INCLUSION ON BOARDS
Shaping gender-balanced boardrooms, one story at a time
The new EWOB study on inclusion on boards helps organisations bridge the gap between meeting the European Union’s 2022 Women on Boards Directive requirements and achieving true inclusion in boardrooms. It provides:
- Qualitative study of boardroom inclusion across Europe, highlighting gaps that persist despite progress in gender diversity.
- First-hand insights from women serving on boards, detailing experiences of microaggressions, exclusion, and barriers to belonging.
- Practical recommendations for business leaders to move beyond box-ticking and cultivate board cultures where women can fully contribute.
Breaking barriers in the boardroom
While gender diversity in boardrooms is improving, true inclusion remains a challenge. Women continue to face barriers that limit their ability to thrive. Legal targets may increase representation, but without cultural change, hiring women can feel like ‘box-ticking.’
Real progress comes from intentional actions: building trust, empowering voices, and transforming systems.
UNDERSTANDING CHALLENGES IN CORPORATE LEADERSHIP TODAY
Microaggressions
Women in the study reported experiencing microaggressions, objectifying comments, and imposter syndrome, which hinder their ability to thrive in the boardroom.
“You would think that when you reach the board, that it’s like ‘tick’, you are approved, you now belong to them. But then you realise you’re not. You realise that it’s actually all the same patterns and microaggressions… It doesn’t matter at which level you are.”
Tokenism
With legal targets in place, the hiring of women in roles previously filled by men can seem like ‘box-ticking’ unless inclusive practices and a cultural shift support it.
“This is also not what you want as a woman. You don’t want to be on a board just because you’re a woman. That’s not what you’re there for in the first place, right? It’s not for your gender, but it’s really about having a contribution but also having a say.”
Networking gaps
Networking proves to be necessary to get a board position, but many reported that existing networks are largely inaccessible to women.
“You need to be in the right network. Board memberships are filled via network. Once you’re in the radar, then you have more opportunities or you have more chances.”
DRIVING INCLUSIVE CHANGE IN CORPORATE LEADERSHIP
Impact
Inequality does come with a cost: faced with systemic barriers, talented women either leave to create change elsewhere or stay and fight for it.
“You need to find an ethical board, an ethical company. I wouldn’t join anything that I felt my values were at odds with.”
Collaborative action
True progress happens when men and women work together to challenge the status quo.
“Women and men together do more than women individually or men individually… We do better when we are together.“
WHAT GETS MEASURED
GETS DONE
Discover our past research on gender diversity and inclusion in European boardrooms. Our reports and studies provide actionable insights and in-depth analysis to help organisations advance diversity in leadership and create inclusive environments at the highest levels.
2024
Diversity on European Boards
The evidence-based EWOB toolkit is designed to help organisations improve the representation of female leaders at decision-making level. It provides:
- An overview of the state of gender equality in corporate leadership across Europe
- Practical recommendations to help business leaders strengthen diversity within their organisations
- Answers to key questions about the Women on Boards Directive
Do you want to know more about the Directive? Read the FAQs