The pace of progress toward true gender equality in senior leadership roles is not just stalling, it’s regressing. A dangerous myth persists that the battle for women in leadership has been won, that we’ve “cracked the nut” and can now shift our focus elsewhere. But the reality tells a different story.

In the latest Fortune Global 500, 472 of the 500 companies are led by men, a number that has increased from last year. This means that nearly 95 per cent of these businesses, and a third of the world’s income, are governed by men. Women remain shut out of top leadership roles. It’s a reminder of how far we still have to go in achieving gender equity at the highest levels of business.

The few women who do ascend to the chief executive officer position have often battled against deeply entrenched gender biases and systemic barriers for decades. And for women from marginalised racial and ethnic backgrounds, these obstacles are even more deep-seated.

Additionally, women CEOs tend to have shorter tenures than men, with a recent study finding an average tenure of five years for women compared to eight years for men. This discrepancy can be attributed to the lower tolerance and patience for women in these high-stakes roles.

The cost of ignoring talent

This issue goes beyond fairness. It strikes at the core of effective governance and the health of our global economy. When the leadership of our largest corporations fails to reflect the diversity of the markets they serve, it undermines the very fabric of those businesses. As the saying goes, “women hold up half the sky,” but in the workplace, they remain sidelined.

Our research shows that women leaders are held to higher performance standards and face harsher judgments than their male counterparts. Gender stereotypes create a double bind for women that shows up in a few ways. They’re perceived as either “too soft” or “too tough”, but never “just right” for leadership roles. There are higher expectations and lower rewards for women compared to men, and they are often perceived as either competent or likeable, but seldom both.

The “Goldilocks principle” of “never quite right” perfectly encapsulates the lived experience of women leaders. Striving for a balance that is deemed acceptable can limit their potential. Many of us tend to default to the middle ground, favouring stereotypically masculine leadership traits, most likely because this is what we have been conditioned to accept as the norm. We have a “think manager-think male” mindset, associating traits like assertiveness and independence, with leadership, which constrains opportunities for women’s career advancement.

But the problem runs even deeper. The familiarity heuristic, a cognitive shortcut, leads individuals to favour what they know or have seen before.  Our long-standing exposure to male CEOs creates a cognitive bias that makes it difficult to envision different leadership styles. This is why it’s crucial to actively rewire our mindsets to embrace diversity in leadership. It also explains why it is so hard to change.

A generation of talented women leaders are being overlooked. The Fortune 500 list reveals only 28 of these companies are led by women. Among them are Margherita Della Valle of Vodafone, Emma Walmsley of GSK, and Jane Fraser of Citigroup. When the top ranks of the corporate world fail to reflect the diversity of society, it should be a cause for alarm.

The path forward

The question isn’t what women must do to reach these roles; it’s what organisations must do to dismantle the barriers stopping them. We don’t need to ‘fix’ women, but the systems that hinder their progress. Companies must be intentional about nurturing diverse talent in their leadership pipelines and creating working environments where women can thrive.

This is a business imperative. The already glacial pace of progress for women’s advancement into the C-suite is at risk of grinding to a halt, or worse, reversing.

According to the World Economic Forum, it could take 134 years to close the gender parity gap. Across the globe, women earn less than men for doing the same work, and this pay gap extends even to CEOs. Research shows that women CEOs in FTSE 100 companies earn £768,000 less than their male counterparts. Analysis by executive search firm Russell Reynolds finds that at the current rate, it will take until 2057 to achieve gender parity among CEOs in FTSE 100 companies. This should be a cause for deep concern in every industry.

However, there are signs of hope. The Catalyst CEO Champions for Change, a group of more than 80 global CEOs, have committed to driving gender equity across their businesses. Nearly all these companies (93 per cent) have conducted pay equity reviews, with 78 doing so annually, and 71 per cent adjusting pay based on these findings. Champion companies also consistently outperform their peers in women’s representation across the leadership pipeline and are retaining women and men at similar rates across job levels. These leaders understand that gender equity isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s a business necessity.

Doubling down on progress

Companies that are serious about progress are doubling down on their efforts to create equitable workplaces.

Achieving an equitable and inclusive workplace can’t be seen as a checkbox on a to-do list. It requires a fundamental overhaul of the structures and biases that have long favoured one group over others. Companies need to take steps to eliminate bias in recruitment, embed inclusive leadership values, and cultivate a culture of inclusion where everyone can succeed.

Sponsorship and mentorship programmes, affordable childcare and flexible work arrangements are critical for women to succeed in the workplace.

Recent research shows that employees are twice as likely to stay when they feel that their organisation is held accountable for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) goals. They are three times more likely to stay when their organisation’s processes are fair and equitable.

The current state of gender equity in leadership is an issue that impacts us all, not just women. Business leaders must recognise that the future of our global economy depends on addressing this challenge head-on. It’s time to take gender equity seriously.

*Lucy Kallin is the Executive Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) at Catalyst, Inc. Ellie Smith is Director of Research for Europe at Catalyst. This article is republished from the LSE Business Review. It represents the views of the author(s), not the position of LSE Business Review or the London School of Economics and Political Science. Read the original article here.