Female presence within executive positions in European companies : The development in the European Union

Abstract: Background – In today’s globalized society, it is argued that gender diversity should be visible even withintop positions in management boards, since women and men now have similar impact as entrepreneurs,directors and consumers. Instead, there is an underrepresentation of females within top decision-makingpositions, where various barriers exist for women in their career advancements. Several countries in theEU have taken legislative actions to increase the presence of females in non-executive positions, but thesituation for executive positions is different, where a slower development is found. Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the female presence within executive positions in theEU28 together with its relation to the gender pay gap, number of females holding tertiary education andthe legal framework in each member state. In combination with chosen theories and metaphors, this studycontributes to an increased consciousness within the topic when linking the development of femalepresence to the chosen factors. Method - Secondary data is collected from three different databases from the European CommissionandEurostat’s websites, where statistics are analyzed and compiled by the authors. Information from eachmember state’s corporate governance code will illustrate the respective legal frameworks. Conclusion - The results indicates a relation between female presence, gender pay gap and education levelin the EU28 with, on average, positive developments in all aspects. Although, the results vary between themember states and thus institutionalism might be an important factor with large impact on legal structures,willingness, attitudes and social pressures within society. Also, it is visible that there is still an existing glassceiling for women seeking for acceleration in their careers, as there is less development within the highestpositions of companies compared to positions without decision-making power.