Gender Diversity on Boards in Canada: Recommendations for Accelerating Progress (Report)

Canada continues to lag behind other developed nations in terms of gender balance on corporate boards. The Ontario Government has taken an important step by being the first jurisdiction to champion new “comply or explain” securities law rule amendments to encourage greater representation of women on boards and in executive officer positions.

This report, commissioned by the Government of Ontario:

• Examines the effectiveness of mechanisms for diversifying boards.
• Describes best practices from around the world, as well as Canada’s own banking sector.
• Offers 11 recommendations to help companies, business leaders and governments advance gender equity on boards and across all levels of organizations.

Research Partners: Abercrombie & Fitch; AT&T Inc.; Bank of America Corporation; Bloomberg; BMO Financial Group; The Boston Consulting Group; Cardinal Health, Inc.; Chevron Corporation; Credit Suisse; Debevoise & Plimpton LLP; Dell Inc.; Deutsche Bank AG; EY; Halliburton; Hewlett-Packard Company; IBM Corporation; KeyBank; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; McDonald’s Corporation; Novo Nordisk; PAREXEL; Sodexo; State Street Corporation; UPS; Verizon

How to cite this product: Catalyst, Gender Diversity on Boards in Canada: Recommendations for Accelerating Progress, commissioned by the Government of Ontario (2016).