Catalyst explores women's leadership in European business.

Key Findings

From Women in Leadership: A European Business Imperative

* The barriers to women's advancement in large corporations and firms are remarkably similar across European nations and regions, with stereotypes and preconceptions topping the list (66%), closely followed by lack of role models (64%), lack of general management experience (63%), commitment to family and personal responsibilities (62%), and lack of mentoring (61%).

* One-third of the European women respondents and one-quarter of the men aspire to senior-most leadership positions. More men respondents (53%) than women (35%) believe they have already made it to the top.

* Almost one-quarter (23%) of women believe that there has been no change in opportunities for women's advancement over the last 5 years, while only 9% of the men concur.

* The majority of women executives in this study are married (75%), have full-time working partners (73%), and have children (63%).

* Only a small segment of the women respondents believe that they can use a parental leave or sabbatical (28%) or flexible work arrangement (30%) without jeopardizing their career advancement.

The Buzz

Catalyst and The Conference Board Europe conducted the first-ever study of the perceptions and attitudes of top-level women and men executives in large corporations and firms across 20 European countries. On June 18th and 19th, over 200 business leaders from around the globe gathered in Berlin for the release of the study--Women in Leadership: A European Business Imperative--to discuss the findings and learn about implementing strategies for developing talent.

Keynote speakers--including The Lord Browne of Madingley, Group Chief Executive of BP p.l.c.; John F. Smith Jr., Chairman of General Motors Corporation; Sandra Macleod, Chief Executive of Echo Research Limited; and Gail Rebuck, Chairman and Chief Executive of The Random House Group--shared their views on the changing European business climate and the growing economic significance of women as executives, consumers, and investors.

In her explanation of the study findings, Catalyst President Sheila Wellington noted, "Smart European companies recognize the business case for inclusion and change. When an organization puts women in key leadership positions, it becomes a magnet for talented women and men. Ultimately, these companies gain competitive advantage in the global marketplace by mining this virtually untapped resource."

Study Findings

The study reveals that overall, women in European corporate and professional leadership are experiencing many of the same barriers and challenges to success as their colleagues across borders and companies. (See front box.)

Women and men respondents agree on the five top strategies for career advancement. Ninety-four percent of the women and 91 percent of the men report that taking initiative is the top advancement strategy. Other top strategies include: having recognized expertise in a specific content area, having job assignments that are highly visible to key decision-makers, consistently exceeding performance expectations, and developing and adhering to one's own career goals.

In addition, Catalyst found that most of the women in the study have ascended the career ladder while managing family responsibilities. Many women point to the availability of flexible work arrangements at their companies, but most believe that managers are not able to take advantage of them. While acceptance of formal flexible work arrangements is viewed as limited, the women interviewed described informal, day-to-day flexibility as well-established.

Take Action

In Women in Leadership: A European Business Imperative, Catalyst outlines the following action steps for companies:

* Provide mentoring and networking opportunities for women.

* Build a fact base. Understand the drivers of satisfaction and turnover for women, and identify organizational strengths and weaknesses.

* Demonstrate leadership commitment to change.

* Establish an initiative for fostering inclusion and advancing women, that includes accountability and measurable results.

* Build internal support and awareness through education and communication.

* Address work/life balance issues. Examine how parental leave policies are implemented, and provide and support the use of flexible work arrangements.

* Evaluate performance management systems for objectivity, inclusiveness, and effectiveness.

Stepping Up

Committed business leaders share their thoughts at the conference in Berlin:

"It is not only about working for equality between men and women--it is about the quality of employment opportunities for all ... We must treat workers as a source of creative potential rather than as disposable commodities. We need to recalibrate the work-life balance."

--Gail Rebuck, Chairman and Chief Executive,
The Random House Group

"The people we have form our human capital. To me that is a more important corporate asset than all the plants and equipment, all the oil fields and pipelines. If we can get a disproportionate share of the most talented people in the world, we have a chance of holding a competitive edge."

--Lord Browne of Madingley, Group Chief Executive, BP p.l.c.

"We have made progress, but we need to move even faster. And the way to do it is to make the commitment real and to hold leadership accountable at every level."

--John F. Smith, Jr., Chairman, General Motors Corporation

Women in Leadership: A European Business imperative was sponsored by Accenture, BP p.l.c, IBM Europe, Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, Ford of Europe, General Motors of Europe, Goldman Sachs, Pfitzer Inc, Royal Dutch Shell, UBS Warburg, Ernst & Young, ExxonMobil Foundation, General Electric, ING, Novo Nordisk, and Rabobank Nederland.

To order your copy of Women in Leadership: A European Business Imperative, call us at [phone] or visit us at www.catalystwomen.org.