Out of 341 CEOs at S&P 500 companies who have served at least two fiscal years, 25 are women.by executive intelligence provider Equilar—found that, out of 341 CEOs at S&P 500 companies who have served at least two fiscal years, 25 are women. This is the highest number of women to be considered top-paid CEOs since the inception of the AP’s annual survey and is an increase from just 20 women making the cut.
Moreover, at only 29.7%, the share of board seats held by women has too seen little improvement in recent years, according to the latest analysis of the Russell 3000 from the. In fact, the report highlights the urgent need for solutions that address barriers to women’s advancement, noting that at the current rate, “achieving gender parity on boards and 20% women of color representation will not happen until 2045.
The question that has to be answered is what’s behind women’s stalled progress, and what needs to be done to reignite the path to parity.’s reporting of its survey’s findings cites Christy Glass, a professor of sociology at Utah State University, whose research finds that part of the issue is due to the “” phenomenon, in which women are promoted to leadership positions in times of crisis, economic downturn or when the risk of failure is higher.