FTSE 350 Hits U.K. Government's Target Of 40% Women On Boards By 2025

The goal of better female representation at the top of British business has dominated the U.K landscape since 2011, when the government launched a concerted effort to improve gender representation with a mix of tactics best described as “carrot and stick: repeat, repeat, repeat.” New data released today reveals that 40.2% of FTSE 350 Board positions are now held by women, ahead of the government target of 40% by 2025. There will be much well-deserved congratulation on the rise in numbers, which jumped nearly 3% in 2022. But the important lessons of over a decade have been the insights gained on the difficulties of changing culture, and the ongoing need to keep a close eye on that evolution to achieve the targets of gender - and wider - equality.

The findings come as part of the latest report by the Government-backed FTSE Women Leaders Review, sponsored by Lloyds Banking Group and KPMG. It reveals that women now hold a third of ALL leadership roles in FTSE 350 companies, a milestone of progress that will be welcomed by the many unseen women who have been closely involved in the journey to date. The next critical goal is a target of 40% women in FTSE 350 Leadership positions before 2025.

Just over a decade ago, 152 of FTSE 350 Boards had no women on them. But talk of a “sea change” is premature, as in that last decade-plus, our expectations as a society on what passes as “gender equality” and wider “equality” in the U.K. have also changed. The human experience of getting women to these positions and having them flourish there has also been a challenge.

In the recent past - since the pandemic- our definitions as members of civil society of “leadership” remain fast evolving, as is the representation we expect as stakeholders who trust in our businesses (see the latest Edelman UK trust barometer) and believe in the unwritten contracts between business and society. There is a reason why U.K. regulators continue to stay focused on what they demand from business around the societal concerns of human materiality, broadly covering what we call ‘ESG.’ Business must stay in close touch to its stakeholders.

Kemi Badenoch, Business and Trade Secretary and Women & Equalities Minister February 2023 Source : UK Parliament

“I’m pleased to see that FTSE 350 companies have surpassed this target, showing that change doesn’t always require top-down interventions but can occur when everyone is pushing in the same direction. This progress is very welcome, and I’d urge business to keep up this momentum to achieve better balance in leadership positions as well as in boardrooms” said Kemi Badenoch, Business and Trade Secretary and Women & Equalities Minister on the launch of the report.

“Making sure the right people are in the top roles is not just morally right, it makes good business sense ….By working together, industry and Government can make sure inequality is a thing of the past - which is good for individuals, for businesses, and for our country.” said Maria Caulfield, U.K Minister for Women.

The U.K. Government is keen to stress that progress has been achieved “on an entirely voluntary basis, rather than by a mandatory quota system that is enforced on businesses in many countries.” The Review, extended to include 50 of the largest U.K. private companies, reports progress at 31.8% women on those boards. and will be tracking the progress of women in 30,000 leadership roles across all big British businesses.

The increase of women in the Chair role is significant. There are now 55 across the FTSE 350, meaning that almost one in six FTSE 350 companies in 2023 has a woman Chair and more than one in three FTSE 350 companies have a woman in the Senior Independent Director (SID) role. There remain only 9 female CEOs in the FTSE 100, but the number of female Finance Directors has increased to 23% in 2022.

With the government acting as a cheerleader, businesses have also had an opportunity to step up and stand out. Companies such as Greggs Plc, Severn Trent plc and Vodafone Plc have hit the headlines for having more women than men on their boards. There are four companies in the FTSE 350 with both a female CEO and a female Chair : Admiral Group Plc, Severn Trent Plc, Pennon Group Plc, Taylor Wimpey Plc. The Top 10 for Women in Leadership positions is led by Burberry Group Plc, Next Plc, and J Sainsbury Plc.

Apart from Admiral Group Plc, the financial services industry is notably absent in the accolades on progress on gender diversity and women in leadership roles. Low female representation in a sector critical for the financial infrastructure of society is concerning, as is the glacial progress across sectors on a drive for true equality, diversity and inclusion all the way to the top.

Ethnicity does not seem to be mentioned in this review, swallowed into ‘gender equality’ as the focus. But perhaps there is more information to come on diverse representation in senior roles of leadership at the top of British business.

At the end of last year, a review by the U.K. regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority pointed to a lack of data as a big reason preventing companies from setting specific targets for under-represented minorities in British businesses. As the positive outcome of this Government-backed review shows us clearly today, the collation of data is essential to meet targets. Where there is culture change needed, data is critical.

But that does not mean there is not good cause here for celebration. All progress on change it seems, means putting one foot in front of another with determination, and a refusal to accept the status quo, if it threatens stagnation.

Main image credit: UK Government: BEIS, London February 2023