Women’s presence growing in French PE

The sixth annual report on female representation in France's private equity sector, published on 1 December, is based on 2015 figures and was conducted with 100 investment firms and AFIC members.

The study reveals that female representation in French private equity has been consistently rising for the last six years, up to a current 21% compared to 17% when the study first began in 2009. Compared to the  previous survey, the number of women in the industry has grown by a percentage point.

Despite the overall growth, women remain under-represented among the higher ranks of private equity: per 100 women working in the sector, just 18 currently hold senior positions, against 55 males per 100, the study shows. However, the figure has been rising. For example, 22% of investment directors were women at the latest count, compared to 16% in 2009.

Claire Deguerry, associate financial advisory at Deloitte, says: "One can only appreciate the progress made over the last few years on this front. Nevertheless, this dynamic needs to gain even more momentum and to extend itself to the executive roles too."

Encouraging diversity
Among the consulted firms, around 50% reported having set gender diversity targets. The 2011 law on diversity has been a determining factor for this, with around 77% of the funds saying they are aware of the regulation – a 19% increase compared to the previous year.

Among the 50% pushing for more diversity, around 37% are also encouraging for managerial positions, and 28% for executive roles.

Finally, around 58% of the consulted firms revealed that gender diversity was a determining factor in attracting investors, compared to 50% in 2014. Many also acknowledged the importance of having both men and women on boards for better management, risk and crisis management, and conflict resolution.

Alexandra Dupont, president of AFIC's women's association AFIC avec Elles, says: "The fact that gender diversity is becoming an important criterion for investors marks yet another factor encouraging GPs to push for it even more within their firms."

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