A review of the gender effect on pay, corporate performance and entry into top management

The frequency of women occupying the CEO office has increased but remains at low levels, less than 5% for the Fortune 500 companies. Several studies during the last decade consider the barriers that women may face when competing for top management positions. Other research examines potential compensation differences. More recently, some researchers show that CEO gender could affect corporate performance. This review paper summarizes these findings and suggests areas where more inquiry is needed to resolve conflicting results.