I’m currently touring Australia for the August series of our Ascend development days, however before I left I attended a debate hosted by The Sydney Institute between David Gonski, Chairman of the ASX and Elizabeth Broderick, Sexual Discrimination Commissioner on the issue of quotas and mandatory targets to increase the number of women on boards.  Regardless of which side of the fence you sit on, the good news is that the ASX gender diversity guidelines seem to be having an effect – with Gonksi announcing the number of women on boards in ASX200 companies has finally shifted back to a positive trend for the first time in almost four years. 

A record number of women have been appointed to ASX 200 boards in 2010 as companies rush to appoint more women to their boards before gender reporting requirements start next year.  So far this year, 31 women have been appointed to ASX 200 boards, more than triple the number in 2009. Twenty-seven per cent of all ASX 200 board appointees this year have been female, compared to just 5 per cent in 2009 and 8 per cent in 2007 and 2008, the latest figures released by the Australian Institute of Company Directors revealed.

This brings the percentage of women on boards in the ASX200 to 9.8%, up from 8.3% as reported in the EOWA census of women in leadership in 2008.

Here’s hoping that trend will continue – though if Liz Broderick has her way we’ll still see quotas implemented within 5 years.