Firm Distress and Female CEO Appointments: Glass Cliff or Opportunity?

While women’s opportunities to break the so-called “glass ceiling” and reach leadership positions have increased over time, women remain underrepresented in leadership positions. This project advances our understanding of gender gaps at the top by examining the relationship between firm performance and the appointment of female CEOs.

The first part of the project seeks to document the distribution of female CEOs across firms in the Swedish labour market. Using matched employer–employee data, information on firm performance, and board composition, we will first examine whether women are more likely to work in top positions in lower-performing firms. Second, we will exploit unexpected variation in firm performance to identify the causal effect of performance on leadership composition. One potential reason for an increase in female CEO appointments following a firm performance shock is that crises may make women more desirable leaders—a phenomena referred to as the “glass cliff”. In this project, we will contrast this channel with other potential mechanisms, thereby shedding light on the drivers behind gender disparities in leadership positions.