German companies appoint more women to executive boards

German companies appoint more women to executive boards

After years of debate, the German government has launched a quota for women on the boards of some companies in 2021. Listed companies with equal co-management must have at least one woman on the board of directors if it has more than three members.

Women on boards much less often

DIW and Freie Universität Berlin examined different types of companies. The proportion of women on senior committees is therefore at different levels depending on the corporate group. However, the overall picture is relatively comparable. “Women are represented much less often on executive boards than on supervisory boards and increases in both bodies were quite meager last year,” she said.

However, DAX 40 companies (for the first time with more than 20% women on the board) and companies with federal participation (for the first time more than 30% women on the board) led with larger increases. DAX companies are in the public eye, and there are generally higher expectations of federal companies, explained DIW expert Virginia Sondergeld.