This thesis has investigated the attitudes towards gender quotas within the Icelandic business community and touched upon the challenges and opportunities that may follow from the adoption of gender quotas in Iceland. I found out that the adoption of gender quotas in Iceland is widely accepted although other measures would have been preferred in terms of reaching gender-balanced boards. Up until now an equality of opportunity approach towards increasing the representation of women on boards has not proven
attitude is that it is important to increase the share of women on boards. Thus, my study shows that an alternative to the equality of opportunity approach may be needed to correct the continuous gender imbalance on Icelandic boards. Mandated gender quotas, also referred to as an equality of outcomes approach, appear to be the answer to break up the homogeneity that has been persistent on corporate boards in Iceland for long. Thus, quotas are seen as a necessary push to secure a gender balanced boards.
The business community tends not to like quotas but likes the outcomes quotas are able to deliver. Because of this the law enforcement is accepted. A widely accepted view is that the quota law was possibly enforced because of the economic collapse in Iceland. Further, many view its adoption as a means to tidy up and improve corporate governance, as various stakeholders demand better and more visible corporate governance. The emphasis on rethinking compositions of boards and the demand for improvement of working methods on boards is therefore regarded as one of the reasons why the government established the law on gender representation.
Apart from ensuring gender balance and contributing to a fairer society in terms of gender equality, my results also show that quotas are likely to have positive effects on corporate governance. This is not necessarily because of the increase of women on boards. Rather it is because selection methods are likely to improve and become more sophisticated and as a consequence board composition is likely to be better thought through. Although the results largely point out that board contribution is not gender related some value relevant factors in favor of increasing the number of women on corporate boards are detected. These factors are for instance adherence to corporate governance guidelines and tougher monitoring of managers. Thus, as Icelandic boardrooms are going to experience changes resulting from the substantial increase in female board members, the effect of the law on board performance provides an interesting topic for further research.
The quota law can be seen as a direct measure to break the glass ceiling, in other words the
found out that the barriers are both a women’s problem and a business problem. The barriers are a women’s problem in that women do not aspire for board positions to the same extent as men. As a consequence, there is less supply of female candidates and they do not get chosen on boards to the same extent as men. The business problem conversely implies that companies are underutilizing available resources by not taking greater advantage of women’s talent and competences. Women make up almost half of the labor force and are passing men in terms of education and thus firms should strive for having more women on their boards. This seems not to be happening, as the number of women on boards has been nearly stable for ten years. Further, I found out that the business problem partly consists in the social construction of gender, in disfavor of women. In my study female board members are not directly constructed as deficient among the respondents, as men and women are largely seen as equally capable. Women are said to be more cautious and responsible while men are argued to be more progressive and bold. These qualities are regarded as being equally important and likely to lead to a good counterbalance. Yet, it is hinted that women are socially constructed as deficient within the Icelandic business community where habit, tradition and conservatism play a large role. Women’s low social capital at high business levels and the difficulty for women in terms of reaching important networks additionally acts as a major barrier to women’s representation on boards according to my study. It may be concluded from the study that the law breaks down the various barriers women are facing. Further it will likely get close to solving the business problem as firms are required to include women to a greater extent and may also possibly lead to a better allocation of available resources.
The main attitudes against the quota law consist in the limitations of choice set to shareholders and owners. Secondly it consists in the unfortunate development of replacing competent men with less competent women. This is likely to happen according to my study if the talent pool of female candidates is not big enough and may have negative effects on board performance. My study gives a mixed message in this regard. Firstly it is suggested
I found that the list of 190 women published by FKA indicates that there is a great supply of women who are ready to take on board positions. A lack of supply may encourage the development of few women taking on many board positions but the attitudes towards this development are both positive and a negative. Whether or not this will happen in Iceland is yet to be found out but the effects provide an interesting subject for future research.
Another subject that came up in the study that is worth investigating is the emergence of shadow boards. That is, if companies that are resistant to the legislation will move some of the decision-making out of the board rooms.
To directly answer the research question, the attitudes towards gender quotas on boards among the business community are that the law is controversial but mostly accepted. More specifically, the probable outcomes of the law are favored while the methods with which the outcomes are accomplished are less favored. However, as the study has showed that mandated quotas seem to be the only way to effectively secure gender balance on corporate boards, they have become largely accepted.