The gender composition of boards after an IPO

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to empirically analyse the change in the gender composition of the boards of large Australian companies, after listing. Design/methodology/approach - This study investigates the gender composition of the boards of large Australian companies at the time of the initial public offering (IPO) and subsequently as these companies mature into established public companies. It also investigates industry influences and organizational size influences on the board composition at the time of the IPO and subsequently. Findings - No significant change is found in the proportion of male and female directors holding directorships at the time of the IPO and some five to eight years later when the company is recorded as a top 500 company (by market capitalization) on the Australian lists. This implies that the capital market is generally satisfied by the gender composition of boards from the time of the IPO. Originality/value - This paper extends on previous work which provides evidence of a relatively low proportion of female directors on the boards of Australian initial public offerings.