Filipina executives top global ranking on leadership role

THE Philippines has topped the list of 32 countries in a global survey on the role of women in senior management.

The Grant Thornton International’s 2020 Women in Business Report showed that 43% of female Filipino executives were in a senior leadership role.

Filipina executives in senior management rose six percentage points from 37% in the 2019 survey, which in turn fell 10 percentage points from 47% in the 2018 report.

Globally, 29% of women in executive roles were in senior management in the 2020 survey.

The Philippines was followed by

South Africa with 40% and Poland with 38%. Among other Southeast Asian countries surveyed, Indonesia ranked fifth (37%), Thailand ranked 10th (34%), Malaysia and Vietnam ranked 11th and 12th with 33%. Singapore came out 17th (31%).

The study had a global sample size of 4,812 businesses, with 105 in the Philippines.

“We are seeing that the most significant roles in business operations—strategy, finance, and people—are being held by women. The percentages have decreased this year, and it is interesting to note that women are holding these same three roles,” P&A Grant Thornton Chairperson and CEO Marivic Españo said in a statement.

“We hope to see more women step up into the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) or Managing Director role in the future.”

Broken down, 38% of Filipino women are chief finance officers, followed by 36% that are human resources directors. Following this, 23% are chief operating officers, and 22% are chief executive officers, and 19% are sales directors.

The survey found that 94% of Filipino businesses are actively working on reducing barriers to gender parity at leadership levels.

To promote gender balance in leadership teams, 36% of Philippine businesses said they ensure equal access to developmental work opportunities. Among other measures, 33% provide mentoring and coaching as well as enable flexible work while 30% link senior management rewards to progress on gender balance targets and 26% set targets for gender balance in leadership.

Only 23% offer unconscious bias training, and six percent take no actions to improve gender balance.

P&A Grant Thornton is the Philippine member firm of Grant Thornton International Ltd. —