The Female FTSE Board Report 2017

FTSE 100 Companies

The Female FTSE Board Report 2017

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3.4 TRENDS IN GROWTH OF WOMEN ON FTSE 100 BOARDS OVER THE PAST TEN YEARS Cranfield School of Management has been involved in monitoring the representation of women on boards of FTSE 100 companies since 1999. In October 2015 the Davies report confirmed that the target of 25% women on boards had been reached (26.1%). Going further and now in the context of the Hampton- Alexander review, a new voluntary target has been set. This target recommends a minimum representation of women at 33% of the boards of FTSE 350 companies and at 33% of the executive levels of the FTSE 100 companies (executive committee and direct reports levels). In this section we look back to map the progress that has been made over the past ten years. We focus on the following areas in turn: 1. A review of the overall progress 2. A review of the progress made across sectors 3. Composition of Boards by Role 4. Nationality of directors 5. Women’s representation across NED roles 6. Organisational, board and role tenure 3.4.1 Overview of Women’s Board Representation in FTSE 100 Companies 2007-2017 – Overall Progress Between 2007 and 2017, a total of 167 companies were included in the FTSE 100 listing. There is nonetheless a significant amount of change since of these, only 57 were listed for the entire period. During that time, women’s representation on the boards of FTSE 100 companies rose from 11% on average in 2007 to 28% by 2017. Between 2007 and 2017, the influx of women on the boards of FTSE 100 companies has been accompanied by a decline in the number of men. Women’s increased representation has therefore not resulted in an increase in the size of boards, which has hovered around 11 members throughout the period.

FIGURE 2. NUMBER OF WOMEN AND MEN ON THE BOARDS OF FTSE 100 COMPANIES 2007-2017

992

1,000

947

942

923

907

881

900

857

824

800

756

700

600

500

400

290

286

300

258

229

190

200

163

134

129

122

100

0

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017