What Stops Indian Women From Moving Up the Corporate Ladder

Instead of the low representation of the women at the senior levels the gender diversity is not high on the strategic agenda in most Asian companies. Few senior managers believe that this will change soon. To reach at senior positions more women have to be present at the conduit that fills those positions. Still very few women enter the conduit as the female participation in the labour force itself is low.

In India the female labour participation is 35 percent which is lowest in the world. Jin Wang the co-author of the report and the Partner of Mckinsey’s Shanghai Office says that even if the women do not enter the corporate world they often fail to progress much as they either get stuck in the pipeline early in their careers or decide to leave at middle management.

For instance, China has one of the world’s highest female labour force but still they account to only 8 percent of corporate board members and 9 percent of executive committee members. Currently women make 50 percent of Asia’s graduate group and 57 percent in Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia which is actually a waste of talent.