Since the introduction of the statutory quota for women on boards of directors in 2015, the proportion of women on the top management floor has increased continuously. That has now changed. From 2025 to 2026, the proportion of women on boards of directors fell for the first time. There is also currently little movement on supervisory boards: the proportion of women here is stagnating. This is shown by the current analysis “Women-on-Board-Index 2026” (WoB) by the Association for Women on Supervisory Boards (FidAR).
Proportion of women on boards of directors in 2026: decline for the first time since the introduction of the statutory quota
The proportion of women on the boards of DAX, MDax and SDax companies fell from 19.9 percent in 2025 to 19.1 percent, a decrease of 0.8 percentage points. The WoB index, for which FidAR examined 183 companies in the DAX, MDax and SDax as well as in the regulated market, also shows: How much the proportion of women increases or decreases depends largely on whether the statutory quota applies to the company in question or not.
The values between companies with and without a statutory quota differ greatly: the 101 of 183 companies examined that are subject to a quota requirement will have an average proportion of women on the board of directors of 22.1 percent in 2026. They recorded a decline of 0.8 percentage points compared to the previous year. For the 82 companies without a quota requirement, the value in 2026 will be 14.4 percent, which corresponds to a decline of 0.3 percentage points.
Proportion of women on the supervisory board: stagnation at 37 percent – but more women at the top
Looking at the situation on German supervisory boards is also sobering. The proportion of women here is currently stagnating at 37 percent, at the same level as the previous year. The value makes it clear that many companies are far from having equal representation on supervisory boards. Only 28 of the 183 companies on their boards are currently achieving this goal.
At the same time, there are also positive developments to report. The majority of companies (139 of the 183 examined) will achieve a proportion of women on their supervisory boards of at least 30 percent in 2026. 80 companies even achieve at least 40 percent and thus reach the target set by the EU management positions directive for supervisory board mandates, which came into force in December 2022. A directive that Germany does not have to fully implement due to the two existing leadership position laws.
Compared to the previous year, there are four more supervisory boards that are now led by women. This affects a total of 20 of the 183 companies this year. Dr. In 2009, Simone Bagel-Trah from Henkel was the first woman in Germany to hold the position of chairwoman of the supervisory board of a DAX company. She still serves in this position.
Companies without a quota for women: Where the decline really comes from
But why are the numbers on supervisory boards stagnating and even declining on executive boards? If you look at the data from FidAR, it becomes clear that things are not going badly everywhere. In companies with equal co-determination and listed on the regulated market, the number of women on supervisory bodies has increased by two percentage points compared to the previous year. Rather, it is the companies that are not subject to a quota requirement (82 out of 183) that drag down the statistics. These are usually smaller companies with only three-member supervisory boards. Since 2024, the proportion of women on their supervisory bodies has been declining again.
The number of companies that plan with a target of zero on their board, i.e. that explicitly do not want to have women on their board, has also increased again. Monika Schulz-Strelow, founding president of FidAR, sees this development as a warning sign. “Women-free management levels should be a thing of the past. The obligation to justify a target of zero is not enough to encourage companies to plan with more women in management.” Target figures must be understood and used as a strategic instrument to improve equal participation, explains Schulz-Strelow. She advocates consistently applying sanctions for violations. “Without noticeable pressure, the target size requirement will not be taken seriously.”
Statutory women’s quotas work: Why binding requirements make the difference
What the current figures show is that where there are no quotas, there is no movement.
FidAR President Anja Seng therefore calls for building on the “legal quota” success factor and expanding the requirements. “The gender quota on the supervisory board should be increased to 40 percent and extended to all listed or co-determined companies. The minimum participation requirement on the board of directors should apply to the same companies and also be converted into a fixed quota.” It obliges companies to have at least one woman and one man represented on their board if the board consists of more than three members. Expanding legal requirements would lead to equal participation becoming normal in society, says Seng.
Founding president Monika Schulz-Strelow also considers the legal requirement of 30 percent to be too low. She goes even further: “The goal remains equal representation in the management bodies,” she emphasizes. This means the equal distribution of men and women on a board or committee. There are enough qualified women available for supervisory boards and executive boards. What is missing is the will to go beyond minimum quotas and consistently implement strategies for equal staffing.
Talent promotion as a decisive lever: Where HR can start
But even this will is not enough if the problem arises earlier. Barbara Lutz, CEO of the management consultancy FKi Inclusion for Excellence, comments on the debate on Linkedin. She sees the real lever for more diversity on boards of directors and supervisory boards somewhere else: in the first promotion decision. This is where it is decided whether companies promote their best talents or just their best-known employees. A McKinsey study from 2024 shows that for every 100 men promoted at their first career step, there are only 81 women. With each additional level the distance grows. According to Lutz, anyone who ignores this mechanism cannot expect diversity at the top.
For companies, this means: quotas and targets create the framework, but the talent pipeline also needs to be filled accordingly further down the line. To achieve this, companies need transparent selection processes, clear criteria and an honest desire to reward performance. Then the high performers would win and not the well-known ones, says Lutz. This is exactly what determines success in transformation phases.
Positive example of Beiersdorf: gender equality as a strategic corporate goal
Beiersdorf also seems to be aware that companies have to start promoting women much further down the line and should proceed in a structured manner. The consumer goods company has a completely equal composition of its board of directors: seven of the twelve supervisory board members are female and half of the six board positions are women. Of the DAX 40, only the boards of Beiersdorf and Siemens Healthineers have equal representation.
In 2021, Beiersdorf had already set itself the goal of achieving a balanced gender ratio in leadership positions worldwide by 2025. When asked by our editorial team, the company announced that it had reached this goal 18 months earlier and had kept it constant since then.
At Beiersdorf there was no single lever, but rather a combination of various measures to achieve more diversity. A spokesman for the company details the measures: “Particularly important were the consistent integration of diversity into our talent and succession planning, a globally standardized recruiting process and the further development of our leadership culture. In addition, managers are trained in inclusive leadership and actively contribute to developing diverse talent.” In addition, Beiersdorf has initiatives such as job-sharing models, support for everything related to parenthood and regular pay equity analyses. The internal network “SisterhoodisPower” now has more than 1,400 members.
Beiersdorf advises other companies to take the following measures to anchor gender equality as a strategic corporate goal:
- define clear goals,
- Measure progress, check regularly and readjust if necessary,
- critically question existing processes,
- look in particular at where talents are not making any progress in their careers,
- get a visible commitment from company management to the goals.
Mara Marx is a volunteer at Human Resources.
