Despite decades of progress in gender equality, women remain significantly underrepresented in corporate leadership. While many countries have introduced board gender quotas and diversity targets, the impact on executive leadership has been far more limited.

The AltoPartners International Women’s Day 2026 report — Closing the Gender Leadership Gap : A Review of Legislative and Real-World Outcomes — examines whether these policies have translated into meaningful progress for women in senior leadership roles.

Drawing on data from across the Americas, Europe, Asia-Pacific, Africa and the Middle East, the research explores how different regulatory approaches, including mandatory board quotas, voluntary targets, and countries with no formal policies, influence gender representation in both boardrooms and the C-suite.

Key Findings

The research reveals several important insights shaping the global conversation on gender equality in leadership:

• Board quotas have increased female representation on boards, but the impact on C-suite leadership remains limited.

• Countries with voluntary diversity targets often show stronger executive-level representation, suggesting organisational culture and leadership commitment play a critical role.

• Women’s representation declines significantly at senior leadership levels, highlighting persistent structural barriers in the leadership pipeline.

These findings highlight a critical challenge: legislation alone is not enough to close the gender leadership gap.

Download the Full Report

The AltoPartners International Women’s Day 2026 report provides a comprehensive global analysis of gender representation across boards and executive leadership teams, along with insights into how organisations can accelerate progress toward gender parity. AltoPartners is committed to furthering gender diversity by identifying, cultivating and placing suitable candidates in the boardroom.

Download and read the full Closing the Gender Leadership Gap : A Review of Legislative and Real-World Outcomes - AltoPartners International Women’s Day 2026 Report to explore the data, regional comparisons, and policy insights shaping the future of women in leadership.

With contributions and leading insights from Sonal Agrawal; Joo-Lee Aw; Andrea Brand; Matthias Bruchner; Daniele Cuminale; Julie Garland McLellan; Regina Graf; Murat Kaan Güneri; Claudia Hardy; Veronika Kaštovská; Corinne Klajda; Carol Leonard; Nicolás Mora Schrader; Mpho Nkeli; Sandra Olive; Christian Rolin; priscila Schapke; Santiago Solis Arias; Charlotte Wetterlundh and Julia Zdrahal-Urbanek. With thanks to our data partner Findem for providing the quantitative data and the Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants (AESC) Managing Directors Lynne Murphy-Rivera; Sarah Mortimer and Clare Mahon for providing key regional insights.

Researched and written by Gail Strauss and Renee Moodie