

As of 2017, in private corporations, women accounted for:14

  • 18.4% of section chiefs
  • 10.9% of directors

CANADA

Men Continue to Hold 90% of C-Level Executive Roles15

In Canada, women accounted for slightly more than a third (35.1%) of all managers, and 32.6% of senior managers, in 2018.16

Women made up just 53 (10%) of the 532 C-level executives among Canada’s 100 largest publicly traded corporations in 2018.17

In the C-suite, the most common position for women among executive officers is CFO (13) or 2.4%.18

EUROPE

Just One Out of Three Managers in the EU is a Woman19

Women are about half of all those employed in the EU and yet represent just 17% of senior executives.20

Percentage of Women Managers in Selected European Countries21
Country Percentage of Women Managers
France 37.6%
Germany 30.6%
Italy 27.9%
Spain 35.9%
Switzerland 35.9%
United Kingdom 37.2%

Among the largest publicly listed companies in the European Union (EU-28) in 2019, only 17.6% of executives and 6.9% of CEOs were women.22

UNITED STATES

There Are Fewer Women in Leadership Positions Than There Are Men Named John23

In the United States, women were nearly half (46.9%) of the labor force24, but only slightly over a third (40.0%) of managers in 2018.25

In 2018, White women held almost a third of all management positions at 32.6%.26

Share of women of color in management positions:27

  • Latinas: 6.2%
  • Black women: 3.8%
  • Asian women: 2.4%

In 2018, women made up the highest share of managers in human resources (77.9%) occupations and medical and health services (72.0%).28

In S&P 500 Companies, the Higher Up the Corporate Ladder, the Fewer the Women29

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Catalyst, The Promise of Future Leadership: A Research Program on Highly Talented Employees in the Pipeline (2007-2017).

Catalyst, Quick Take: Women on Corporate Boards.

Catalyst, Women CEOs of the S&P 500.

Catalyst, Ask Catalyst Express: Women CEOs (2019).

The Committee for Economic Development of The Conference Board, “Filling the Pipeline

Advancing More Women Into the C-Suite and On Corporate Boards,” (2019).

 

How to cite this product: Catalyst, Quick Take: Women in Management (August 7, 2019).

  1. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Building a Blueprint for Action (2019): p. 5.
  2. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Building a Blueprint for Action (2019): p. 5.
  3. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Building a Blueprint for Action (2019): p. 5.
  4. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Building a Blueprint for Action (2019): p. 6.
  5. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Building a Blueprint for Action (2019): p. 8-11.
  6. Alan Duncan and Rebecca Cassells, Gender Equity Insights 2019: Breaking through the Glass Ceiling, BCEC (2019): p. 14.
  7. Alan Duncan and Rebecca Cassells, Gender Equity Insights 2019: Breaking through the Glass Ceiling, BCEC (2019): p. 14.
  8. Alan Duncan and Rebecca Cassells, Gender Equity Insights 2019: Breaking through the Glass Ceiling, BCEC (2019): p. 15. Other managers “plan, organise, direct, control and coordinate an operational function within an individual entity. They usually oversee day-to-day operations, working within and enforcing defined company parameters. An ‘other manager’ is accountable for a defined business outcome which usually involves the management of resources that also includes time management, coordination of different functions or people, financial resources, and other assets (for example facilities or IT infrastructure). Line managers would be included in this category.” Australian Government, Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Reference Guide 2018 (2018): p. 24-25.
  9. Alan Duncan and Rebecca Cassells, Gender Equity Insights 2019: Breaking through the Glass Ceiling, BCEC (2019): p. 14.
  10. Sarika Malhotra, “50% Indian Women Drop Out of the Corporate Employment Pipeline Between Junior and Mid-Levels,” Business Today, October 5, 2016.
  11. Grant Thornton, Women in Business: Beyond Policy to Progress (2018): p. 10.
  12. “India Ranks Third Lowest in Having Women in Leadership Roles for the Third Consecutive Year,” Grant Thornton press release, 2017.
  13. Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, The Fourth Basic Plan for Gender Equality (2019).
  14. These categories are standard ranks or equivalent positions in Japan. Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, Gender Equality Bureau, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, Summary of Fourth Basic Plan for Gender Equality (2019).
  15. Rozenzweig & Company, The 14th Annual Rozenzweig Report (2019): p. 2.
  16. Statistics Canada, “Table 14-10-0297-01: Labour Force Characteristics by Occupation, Annual (x 1,000),”(2019).
  17. Rozenzweig & Company, The 14th Annual Rozenzweig Report (2019): p. 8.
  18. Rozenzweig & Company, The 14th Annual Rozenzweig Report (2019): p. 10.
  19. “Only 1 manager out of 3 in the EU is a woman…” Eurostat News Release, March 7, 2019.
  20. “Only 1 manager out of 3 in the EU is a woman…” Eurostat News Release, March 7, 2019.
  21. Eurostat, “Employees by Sex, Age and Occupation (1,000),” (2019).
  22. European Institute for Gender Equality, “Largest Listed Companies: CEOs, Executives and Non-Executives,” Gender Statistics Database (2019).
  23. Claire Cain Miller, Kevin Quealy, and Margot Sanger-Katz, “The Top Jobs Where Women Are Outnumbered by Men Named John,” The New York Times, April 24. 2018; Unpublished Catalyst research and analysis.
  24. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Table 3: Employment Status of the Civilian Noninstitutional Population by Age, Sex, and Race, 2018,” Current Population Survey, Household Data Annual Averages (2019).
  25. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Table 11: Employed Persons by Detailed Occupation, Sex, Race, Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity, 2017,” Current Population Survey, Household Data Annual Averages (2019).
  26. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Table 1: Employed and Experienced Unemployed Persons by Detailed Occupation, Sex, Race, and Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity, Annual Average 2018,” Current Population Survey (unpublished data) (2019).
  27. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Table 1: Employed and Experienced Unemployed Persons by Detailed Occupation, Sex, Race, and Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity, Annual Average 2018,” Current Population Survey (unpublished data) (2019).
  28. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Table 1: Employed and Experienced Unemployed Persons by Detailed Occupation, Sex, Race, and Hispanic or Latino Ethnicity, Annual Average 2018,” Current Population Survey (unpublished data) (2019).
  29. Catalyst, Pyramid: Women in S&P 500 Companies (May 1, 2019).