“Men-only” boardrooms exist and alive!

According to research by Bloomberg, Asia is still behind the best practices regarding board diversity.

More than one-tenth, i.e., 11 percent of the surveyed companies didn’t have a single woman leader on board. Of those 11 percent, 15 companies were based in Japan and 13 in China.

Japanese companies without any female directors include Softbank Group Corp., Nintendo Co., Uniqlo-parent Fast Retailing Co., and 7-Eleven owner Seven & I Holdings. Similarly, Chinese companies without women on their boards include Tencent Holdings Ltd., SAIC Motor Corp., and Kweichow Moutai Co., JD.com Inc., whose Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Liu Qiangdong was arrested on suspicion of rape.

Meanwhile, French businesses,  offer the most gender diversity on their boards of directors. French oil company Total SA, which ranks 50th in the world by value at $161 billion, is the largest company with a board that has a 50-50 gender balance.

General Motors Corp., which has a female chairman and CEO in Mary Barra, is the sole non-French company with a board that is balanced.

According to a report by The Equilar Gender Diversity Index, 35 percent of the new directorships went to women in the quarter ended June. That’s double the rate in 2014. 

Efforts in creating gender diverse workplaces are failing, especially promoting women in leadership positions. Click here to jump-start your women leadership program.