New Analysis reveals increased female representation in senior roles at German state-owned firms

BERLIN – As at January 1, 2023, a new study conducted by the Women in the Supervisory Boards group (FidAR) has shown a positive trend in the representation of women in high-ranking positions within publicly owned companies in Germany.

The research indicates a 1.3 percentage point increase, bringing the proportion of women on the supervisory boards of 262 companies partially owned by the German national or state governments to 37.1% compared to the previous year.

In addition, the percentage of women in top company management roles has risen by 2.5 percentage points, reaching 25.7%. Despite these advancements, FidAR pointed out that achieving gender parity in the German business sector is still a considerable distance away.

Lisa Paus, Germany’s Minister for Women’s Affairs, emphasized the need for greater female representation in leadership positions, supervisory boards, executive boards, and top-level management. She stressed the urgency of moving beyond all-male boards and executive teams, making them a relic of the past.

To address this issue, Germany implemented minimum requirements for female participation on specific company boards starting on August 1, 2022. This regulation mandates that companies predominantly owned by the German government must have at least one woman and one man on their board.

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However, FidAR’s assessment suggests that the impact of these new requirements on the public sector has been relatively slow.

Monika Schulz-Strelow, the founding president of FidAR, commented that public companies have maintained an advantage over their private sector counterparts for some time.

Still, she believes that by applying sufficient pressure and generating increased public interest, further progress can be achieved.

She also expressed disappointment in the relatively modest recent progress observed in publicly owned companies, especially when compared to the advances made by private firms.