Shaping the future: Driving gender parity on EU company boards. The directive on gender balance on company boards officially came into force at the end of 2024.

The Gender Balance on Corporate Boards Directive will officially come into force at the end of 2024, marking a landmark step towards achieving gender parity in EU-listed companies.

The Directive sets ambitious targets to be met by 30 June 2026: 40% of non-executive director positions and 33% of all board positions must be filled by individuals of the under-represented gender in large or listed companies in the EU. EU Member States had until 28 December 2024 to transpose these requirements into national law. Key measures include :

• The introduction of transparent, gender-neutral criteria for board appointments.
• A preference rule that gives priority to equally qualified candidates of the under-represented gender.
• Mandatory reporting on board composition and barriers to progress towards gender targets.
• Proportionate sanctions for non-compliance, such as fines or cancellation of board appointments that do not comply.

To further promote gender balance, Member States will be required to

• Establish oversight bodies to monitor implementation.
• Publish lists of companies that meet the standards.

Ongoing challenges and opportunities

While progress has been made since 2010, gender representation on company boards remains uneven across the EU. The overall average is currently 34% women on boards, with significant differences:

• Countries with binding quotas report the highest representation (39.6%).
• Countries with soft measures are making moderate progress (33.8%).
• Countries with no specific measures lag far behind (17%).

Now that the transposition deadline has passed, the European Commission will assess Member States’ compliance. Infringement proceedings may be launched in cases of non-compliance.

A commitment to fairer governance

The Directive on gender balance on company boards underlines the EU’s firm commitment to promoting gender equality and fostering more inclusive corporate governance. By tackling systemic barriers and setting enforceable targets, this initiative lays the foundations for fairer representation and a more equitable future in corporate governance.

As a reminder, in 2023 COLEAD launched its new Gender Strategy and Action Plan, which aims to provide a framework for operationalising COLEAD’s vision of gender equality by proposing concrete measures and actions to integrate the gender dimension into its programmes and activities.

Read more about COLEAD’s gender equality statement of intent