In fact, only 4.8 percent of CEOs in the Fortune 500 ranking of the largest U.S. corporations in 2018 were women. And when two researchers from Georgetown examined the top 3,000 largest publicly traded companies in the corporate database D&B Hoovers, they found an even lower number: 4.6 percent.
“I’ve been up in that realm of C-level executives, and seeing how many women make it to that point and not make it to become CEO made me curious,” Purmal says. “How can we expect women to envision themselves as CEOs when they see few to no female CEOs in their line of sight?” Tinsley asks. That hiring tactic makes sense, the researchers say, because the same skills required to serve on a board are often transferable to the role of CEO.
“They know these women, they have seen their performance, and they feel comfortable recommending them for consideration in the CEO candidate pool,” says Tinsley. In 2019, the number of female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies has risen to 6.6 percent, the highest number ever, according to Forbes. “Companies are recognizing that the gender discrepancies at the top of corporations is likely an unnatural state and seem to be taking creative steps to try and correct the imbalance,” Tinsley says.
Women should not be shy about asking their own superiors to sponsor them for board positions, which could be a win-win for everyone. “It’s really good for the company for women to be trained at the board level,” says Purmal. “It makes them much stronger in their executive skills.”
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Source: BusinessInsider - 🏆 729. / 51 Read more »
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