Breaking the Glass Ceiling: The Effects on Perceived Equality of Women Joining the Management Board

Abstract

Recent years have seen women being appointed to board positions at the highest rate ever, supported by awareness of gender inequality and increased regulatory pressure. While external effects of diversity have been explored, changes in internal perceptions remain unexplored. Using a sample of 76,240 ratings on the employer review site Kununu, this study explores the impact of women joining the management board of DAX40 firms for the first time in Germany. To test the effect, a staggered event study with time and firm fixed effects is utilised. The results show that there is an increase in gender equality perception in the quarters following the appointment, with the increase being most significant in the second and third quarters. The identification of non-significant results in the fourth quarter suggests a normalisation effect. The findings outline how changes in leadership shape internal perceptions of equality.

Keywords: board gender diversity; employee reviews; employee perceptions; corporate governance; event study