女性仍远离企业高层领导职位+Women+are+Still+Far+from+Top+Corporate+Leadership+Positions

WomenMatterPortugal2023:

Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporate

leadershippositions

March2023

Executivesummary

Womenarewellrepresentedinthecountry’sworkforcebutarerelativelyscarceatthetop—andthatwon’tchangeanytimesoongivencurrentpromotiontrends.Yetcompaniescanacttoturnthetide.

ThisarticleisacollaborativeeffortbyEduardoBolio,AntoniodeGregorio,MariadelMarMartinezMárquez,DafniGiannikou,GloriaMacias,AmaiaNoguera,andJoanaMagalhãesSilvarepresentingviewsfromMcKinsey’sIberiaoffice.

Overtheyears,achangingcorporateworldhasbecomemoreopenforwomen,buttheglassceilingremainsverymuchinplace.Thisinvisiblebarrier,whichhinderswomenfromrisingtoleadership

positions,isjustoneoftheidentifiedconstraintsonwomen’sprofessionalprogress.Theotheristheleakypipeline,ortheincreasingscarcityofwomenasyougoupthecorporatehierarchy.

WomenaccountforhalfofthelaborforceinPortugal,butitlagsbehindtheEuropeanaveragefor

womenintoppositions.Therehasbeenalmostnogrowthintherepresentationofwomenintoprolesduringthepasttwoyears.Despitetheeffortsofcompaniestodeveloppoliciesthatpromoteequal

opportunity,Portugal’sglassceilingapparentlywon’tshatteranytimesoon.

Whyarewomen—whoatthestartoftheircareersplaceasmuchimportanceonadvancementas

mendo—largelyabsentfromC-suitesandseniormanagerialroles?1Andhowcanthisimbalanceberemedied,beyondcorporatepoliciesandgovernmentregulations?

WomenMatter2022,whichfocusesonIberiaandincludesinsightsfrom45PortugueseandSpanishcompanies,aimstoanswerthesequestions.ThepresentreportoffersourperspectivesonPortugal.Atahighlevel,thesluggishpaceofadvancementofwomentowardleadershippositionsresults

frommultiplecomplexfactors.Theseincludeinvisiblebarriersinworkandfamilylife,aswellasthe

widelyheldperceptionamongwomenthatcompaniesdon’tcatertotheirneeds.Genderstereotypesarealsopartoftheequation:womenoftenoccupypositionsinsupportfunctionsratherthanline

positions,andthatcanshrinktheirmanagementprospects.

Evenwhenwomendoprogresstotheupperechelons,theystilltakeonthelion’sshareoffamily

andhouseholdresponsibilitiesathome.Thirty-ninepercentoftopwomenmanagers,fromCEOs

toseniormanagers,saytheyarethesoleoverseerofthehousehold,versusjust8percentofmen.

Women’saspirationsatworkreflectthisdifference:43percentofmenarekeentotakeonpositionsofhighresponsibility,butonly36percentofwomenfeelthesame.Womenarenotonlylesslikelytofeelconfidentthattheywillprogresstohigherlevelsintheworkplacebutalsobecomeincreasinglydisenchantedastheyearsgoby.

What’smore,womenarelessinclinedthanmentotakeupopportunitiesabroad:only2percentof

womeninsenior-managementpositionsparticipateininternationalprograms,comparedwith9

percentofmen.Since60percentoftheCEOsofthecompaniesanalyzedhavepreviousinternational

experience,mobilitycouldbeaninvisiblebarriertowomenapplyingforgeneral-managementpositions.

Allthesefactorsconspiretolimitwomen’scareerpathsandopportunities—andalsohurtcompanies,sincewomenleaderscanhelpthemboosttheircompetitivenessandprofits.Infact,asthecurrent

1

Thenumberofnon-binaryparticipantsinthesurveywastoolowtoderivemeaningfulresults.Assuch,theseresultswereexcludedfromdataanalysis.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions1

reportargues,womenarebetterleaders:theirteamsaremoresatisfied,andcompanieswithmoreofthemintheleadershiphavehigherlevelsofemployeesatisfaction.ThatisveryimportantinthecontextoftheGreatResignationandthewarfortalent.

Increasingthenumberofwomeninseniormanagementwillrequireanuancedhuman-resources

approachandawillingnessbycompaniestooffermoreflexibleworkingconditions.CorporationsinPortugalcouldreapthebenefitsofincreasedlevelsoffemaleleadershipbyadoptingadistinctive,personalizedapproachtoindividualneedsandexpectations.Identifyingandeliminatinginvisible

barriersthathinderpromotionispotentiallythefirststeptoshiftingthegenderimbalance.

Whilemuchworkremainstoachieveparity,youngergenerationsinspirehope.Amongpeoplelessthan40yearsold,39percentofwomen,versus32percentofmen,wouldbemoreinterestedin

advancingtoseniorpositionsiftheycamewithgreaterflexibility.Thisparityofsentimentreflectsashiftinexpectationsandvaluesfromthoseofpreviousgenerations.

Thereportincludesacalltoactionbyoutliningpossiblesolutionstoovercomethelackofequality

inPortugal’sC-suites.Companiescancommitthemselvestochangebyintroducingmeasurable

objectivesforimplementingdiversity,equity,andinclusion(DEI)measuresandpromotingmentorshipandsponsorship.TheycouldprovidetrainingtohelpmanagersuseDEIpoliciestoeliminatebiasesintheworkplace,aswell.Thereportalsosuggeststhatcompaniestakeastandbyensuringthatwomenandmenhaveequalaccesstopromotionalopportunities,appointingwomentolinepositions,and

implementingnewworkmodelsthatsupportflexibility.

Businessesneedtoshiftfromattractingmorewomen(quantity)toensuringthattheypassthroughthehigheststagesofthehierarchy(quality).Thatwillrequireamorepersonalizedapproach.But

25percentofcompanieshavewomeninmorethan40percentoftheirleadershippositions.Thatisgroundsforoptimism.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions2

Introduction

AtMcKinsey&Company,westronglybelieveintheimportanceofgenderdiversityinleadership

positions.Theresearchwehaveconductedoverthepast15yearsinourWomenMatterreportshas

providedinsightintohowcompaniescanbetterequipthemselvestoincreasethepresenceofwomenatalllevelsofresponsibility.

WomenMatterexamineswomenleadershipinEurope,NorthAmerica,LatinAmerica,Asia,andtheGulf.Analyzingregion-specificchallengescanhelpuncoverlocalizedstrategiesthathavethepotentialtosuccessfullyachievegenderdiversityinleadershippositions.

Ascompaniesareadoptingequityandinclusionpolicies,genderdiversityismorethanjustaboxtobeticked.Ithasaconcreteimpactontheeconomicperformanceandcompetitivenessofa

company—havingagender-diverseexecutiveteambooststheprobabilityofimprovedfinancialresultsby25percent.2Italsoreinforcestalentattractionandretention.Researchshowsthata

positiveperceptionofequalopportunitiesinacompanytriplesthepossibilityofretainingtalent,whilenon-inclusiveworkenvironmentscanlimittalentattractionbyupto39percent.3

TheWomenMatterIberiastudysawtheparticipationof45PortugueseandSpanishcompaniesthatemploy300,000peopleonthepeninsula,resultingintworeportsreflectingourperspectiveoneachcountry.

WomenMatterPortugalaimstoshedlightonthecurrentcontextofworkingwomeninPortugal,

includingwomeninmanagementpositions,andtheirperceptionsoftheaccessibilityand

effectivenessoftheirorganizations’genderequalitymeasures.Italsoanalyzestherealprogressofwomen’sparticipationintoppositionssincetheprevious2017study.Finally,thisreportaimstoidentifythemosteffectivemeasuresforthecreationofinclusive,diverse,andequitableworkenvironmentswhilealsounderstandingtheimpactthatCOVID-19hashadonworkingwomen.

Atitscore,thisreportisacalltoaction,informedbyarigorousanalysisofthemanageriallandscapeinPortugal.Whilewomen’sstandingintheworkplacehasimproved,thereisstillalongwaytogo.

Togetthere,wesuggestmeasuressetoutinthisreport,includingclearobjectives,trainingfor

managers,amendinginternalpromotionpolicies,committingtotheincorporationofwomeninlinepositionsandN-2andN-1levels,andimplementingnewworkmodelsthataremoresupportiveofwomen’swork-lifebalanceandwellbeing.

2

3

VivianHunt,SaraPrince,SundiatuDixon-Fyle,andKevinDolan,“Diversitywins:Howinclusionmatters,”McKinsey,May2020“Womenintheworkplace,”McKinsey,October2019.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions3

hoebedsllinecokonecta

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Theauthorswishtoextendtheirsincerethankstothefollowingcompaniesthatparticipatedinthesurveyfortheircontributionstothisunderlyingresearch:

/ABANCAAedas

España

BBV∧

Spain

España

Spain

ferrovial

Portugal

Portugal

m1nsg

Spain

oquironsalud

Spain

TOUS

TheauthorsalsowishtoacknowledgetheSeresFoundationfortheirexcellentcontributiontothedevelopmentofthisreport.

Disclaimer

Theanalysesandconclusionscontainedinthisreportarebasedoninformationspanning2019-2021,and2022inthecasesofqualitativeandemployeesurveydata,thatwasmadeavailabletoMcKinsey.Thereportdoesnotpurporttocontainorincorporatealltheinformation.

TheanalysescontainedhereinwereundertakenbyMcKinseyasofthedatesnotedherein.McKinseyundertakesnoobligationtoreviseorupdateanysuchanalysesoranyforward-lookingstatements.

©2022McKinsey&Company.Allrightsreserved.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions4

ThePortuguesecontext

EuropeancompaniesareleadingtheglobalpushtoimplementtheSustainableDevelopmentGoals(SDGs)—especiallysincetheCOVID-19pandemic.SDG5,whichfocusesongenderequality,isthethirdmostmentionedSDGforEurope’sFortune500companies,63percentofwhichhavemadeacommitmenttogenderequality.4

PercentageofFortune500companiescommittedtotheSDGs,byregion

Percentageofengagement

80%70%60%50%40%30%20%10%

0%

EMEAAsiaPacificTheAmericas

SDG1SDG2SDG3SDG4SDG5SDG6SDG7SDG8SDG9SDG10SDG11SDG12SDG13SDG14SDG15SDG16SDG17

1.Lansongetal

BusinessesplayanimportantroleinthejourneytoamoreinclusiveEurope,particularlyinthe

wakeofCOVID-19.Thepromotionofsustainablefinanceandtheimplementationofenvironmental,social,andgovernance(ESG)criteriaareanimportantpartofthisjourney.Whilediversityaffords

companiesafinancialedgeandatalentadvantage,itsvalueextendsevenfurther;effectivepolicieshavethepotentialtoreduceinequalitiesinallareasofacompany.

Diversecompaniesdeliverbetterfinancialresults,andarebetteratattractingandretainingtalent

Severalstudieshighlightthecorrelationbetweenadiverseandinclusiveworkforceandbetter

financialresults.Companieswithamanagementteamcomprisedofatleast30percentwomen

obtainbetterfinancialresultsthanthosewithlessthan10percentwomenrepresentation.Insomeinstances,thefinancialperformancegapbetweenthetwoisasmuchas48percent.5

4LanSongetal.,“Howmuchisglobalbusinesssectorscontributingtosustainabledevelopmentgoals?,”SustainableHorizons,January2022,Volume1.

5SundiatuDixon-Fyle,KevinDolan,DameVivianHunt,SaraPrince,“Diversitywins:Howinclusionmatters,”McKinsey,May19,2020.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions6

Portugalisranked15thintheEuropeanUnioninGenderEquality

Index,2020and29th

intheGlobalGender

GapIndex,2022.

IfthegendergapwereclosedinEurope,theresultisapossible3.2to5.5percentincreaseinGDPby2050—whichtranslatesto€280millionin2030and€1.49billionin2050.6

Additionally,thereisastrongrelationshipbetweenlegislationonequityandequality,andeconomicgrowth.InSpain,fulfillingcertainequalityobjectivesisameasurethatcustomersvalue,investors

require,andtalentconsidersattractive.Meanwhile,agreaterexchangeofideasbetweendiverse

teamspromotesinnovation,spurringprofitability,andadiversemanagementteamincreasesinterestfrominvestors.

Portugalprogresses,approachingtheEuropeanaverage

Portugalhasmadeprogressinrecentyearsinitscommitmenttogenderequality,markingsignificantprogresstowardsthefullintegrationofwomenintothelabormarket.Portugal,wherewomen,despitetheirhighactivityrate,encounterbarriersintheworkplace,iscurrentlyatparwiththeEuropean

averageandwithinthetop30countriesintheworldintermsofgenderequality.

Womeninthelabormarket:present,butundervalued

Thecultural,legislative,andorganizationalchangesofthelastdecadehaveacceleratedwomen’sentryintothelaborforce.Theyearsfollowingthefinancialcrisisof2008haveseensignificant

growth.In2012,women’sactivityrateinPortugalstoodat60.8percent,justbelowtheEuropean

average,androseto73.1percentin2021,positioningPortugal5.4percentagepointshigherthantheEuropeanUnioninthisregard.

Thisperiodhasalsoseenaprogressiveclosingofthegapbetweenwomenandmenintermsof

activityrate.Whilein2012thegapwasat9.9percent,tenyearslater,in2022,ithadnarrowedto7.6percent.7Meanwhile,women’semploymentratesinPortugalhaveremainedabovetheEuropean

averageoverthelast10years,reducingthegapbetweenmaleandfemaleemploymenttoonly5.9percentagepoints,comparedtoadifferenceof10.8percentagepointsinEurope.8

Bothmenandwomen’semploymentinPortugalhasnotbeengeneratedbasedonmoretimespentworkingbutratherbymaintaininghighratesoffull-timecontracts(90.9percentforwomenand95.3percentformen).TheseratesaremuchhigherthantheEuropeanaverage,wherewomencontinuetohave28.8percentoftemporaryemployment.9

AnotherfeaturethatdistinguishesthePortugueselabormarketisitsmaintenanceoffemale

employmentratesdespitematernity.Portugalisthecountrywiththehighestemploymentratesformotherswithchildren,atthan80percentcomparedtotheEuropeanaverageof64.1percent.10

6“Howclosingthegenderlabourmarketactivityandpaygapleadstoeconomicgrowth,”EuropeanInstituteforGenderEquality,2017.

7Eurostat(2022)Employmentandactivitybysexandage-annualdata

8Eurostat(2022)Employmentandactivitybysexandage-annualdata

9Eurostat.Empleoatiempoparcialcomoporcentajedelempleototal.2021Eurostat(2022)Parttimeemploymentasapercentageoftotalemployment-annualdata

10InternationalLabourOrganization(2021)“GenderGapinPortugal”

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions7

Employmentratesforwomen(20-49years)withchildren(undertheageof6)intheEU28,in2018

slovakia

Hungary

czechRepublic

Italy

Bulgaria

Greece

Estonia

Romania

Finland

Germany

poland

spain

France

Malta

Ireland

cyprus

Austria

croatia

Belgium

Latvia

Luxembourg

Holland

Lithuania

Denmark

sweden

slovenia

portugal

HavingahighereducationaldegreeputsPortuguesewomenatanadvantage,withanactivityrate25

percentagepointshigherthanthatofwomenwithprimaryeducation.Ananalysisofthedifferencesintheemploymentrateshowsthatwomenwithhighereducationhavealmostthesameemploymentrateasmen.Agapappearsatthelevelofsecondaryeducation.However,womenwithprimary

educationtendtobemoreactivethanmen,giventheirpredominanceinessentialsectorssuchascommerceorcare.11

Employmentrateof

womenwithhighe

education

86.1%

85.7%

Employmentrateof

womenwithsecondary

education

71.1%

76.9%

Employmentrateof

womenwithprimary

education

61%

57.9%

11Eurostat(2022)Employmentbyeducationalattainmentlevel-annualdata

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions8

Reducingthewagegap:ataskstilltobeachieved

ReducingwagedisparitiesisoneofPortugal’smostsignificantchallengesonthepathtogenderequality.Thecountry’spaygap,despitebeingslightlybelowtheEuropeanaverage,fluctuates

strongly,andithaswidenedinrecentyearsasanoveralltrend.Themainreasonforthisphenomenon

istheoverrepresentationofwomeninminimum-wagejobs.Intimesofcrisis,suchasthe2008

financialcrisisandtheCOVID-19pandemic,thegapworsens.EventhoughPortuguesewomenkeeptheirjobsinchallengingcontexts,theydosowithsignificantfinancialfragility.

unadjustedwagegapinportugalbyage1

under25

years

7.8%

25-34

years

9.3%

35-44

years

11.5%

45-54

years

15%

55-64

years

9%

1Eurostat(2022)Genderpaygapinunadjustedformbyage

Full-timeemploymentreducestheriskofamajorpaygap.Whiletheunadjustedpaygapforfull-

timeemploymentstandsat10.1percent,itdoublesforpart-timeemployment,risingto20.1percent12

Giventhissituation,whichiscompoundedbythefactthataveragePortuguesesalariesgrow

slowlycomparedtolivingcosts,Portuguesewomenfaceagreaterriskofpovertyandfinancial

dependence.Thisfinancialinstabilityismaintainedevenafterretirement,sincewomencontributelesstotheirpensionsduringthecourseoftheirprofessionalcareers.

Thepandemichasdemonstratedtheresilienceoffemaleemployment

InPortugal,thepandemichadasmallerimpactonwomen’sjobloss.Womenwithhighereducationaldegreesweremoreresilient,abletokeeptheirjobsthroughthepandemic,whilemenweremore

likelytolosetheirs.Thetrendwasthesameforwomenwithprimaryeducation,manyofwhomhadessentialjobswithoutthepossibilityofremotework.

Genderstereotypescomplicatethepathtoco-responsibility

Thetraditionaldivisionofrolesthatputswomeninthepositionofhavingtotakeonmoreunpaid

workmakesitdifficultforthemtostrikeawork-lifebalance.Inrecentyears,therehasbeenachangeinPortuguesesocietyandagrowingawarenessoftheneedforabetterbalancebetweenwork

andhomelife.Since2017,thelegalframeworkregardingwork-lifebalancehasbeenstrengthened

12Eurostat(2022)Genderpaygapinunadjustedformbyworkingtime

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions9

throughincreasedpaternityleave,anexpansionoftheeligibilitycriteriaforparentalleave,andthecreationofpublicchildcareservices.

Inaddition,thepandemichasintroducednewworkmodelsbasedonaneedforgreaterflexibility.Companiesareadaptingtothisnewrealityandarerelyingmoreonmeasurestosupport

co-responsibilityandwork-lifebalance.13,14

WomenstillunderrepresentedinSTEM

Despitesignificantefforts,thepresenceofwomeninSTEMisstilllimited,whichcreatesa

disadvantageintermsoftakingonthechallengesofthejobsofthefuture.15,16Thisseemstostartfromearlyon:thepercentoffemalegraduatesinSTEMfieldshasremainedalmoststagnantin

thepastmanyyears–landingat39percentin2017(latestavailabledata)from36percentin

2008.17Ifwegoasfarbackas2000theeffectiseventhatofaslightdecrease–froma40percentrepresentation.

Thepicturechangesslightlywhenlookingattheworkplace,wherethepercentageofwomenchoosingSTEMcareersgrewfrom5.4percentin2000to7.1percentin2018–markinga~30percentincrease.MeninSTEMcareersgrewby40percentinthesametimeframe.

13InstitutoNacionaldeEstadísitca:

https://www.ine.pt/xportal/xmain?xpgid=ine

_tema&xpid=INE&tema_cod=1115143emlinha-ProgramaparaaConciliaçãodaVidaProfissional,PessoaleFamiliar2018-2019

15ILO(2021)ReportontheGenderPayGapinPortugal

16WorldEconomicforum(2020):ThefutureofjobsReport

17WorldBank,GenderDataPortal:

/indicators/se-ter-grad-fe

-

zs/?fieldOfStudy=Science%2C%20Technology%2C%20Engineering%20and%20Mathematics%20%28STEM%29&geos=PRT&view=bar

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions10

Theglassceiling

5.9

2.7

Portugal’soverallworkforceexperiencesrelativelyhighratesofgenderrepresentation.However,thisdoesnotextendtoleadershippositions,particularlyCEOandN-1(i.e.,1levelbelowtheCEO)positions.

Theglassceilingreferstotheinvisiblebarriersthatpreventwomenfromadvancingtheir

careers.Therecanbemultiplereasonsforthat,suchasnotbeingwellpositionedforpromotion,

disenchantment,orinertiaduetootherdemands.NotasinglewomanoccupiestheroleofCEOin

ourstudy’stopperformingcompaniesintermsofparity,18andthepercentageofCEOsinouroverallsamplehasonlydecreased.

Thehighertheposition,thefewerthewomen

TheanalysiscarriedoutwiththecompaniesparticipatinginourstudyindicatesthatIberiaisdoing

betterthanaveragewhenitcomestoadegreeofgenderparityintheworkplaceoverall,butwomendonotadvancetoleadershippositionsinequalnumbers,particularlyintoproles.19Inoursample,

ninepercentofCEOswerewomen,and30percentofN-1rolesbelongedtowomen–bothbelow

mostpeernations.TheproportionofwomeninN-2andN-3positionswasakintoglobalnumbers,at32and34percentrespectively.

Intermsoftopleadership,PortugalandSpainstilllagbehindmostpeercountries,particularlyinCEOrepresentation

womenincorporateleadershippositions2021(%)andchangecomparedto2019&2017(p.p.)

CEO

19

Norway

Denmark

Netherlands

America1

UK

EUAverage

13

10

9

8

8

6

Belgium

Portugal

6

Greece

5

France

3

Germany

3

Italy

0

Spain6

Delta2021vs.

2019(p.p.)

4.7

4.2

5.0

0.6

4.1

0.2

3.0

-6.2

-0.3

-0.3

-2.8

-0.7

-3.0

Delta2019vs.

2017(p.p.)Boardofdirectors

0.0France45

14.3Norway42

2.7Italy39

0.2Netherlands38

0.1Belgium38

2.4UK38

0.0Germany36

0.0Denmark35

Spain

33

0.6

31

EUAverage

Portugal

31

3.4

3.0

27

20

America2

Greece

Delta2021vs.

2019(p.p.)

0.1

1.3

2.7

3.9

2.0

5.2

0.4

5.0

6.2

2.5

6.4

1.0

9.3

Delta2019vs.

2017(p.p)

1.9

-1.9

2.1

4.7

5.2

5.4

3.7

-0.3

4.4

3.5

8.4

6.0

-1.0

18Companiesthatwereinthetopquartileofoursampleintermsofwomenrepresentaion(>40%womeninallrolesuptoCEO-1).19WorldDevelopmentIndicators,WorldBank;McKinsey,”WomenintheWorkplace,“McKinsey,2021.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions12

However,theunderrepresentationofwomenbecomesmoreacuteastheyescalatetopositions

ofresponsibility—theglassceilingeffect.InIberia,therearegapsofover30percentagepoints

betweenmenandwomenacrossalllevelsofresponsibilityfromN-3totheCEO.Thisgapisbridgedfortopperformingcompanies(i.e.,thetopquartileinthesamplewith40%ormorewomenacrossalllevelsuntilN-1totheCEO).However,noneofthosecompanieshasawomanCEO.

Intheoverallsample,theshareofwomeninleadershippositionsissignificantlylower

Iberia(PortugalandSpain)

Employeepoolcomposition1(%),2021-overall&topperformingcompanies

Overall

N-3

N-2

N-1

CEO

BoardofDirectors

overallsample

43

57

34

66

32

68

30

70

9

91

28

72

Deltavs.

2019(p.p.)

0.0

0.5

2.2

4.7

-0.5

5.2

Women(%)Men(%)

Overall

N-3

N-2

N-1

CEO

BoardofDirectors

Topperformingcompanies2

60

51

40

49

55

45

46

54

0

100

41

59

Deltavs.

2019(p.p)

0.0

2.2

2.9

2.9

0.0

11.0

2.2andabove

source:Mckinsey"2022womenMatterlberia"study

Thesituationwon’tchangewithcurrentpromotionrates

Whatisbehindtheglassceiling?Thenumberofwomentopromotetothenextlevelisthinningaswegoupthecorporateladder,andpromotionratesarelowerthanthoseofmenonanalreadythinbase.Thisleadstomale-dominatedpromotedclassesandifcurrentpromotionratesremain,theglass

ceilingwillremainintact.

Thenumberofwomenateachlevelofthecorporateladdergetsloweraswemovetohigher

positions,andevenwherepercentagesofthosepromotedseemshigh,theactualnumberofwomenpromotedthinsfurtherateachorganizationallevel.Ofthetotalnumberofwomen,only13percent

areinN-3positionsandabove,whilethepercentageformenis18percent.Atthetopoftheladder,fourpercentofmenoccupypositionsfromN-2toCEO,comparedtoonlyonepercentofwomen.

Thisisadditionallyfurtherreinforcedbyscarceexternalfemaletalenttohiredirectlyinseniorroles,particularlyinSTEMrelatedfields.

WomenMatterPortugal2023:Womenarestillfarfromtopcorporateleadershippoistions13

Womenarelesslikelytoreachhighersenioritylevelsthanmen

shareofmenandwomenpersenioritylevel(%),2021.(N=CEO)

overall

TOP-performingcompanies

100

87

100

82

93

100

100

14

3

521

overall

overall

N-3

N-2

N-3

BelowN-3

N-2

BelowN-3

source:Mckinsey"2022womenMatterlberia"study

Companiesinthetopquartileofparityperformancepresentbetterpromotionoptionsforwomen.ForN-3positions,thepromotionrateiseightpercentforbothmenandwomen.TheproportionofwomenpromotedinN-2positionsistwiceashighasmen.ButthesepercentagesfallsharplyforN-1roles,

wherefourpercentofmenarepromotedagainsttwopercentofwomen.

Whywomendon’tadvancetoleadershippositions:lesscareerboostingmoves,higherfamilyobligations,andburnout

Inthecontextofthisstudy,wemadeseveralobservationsastothefactorsbehindthelownumbersandlowpromotionratesofwomentoleadershippositions.

Thecurrentdynamicsshowthatwomenarestillnotsetupforsuccess:theyparticipatelessincareer-boostingmoves,requiremoreflexibilitythanmen,andtakeahigher“familytoll”.

Womentendtobesignificantlymorepresentinstaffvs.linepositions,thatis,positionsthatare

admi