When recruiting CFOs, it’s not uncommon to notice something surprising: shortlists are often unintentionally male-heavy. Yet, one level below – middle management – the gender balance is pretty even. So, where are the women going when it comes to those final steps into c-suite roles?
Interestingly, when female candidates are shortlisted at director level, they’re increasingly successful, often landing the job over their male counterparts. While this is encouraging, it raises an important question: how many more women would progress into senior roles if they simply applied?
The Confidence Gap – and Beyond
Research shows that men often apply even if they don’t meet all the job criteria. They’ll put themselves forward for positions even if they only meet 60% of the qualifications. But women? They tend to hold back if they don’t tick every single box. However, the real issue here isn’t just a confidence gap – it’s a systemic issue.
Parenting Penalties Still Fall on Women
When it comes to children, the bulk of the responsibility often still falls to the mother. Shared Parental Leave is still rarely taken by men, with less than 5% of eligible fathers using this to take more time off. Not helped of course, by the requirement of the mother to end any enhanced maternity pay in order to do Shared Parental Leave from birth, so there currently would be a huge financial impact of having fathers more involved from the start.
Then men are rarely the ones to return to work part time, when raising a young family. Whereas research shows that fewer than one in five of all new mothers follow a full-time career after maternity leave. So, it’s often the women that are making that sacrifice for their family and needing more flexibility to manage the juggle.
Flexible Roles at the Top? Rarely.
But senior roles advertised as part-time or as a job share? Almost never. And let’s talk about childcare – school hours don’t fit with the demands of a normal full-time role. Add to that the unaffordable cost of nursery fees, and it’s no wonder so many parents – especially mums – feel discouraged from working full time, even if they wanted to.
And then there’s the hiring network. The NEDs, CEOs, private equity firms – still very male-dominated. They tend to recommend who they know. And who they know often looks like them.
HerFinance Circle – A New Community
That’s why Headstar recently founded HerFinance Circle – a community for senior women in finance who get it; the juggle, the ambition, the realities. The network is there for women to support, share, and lift each other up.
So, next time you’re hiring – think about the diversity of your shortlist. Where are your recommendations coming from? Could the role be more flexible? Could it be part-time or even a job share? Because if we want to see more women in CFO roles, we need to make space – and actively invite them in.
