The report shows that while women account for 23% of employees in listed companies, their representation steadily declines as one moves up the corporate hierarchy. Women make up only 14% of Key Management Personnel (KMPs), 10% of executive directors and just 5% of managing directors or chief executive officers.
According to Pranav Haldea, Managing Director at PRIME Database Group, the data reflects a classic “leaky bucket” phenomenon, where women gradually drop out of the leadership pipeline. He said there is an urgent need for policies and supportive practices to ensure women do not have to leave the workforce mid-career due to childcare and other caregiving responsibilities.
At the board level, representation has improved over time. As of February 23, 2026, about 98% of the 2,285 companies listed on the NSE main board had at least one woman director, compared with 97% a year earlier. Among the 48 companies that still do not have a woman director, 20 are public sector undertakings.
Overall, 2,898 women currently hold 3,738 directorship positions, accounting for 21% of all board seats. This marks a rise from 18% in March 2021 and just 5% in March 2014, when the requirement to appoint at least one woman director on boards was first announced. Haldea noted that regulation played a significant role in improving board representation. However, the pace of progress has slowed after companies largely complied with the regulatory mandate. He also pointed out that when the rule was introduced in 2014, many firms appointed women relatives of promoters or individuals known to them, which diluted the objective of gender diversity.
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Even so, the number of companies with two or more women directors has increased from 35% in March 2021 to 47% currently. Around 88% of companies now have at least one independent woman director, while those with two or more women independent directors have risen from 10% to 21% during the same period.
Women hold 28% of independent directorship positions but only 10% of executive directorships. At the very top, representation remains particularly limited. Just 119 companies, or 5% of the total, have a woman MD or CEO. Among the 130 women heading these companies, about 69% belong to the promoter group, highlighting the limited presence of professional women leaders outside promoter families.
Women also remain scarce in other senior roles. Outside promoter groups, professional executive women directors account for only 7% of such positions. Meanwhile, only 6% of companies have a woman chairperson, with nearly half of them from promoter groups.
The report also highlights a significant gender gap in pay. The median remuneration of male executive directors stood at Rs 120 lakh in FY25, about 74% higher than Rs 69 lakh for women. Among non-promoter executive directors, the gap is even wider, with men earning a median of Rs 104 lakh compared with Rs 43 lakh for women. Male KMPs earned about 77% more than women on average, while the median pay for male employees was 34% higher. Among workers, the gap widened further, with men earning 86% more than women.
Interestingly, the trend reverses for independent directors, where women earn slightly more. The median remuneration for women independent directors was Rs 4.90 lakh compared with Rs 4.80 lakh for men.
Sectorally, women directors had the highest representation in diversified, healthcare and IT companies at 23%, while energy had the lowest share at 17%. Among employees and workers, IT recorded the highest female participation, while commodities, industrials and utilities sectors reported the lowest levels.
(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views and opinions given by the experts are their own. These do not represent the views of The Economic Times.)
