Park Lane Developments` managing director Mrs. Tanya Kosseva-Boshova, in her capacity of Chairperson of Ladies` Forum, invited more than 200 distinguished business leaders to an elegant ceremony to present the results of a first of its kind gender distribution study of senior management in the Bulgarian corporate scale.
The figures show that 10 per cent of the 300 Bulgarian top revenue companies are managed by women. Their representation in senior management in Bulgaria is twice as big compared to the biggest public companies in 9 European countries – France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK, Netherlands, Finland, Belgium and the Czech Republic. At the same time women`s representation in the Boards of Directors and Supervisory Boards in big Bulgarian companies lags twice – 16.8% compared to 33.6%.
In addition to the largest revenue-generating companies, the survey draws attention to the sectors which have enjoyed the fastest economic growth in recent years – pharmaceuticals, IT and outsourcing services, machine-building and automotive components manufacturing. The participation of women in leadership positions in the first two sectors exceeds the average for the top 300 companies. The opposite is true for the other two economic sectors.
“I was glad to hear that the per cent of ladies in C-level management positions in Bulgaria is higher than the average in Europe. Not only are they goal oriented, but they are good in decision making and taking responsibility.”, shared Violina Marinova, Management Board Chairperson and CEO of DSK Bank and one of the awarded ladies during the ceremony.
Special attention in the survey is paid to the financial sector – 52 commercial banks and insurance companies have also been examined. This sector stands out with the strongest female presence in senior management – 22.3% of the positions in the Boards of Directors and Supervisory Boards are held by women. The influence of ladies in C-level management positions is extremely strong – 42% of the banks and insurance companies are run by women.
The ladies that have been awarded during the ceremony are the following:
Violina Marinova, Management Board Chairperson and CEO of DSK Bank
Teodora Petkova, Chairperson of the Management Board and CEO of UniCredit BulBank
Petya Dimitrova, Chairperson of the Management Board and CEO of Postbank
Milena Dragiyska, CEO of Lidl Bulgaria
Ivanka Ivanova, General Manager at Orbico Bulgaria
Elza Markova, General Manager at Bella Bulgaria
The survey was carried out jointly by the Economist Magazine and the Ladies` Forum.