Push to Diversify Boards Picks Up Steam

Jan 1, 2014

Reading Time : 1 min

The push towards greater gender diversity on boards is also picking up steam internationally. Several countries in Europe already impose mandatory gender quotas on public company boards, and the EU is considering a European-wide initiative to address gender imbalance in the boardroom.  In addition, in recent years many countries, including Australia, Ireland and the United Kingdom, have implemented disclosure requirements regarding gender diversity,7 and the Ontario Securities Commission is currently considering adding disclosure requirements for listed companies.  This summer India enacted legislation requiring listed companies to have at least one woman director.8

Several recent studies show a positive correlation between women in the boardroom and company financial performance, particularly during times of economic stress.9  Other recent studies show that diverse groups make better decisions than homogeneous groups,10 and that companies with women in the boardroom have stronger corporate governance practices.11  Consumer products companies may particularly benefit from the input of women in the boardroom since it is estimated that women control about 70 percent of global consumer spending.12

This post was excerpted from our Top 10 Topics for Directors in 2014 alert. To read the full alert, please click here.


1   See, e.g., N. Kristoff, “Twitter, Women and Power,” The New York Times (Oct. 23, 2013).

2 ISS, 2013 U.S. Proxy Season Review: E&S Issues (Sept. 2013).

3  Id.

4  Id.

5   ISS, supra; The Thirty Percent Solution – Members.

6  The Thirty Percent Solution “Coalition contacts 127 Russell 100 Companies” (Feb. 5, 2013).

7 Catalyst, “Increasing Gender Diversity on Boards:  Current Index of Formal Approaches” (2013).

8 KPMG, “New Companies Act, 2013” Insight Series – Vol. V (Sept. 2013).

9  See, e.g., Thomson Reuters, “Mining the Metrics of Board Diversity” (July 2013); Credit Suisse Research Institute, “Gender Diversity and Corporate Performance” (Aug. 2012); M. Schwartz-Ziv, “Does the Gender of Directors Matter?” (Sept. 7, 2012); Catalyst, “The Bottom Line: Connecting Corporate Performance and Gender Diversity” (2007).

10   See Ernst and Young, Groundbreakers Study, Diversity an Equation for Success (2009); Credit Suisse Research Institute, supra.

11  See studies cited in Credit Suisse Research Institute, supra.

12 Boston Consulting Group, press release (Sept. 8, 2009).

Share This Insight

Previous Entries

Akin Deal Diary

April 12, 2023

Read More

Akin Deal Diary

2022-12-15

On December 14, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted amendments regarding Rule 10b5-1 insider trading plans and related disclosures. The amendments aim to strengthen investor protections concerning insider trading and to help shareholders understand when and how insiders are trading in securities for which they may at times have material nonpublic information (MNPI). In light of these amendments, issuers should review and revise, if needed, their insider trading policies and equity grant policies.

Read more.

...

Read More

© 2024 Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. All rights reserved. Attorney advertising. This document is distributed for informational use only; it does not constitute legal advice and should not be used as such. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Akin is the practicing name of Akin Gump LLP, a New York limited liability partnership authorized and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority under number 267321. A list of the partners is available for inspection at Eighth Floor, Ten Bishops Square, London E1 6EG. For more information about Akin Gump LLP, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and other associated entities under which the Akin Gump network operates worldwide, please see our Legal Notices page.