Women representation on company boards rises in India: Study

The study also said that India's corporate boards without women has decreased from 44% in 2013 to 29% in 2014

India has made "significant improvement" in broadening female representation on the boards of top 100 companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange, said a study released here on Tuesday.

According to the joint study, titled "Building Diversity in Asia Pacific Boardrooms", female board representation increased from 7.3% in 2013 to 8.6% in 2014.

It was 5.8% in 2012 and is estimated at 12% for 2015.

"Three countries in the Asia Pacific region, namely Australia, India and Malaysia, showed significant improvement in broadening women representation on boards across the companies. A combination of government initiatives has contributed to the increase in these countries," the study said.

 

"Indian companies, for instance, have been swift to respond to the Company Act by drawing on their existing networks," said the joint study by Korn Ferry, a global people advisory, and National University of Singapore Business School's Centre for Governance Institution and Organisation (CGIO).

The Company Act, which required all listed companies to have at least one woman on the board, has helped enable this broadening female representation, said the study.

India's corporate boards without women has decreased from 44% in 2013 to 29% in 2014.

The highest number of female board members, at 17.5%, were in the telecommunication services, followed by 11.6% in information technology and 9.6% in financials, the study said.

The lowest, at 4.9%, was in industrials.

Speaking to reporters at the study launch, Korn Ferry managing director Alicia Yi said, "regulatory and government push has increased women representation" in the Indian corporate boardrooms.

She described it as a significant development in women empowerment in India.

Women make up 10.2% of the directors in companies across 10 Asia Pacific economies covered by the study, up from 9.4% in 2013 and 8% in 2012, the study said.

Female board members in Australia increased from 18.6% in 2013 to 21.9% in 2014.

In Malaysia, women in boardrooms increased from 8.3% in 2013 to 12.5% in 2014, driven by the government set target of having 30% by this year.