Women at the Top in Developing Countries: Evidence from Firm-Level Data

Khalid Sekkat (), Ariane Szafarz () and Ilan Tojerow
Additional contact information
Khalid Sekkat: Free University of Brussels
Ariane Szafarz: Free University of Brussels

No 9537, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper uses worldwide firm-level data to scrutinize the governance factors that favor gender diversity in leadership positions. Our results reveal that the gender of the dominant shareholder is key. The chief executive of firms with a female dominant shareholder has a significantly higher probability of being a woman than in other firms. The effect is even more pronounced when the female shareholder holds a higher share of the capital and when the firm is foreign-owned. Our results suggest that "old boys' club" ownership structures are a major impediment to the empowerment of female talent in developing countries.

Keywords: gender; diversity; ownership; leadership; CEO; development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: D22 G32 J71 M51 O15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 42 pages
Date: 2015-11
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hme and nep-lma
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

Published - published as 'Female corporate owners and female CEOs' in: Economics Letters, 2023, 232, 111285

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Working Paper: Women at the Top in Developing Countries: Evidence from Firm-Level Data (2015)
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