Female “bright side”: The effect of women in management and on the board on corporate performance in Europe

This chapter investigates how gender diversity affects firm performance in Europe, considering the role of national culture in shaping the nature of the relationship. We particularly focus on gender diversity at all levels of management and board. We analyse a cross-sectional sample of 54,472 listed and unlisted companies across 25 European countries by implementing the two-stage least squares regression method. The results suggest that gender diversity has a relevant positive effect on firm performance. Moreover, national sociocultural differences moderate the relationship between gender-diversity and firm performance. We analyse gender diversity at different levels of management: top-level, middle-level, and low-level. We also analyse the moderating effect of the masculinity level of the country. We include both listed and unlisted firms across different European countries, allowing the generalization of the findings. Our empirical findings reinforce the potential capabilities of women to shape corporate performance. Women's empowerment at both management and board levels should be proposed and practically implemented.