Women in business - what the numbers say
Representation across leadership and investment is rising slowly
International Women’s Day (8 March) was last weekend and the whole of March is Women’s History Month, so it feels like a good time to view the progress and ask who is shaping the future of business today.
Property and property finance are good sectors to explore because decisions made in meeting rooms today shape towns, cities and communities for decades. Yet these sectors have traditionally been male-dominated, particularly at senior levels.
So how much has really changed? And what do the numbers say about women’s representation across property, finance and business more broadly?
If we start with leadership in real estate, Deloitte UK’s most recent figures show that:
Women make up around 14.5% of C-suite roles in the sector, with senior leadership at 26.2%. These figures are inching up – albeit slowly - which shows some progress in the right direction.
However, representation at the ‘next generation’ level sits at about 30% which has remained largely static. Deloitte suggests this means women’s progress in real estate is at risk of stalling and asks what the industry can do to re-energise and bring gender equity ‘within reach’.
Moving across to the investment side of finance and there’s a similar pattern. Data from Level 20 and BVCA say that:
27% of UK-based investment professionals are women, up from 24% in 2023, with 15% of senior investment roles held by women (up from 12% in 2023).
The report also notes that the UK ranks behind only France and Sweden when it comes to female representation of women in investment teams across Europe.
Looking more broadly at business ownership, the picture changes slightly. Research from Prowess reports that:
19.1% of active UK companies are female-led, with 1.8 million women running incorporated or self-employed ventures across the country.
Women also now represent one in three UK entrepreneurs, reflecting a 36% increase in business ownership since 2015.
Recent research from Property Week’s Inspiring Diversity in Property survey also provides a snapshot of how the industry is feeling on the ground:
42.3% of respondents said that diversity had improved in their organisation, slightly down from 44% the previous year.
More than one in five respondents (21.2%) reported witnessing or experiencing discrimination in the past year (up from 12% in the previous year), highlighting the gap that can still exist between diversity commitments and everyday workplace experience.
One structural issue highlighted is the loss of women at mid-career level which ultimately means fewer senior leaders and fewer visible role models later on.
Positively however 65.4% believe characteristics such as gender or disability would not block career progression in their organisation (up from 57% last year)
These numbers matter because property development and finance are relationship businesses. There are more women leading teams, shaping credit, running funds and driving transactions - not as many as there could be, but at least the old idea of ‘the only woman in the room’ is no longer the norm in every meeting.
These conversations matter too because change rarely happens quietly in the background. Paying attention to the numbers, sharing the data and talking about what is working - and what isn’t - is part of how progress actually happens. It keeps the issue visible and keeps the industry honest about where it still needs to improve.
Sarah Milne, CEO of Property Box Finance, says: “I’m seeing more women making decisions in this industry - which changes the tone of a deal and the questions that get asked – both for the better. In property finance, people remember how you act from the first meeting and particularly when a scheme hits a bump. That’s where trust is built.”
The good news is that there are practical things firms can do: hire and mentor well, support people through different stages of their careers and make sure talent is not lost mid-way through a career ladder.
Sarah takes a practical view: “The sector is at its best when it backs good people and good deals, without assumptions about who should . I’d like to see more of that - more trust placed in people who have earned it and more chances given early enough to build real experience.”
So yes, there is still ground to cover. But it is not gloomy. We’re moving in the right direction. More women are choosing this industry, staying in it and shaping it. Over time, that changes the networks, the norms and the next generation’s sense of what is possible.
