The company behind the statue, State Street Global Advisors (SSGA), supported the campaign after research showed that companies with gender diversity in leadership teams outperformed those without it. Talking about the campaign, Lori Heinel from SSGA said “We are delighted to bring this impactful campaign to London and continue to take a stand for the important issues of gender diversity at the board and senior leadership level”.
LSE “Delighted”
London Stock Exchange CEO David Schwimmer said that the group “fully supports her mission of raising awareness of the importance of diversity on boards and within senior corporate leadership”. The statute has caused heated debate on social media platform Twitter, with users heaping praise and criticism in equal measure. Whatever people’s thoughts, the piece is certainly thought-provoking and will help to focus minds in the city on the ever prescient subject of gender diversity in the board rooms across the city.
Extensive Research Shows Benefits Of Gender Diversity
Research by the Cranfield School of Management (click here to see study) showed that between 2003 and 2013, FTSE 100 businesses with a higher number of women on their board enjoyed higher market valuations and were more profitable than those who had fewer. The reason? That’s where the research gets a little patchy. While there was a clear correlation, a cause was not clearly identified. It does though appear to be a result of greater corporate governance.
While there is clearly some good news for women in the upper levels of the business world, there is still some work to do. A report by S&P Capital IQ data showed that only 6pc of British businesses have a female chief executive. Though there is work to do, the UK does have the highest number of female chief executives of all of Europe’s major economies.
Brexit Potential
One potential silver lining of Brexit is that companies will be looking for points of differentiation in order to gain an edge. If having more women in the boardroom improves corporate governance, and in turn profitability, then for women in business at least, Brexit may actually prove to be a positive rather than the negative that many assume it to be. The combination of the research and the statue will focus minds in the City of London as to the possibilities that embracing gender diversity offer. Enhanced corporate governance often comes from a diversity of opinion and for many businesses, and specifically those at the sharp end of the Brexit conundrum, any sort of competitive edge is likely to be desirable. This campaign could help to propel more women into the boardroom – a move that can only prove to be positive.