Swiss SME boards of directors are not very diverse
Published: Monday, Dec 9th 2024, 11:10
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Women and foreign nationals are rarely found on the boards of directors of Swiss SMEs. However, there are major differences depending on the sector.
This is the conclusion of a master's thesis written at the University of Zurich and published on Monday. Author Angelo Antonio Di Feo analyzed the boards of directors of 28,000 Swiss SMEs.
According to the study, women make up 20% of the boards on average, although this figure varies greatly depending on the sector. In the IT sector, the proportion of women is less than 10 percent, whereas in social service companies it is 29 percent.
Around 10 percent of board members do not have Swiss citizenship. In border regions, however, the proportion of foreign board members is higher.
Small supervisory bodies
The boards are generally very small: in almost 90% of SMEs, the Board of Directors consists of a maximum of four members. In 57% of companies, the CEO also takes on the role of Chairman of the Board of Directors.
The study also found a high level of stability on supervisory boards. On average, an SME board of directors remains in office for 8.3 years.
According to the press release, the boards of directors of Swiss SMEs are significantly more homogeneous and smaller than those of listed companies. For example, the companies in the Swiss Market Index (SMI) currently have an average of 35 percent women on their boards of directors. However, the Federal Council will also require large companies to have a minimum proportion of women on their board of directors and executive board in future.
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