Incremental Progress Toward Gender Parity

• CompanyIQ^® ESG data indicates that the gender balance on corporate boards is continuing to improve. Thirty-nine percent of incoming directors were women, while 61 percent of incoming directors were In light of the gender break- down of departing directors—86 percent were men and 14 percent were women—this has made the overall Russell 3000 Index companies’ gender breakdown 79 percent men and 21 percent women.

Boards and Committees Are Getting Larger

• Small- and mid-cap companies have largely driven a trend toward growth in the average board size, from 10 to 10.1, an addition of almost 500 board seats. Micro-/nano- and small-cap companies have an average board size below the overall mean, whereas mid- and large-/mega-cap companies have an average board size above the overall.

Shifting Skill Sets

• Despite the increasingly complex ways in which technology is currently reshaping business—and will continue to do so—there is not a significant difference in the average number of incoming directors with technology skills compared to departing.