Board diversity and recruitment practices as drivers of women’s advancement in executive positions

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Abstract

This study examines gender quota regulations and their association with women’s representation on the boards of Spanish IBEX companies between 2017 and 2024. Despite notable progress in board feminisation, women remain markedly underrepresented in executive roles, raising questions about how external regulation interacts with internal corporate governance (Saitua-Iribar et al., 2025). The research adopts a holistic framework and a mixed methods approach, combining longitudinal quantitative analysis of gender indicators with qualitative review of recruitment and compliance mechanisms. The sample comprises 25 companies continuously listed on the IBEX 35, providing a consistent basis for assessing regulatory developments. Findings indicate that female board representation increased from 23 per cent in 2017 to over 42 per cent in 2024, aligning with the European Union (EU) and Spanish targets, while only 7 per cent of women occupy executive board positions, reflecting limited spillover into top management. Firms with transparent recruitment processes and measurable diversity objectives tend to show higher compliance, whereas symbolic commitments hinder progress. Results are consistent with institutional and agency theories: quota frameworks may support numerical parity, yet structural barriers can continue to shape advancement pathways. Future progress may benefit from shifts toward deeper organisational commitment through integrated strategies linking regulation, governance codes, and succession planning.

Keywords: Board Gender Diversity, CEO, Executives, Gender Quotas, Corporate Regulation, Recruitment

Authors’ individual contributions: Conceptualization — R.S.-S., M.I.B., and M.S.-P.; Methodology — R.S.-S. and M.S.-P.; Validation — R.S.-S. and M.S.-P.; Formal Analysis — R.S.-S.; Resources — M.I.B. and M.S.-P.; Data Curation — R.S.-S., Writing — Original Draft — R.S.-S., M.I.B., and M.S.-P.; Writing — Review & Editing — R.S.-S., M.I.B., and M.S.-P.; Visualization — M.S.-P.; Supervision — M.S.-P.; Project Administration — R.S.-S.; Funding Acquisition — R.S.-S. and M.I.B.

Declaration of conflicting interests: The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

JEL Classification: G34, K22, M12, M14, Q56

Received: 14.01.2026
Revised: 20.02.2026; 06.03.2026
Accepted: 13.03.2026
Published online: 16.03.2026

How to cite this paper: Santero-Sánchez, R., Izquierdo Barriuso, M., & Segovia-Pérez, M. (2026). Board diversity and recruitment practices as drivers of women’s advancement in executive positions. Corporate Board: Role, Duties and Composition, 22(1), 99–115. https://doi.org/10.22495/cbv22i1art8