Another year, another International Women’s Day (IWD) - a key opportunity to celebrate, raise awareness, and take action to advance women’s equality. And yet, the backdrop to this year’s IWD cannot be ignored.

It will take 48 years+ for all women to achieve gender parity in senior leadership in the US.

Today, men hold 92% of CEO positions in the S&P 500 companies. According to the McKinsey Women in the Workplace Report 2024, it will take 48 years for all women to achieve gender parity in senior leadership in the US. Key hallmarks of progress towards closing that gap - the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling, Nasdaq’s board diversity rules, prevalent corporate commitment to DE&I - have been reversed. Increasingly, companies are failing to meet basic criteria to continue progress towards gender parity, including fixing the broken rung and driving accountability for gender-bias-free workplaces.

What are the implications for corporate women and the businesses they serve at?

Research continues to show that women executive leaders face a disproportionate share of unconscious bias and systemic challenges, impacting succession development, leadership impact and influence, and individual well-being.

However, in many workplaces and boardrooms today, it is no longer acceptable to talk about that gender gap or difference in experience.

This doesn’t stop the problem from existing or prevent the business risk it creates.

The same outdated habits that hold top talent back are the same habits that hold businesses back.

Despite more women in leadership pipelines than 10 years ago, too few reach the top - not due to lack of merit, but because legacy mindsets block the best talent from taking the seats they’ve earned. This isn’t just an equity issue; it’s a business risk.

When organizations fail to put the most capable leaders in critical roles, they don’t just limit individual careers - they weaken their own ability to drive growth, transformation, and crisis resilience. The same outdated habits that hold top talent back are the same habits that hold businesses back.

Closing this gap isn’t only about fairness - it’s also about securing the strongest, most innovative leadership to tackle today’s toughest challenges.

A new zeitgeist has emerged: more Millennial and Gen X women in senior leadership are looking toward the exit.

In the wake of the above, a new zeitgeist has emerged - and it’s reshaping leadership pipelines. Instead of continuing to aim for top seats at their organization, more Millennial and Gen X women in senior leadership are looking toward the exit.

This isn’t just a talent trend - it’s a business risk:

• Voluntary turnover is rising - women are increasingly open to external opportunities
• Succession pipelines are at risk - top candidates are unwilling to waste critical career years "waiting for Godot"
• The corporate gender gap is widening - some women, reluctantly or resolutely, are leaving to start their own ventures or seek new, more fulfilling paths

Organizations that fail to recognize this shift - and respond strategically - risk losing their best leadership talent to competition, entrepreneurship, or disengagement.

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References

https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/women-in-the-workplace