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Government launches drive to have more women in UK boardrooms following slowdown in growth

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By Tony Connelly, Sports Marketing Reporter

July 7, 2016 | 3 min read

The government is backing a campaign to increase female representation in business leadership positions after figures in the new 2016 Female FTSE Board Report revealed progress has slowed in developing a talent pipeline.

Call for more women in UK boardrooms

Call for more women in UK boardrooms

The latest initiative is calling on FTSE 350 companies to have 33 per cent women on boards by 2020 and will build on an earlier review by Lord Davies which saw the numbers of females on FTSE 100 boards up from 12.5 per cent to 26 per cent.

The 2016 Female FTSE Board Report has been compiled by Cranfield University, City University London and Queen Mary University London and shows that, while the overall percentage of women on FTSE boards has increased compared to March 2015, the pace of change is slowing.

In order to meet the 33 per cent target the report maintains that a constant turnover is required in addition to an appointment rate of one in three board positions going to women.

The report has found that just 19.4 per cent of FTSE 100 executive committee members are women with just 9.7 per cent holding the most important senior executive and operational roles. This proportion falls to 5.6 per cent in the FTSE 250.

Susan Vinnicombe, professor of women and leadership at Cranfield University and co-author of the Female FTSE Board Report 2016, said: “The focus on boards must be preserved as the pace of change has not kept up after the Davies closing report. In order to hit the 33% board target by 2020, chairmen and search consultants must ensure the board appointment process remains robust, transparent and gender-inclusive.”

The new review will be led by Sir Philip Hampton, chair of GlaxoSmithKline, and Dame Helen Alexander, chair of UBM. The focus of the initiative will be on representation on executive committees and direct reports to the executive committee in FTSE 350 companies.

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