More women leaders emerge but ‘critical imbalance’ persists

In the same period, the share of enterprises with at least 30% women on boards rose by 7.2 percentage points, from 38.3% to 45.5%. The proportion of firms with a woman board chair also more than doubled to 30.9%.

The report also found that there are more women senior managers across all functions, and they are concentrated in areas such as human resources (62.5%), as well as finance and administration (55.4%).

‘Critical imbalance’ at work

But a key finding in the report is the “critical imbalance” persisting in workplaces when it comes to gender.

“Over the past three decades, women have made significant gains in education and skills acquisition, now outpacing men in higher education globally,” the report read.

“Yet this progress is not being matched by equivalent labour market outcomes, pointing to enduring structural constraints, including occupational segregation, unequal care responsibilities and persistent social norms that shape labour market participation and career progression.”