DAX 40 Supervisory Boards Study 2025 – Excerpt

For the past 15 years, Russell Reynolds Associates has conducted an annual analysis of developments on DAX supervisory boards.

This year’s AGM elections reflect both continuity and change in board composition and governance practices. In the respective reporting period, 95 mandates expired: Brenntag expanded its board, while Qiagen decided to reduce its board headcount by two, resulting in a total of 67 re-elections and 28 new appointments.

Notable developments include the first decline in the percentage of women shareholder representatives in over a decade, a modest increase of women in influential roles, broader adoption of staggered board terms, a continued rise in digital expertise, a sustained level of sustainability competence, and moderate adjustments to board remuneration structures.

Changes in the DAX 40 since 2024

In the DAX 40, Fresenius Medical Care has been added to the index, replacing Covestro Group, which no longer fulfilled the requirements for DAX listing following its acquisition by ADNOC.

Of the current DAX 40 constituents, 24 were members of the DAX 30 as of 2011, indicating a degree of stability among Germany’s largest listed companies. 

Women on DAX 40 supervisory boards: 2025 shows first decline in women shareholder representation since 2010

When this study was first conducted in 2010, there were more shareholder representatives named Peter or Michael than there were women on DAX 30 boards. In 2025, the landscape has shifted significantly: women now hold 38.2% of the DAX 40 shareholder representative seats (far outnumbering the collective Peters and Michaels in DAX 40 boardrooms).

However, for the first time in 15 years, women shareholder’s representation has stalled. The percentage of women shareholder representatives declined by 1.8 percentage points this year, falling from 40.0% to 38.2% (Figure 1). New appointments have furthered this imbalance, with only 36% of newly elected shareholder representatives being women (10 women compared to 18 men). Of these 10 women — a decrease from 22 in the prior year — 70% were German nationals, marking a decline from 82% in the previous year.

Figure 1: Percentage of women shareholder representatives in the DAX 40 (2011-2025)

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

This inflection point appears to be closely associated with shifting board turnover dynamics. For the first time, more women than men exited shareholder representative roles (15 women versus 13 men), representing 54% of total departures. On average, the women who stepped down were nearly six years younger than their male counterparts and had served approximately one fewer year in their roles.

Of the 10 newly appointed women DAX 40 shareholder representatives, one is a former CEO, two are former CFOs and the remaining seven have senior executive experience (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Highest executive level reached by DAX 40 shareholder representatives – men vs women

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

Looking at the share of women shareholder and employee representatives* per company, Beiersdorf leads this year followed by Zalando and Bayer (Figure 3). Four supervisory boards are currently comprised of 50% or more women (compared to five in 2024 and six in 2023).

Porsche SE is exempt from the parity co-determination requirements under the German Co-Determination Act as long as it operates as a financial holding company; therefore, the 30% female representation threshold does not apply. In contrast, Adidas AG and SAP SE both fall below the 30% threshold but remain within the permitted rounding tolerance.

The share of women amongst employee representatives in DAX 40 rose to 41.4% (up from 39.3% the previous year), keeping the overall gender balance across all supervisory board mandates stable at 39.7% (Figure 3).

Figure 3: Share of women in shareholder & employee representation by DAX 40 company

^{* Incl. changes to employee representation until 1.5.2025; SR = shareholder representatives; ER = employee representatives}

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

Women’s representation in influential board roles continues to increase. With the recent appointments of Dr. Katrin Suder (DHL Group) and Clara-Christina Streit (Deutsche Börse), four companies within the DAX 40 now have a woman chair of the supervisory board, representing 10% of all supervisory board chairs (Figure 4). Additionally, the proportion of women committee chairs has risen by two percentage points compared to the previous year, now standing at 22%.

However, these figures continue to lag behind the overall board gender ratio, with an estimated delay of 8 to 14 years. This disparity is particularly pronounced in chair positions, where women are appointed significantly later than their male counterparts.

Figure 4: Percentage of women in DAX 40 supervisory board “positions of power” (2010 – 2025)

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

Looking beyond the DAX 40, all major European stock indices (with the exception of Finland) reported year-on-year increases in the percentage of women on boards (including employee representatives, where applicable). Of these 11 indices, seven now boast an average proportion of at least 40% women representatives across their supervisory boards (Figure 5). Notably, France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Spain recorded significant increases in women representatives in the past year.

Figure 5: Average proportion of women on supervisory boards across European stock indices (2019 – 2024)

^{Sources: DE & CH: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis of DAX and SMI, data collected after AGMs each year; other countries: European Institute for Gender Equality (eige.europa.eu) data reflects status as of October each year}

A decline in initial DAX 40 terms and an increase in their staggering

The average initial term for newly elected supervisory board members has declined notably, dropping from 4.2 years prior to 2020 to 3.6 years in 2025, consistent with the previous year. Concurrently, the proportion of new appointments with a four-year mandate has decreased to 57% from 76% in 2024 (Figure 6a).

Simultaneously, the adoption of staggered terms has continued to rise. Currently, 55% of supervisory boards limit the proportion of mandates expiring in the same year to a maximum of 60%, compared with 53% in the previous year and 23% in 2017 (Figure 6b). This broader adoption of staggered terms, together with shorter initial mandates, reflects a growing emphasis on flexible board structures designed to balance renewal and continuity.

Figure 6a: Average initial DAX 40 board election period by year | Figure 6b: Percentage of DAX 40 boards staggering elections

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

DAX 40 shareholder representatives’ highest career levels are evolving

Over the past decade, the proportion of shareholder representatives with prior experience on DAX 30/40 management boards has declined from 36% in 2013 to 25% in 2025 (Figure 7). Conversely, there has been an increase in members with executive leadership experience from prominent corporations outside the DAX 40, rising from 24% to 36%. There has also been a rise in those holding other executive management positions, which increased from 13% to 19% over the same period. This evolution underscores a broadening of professional backgrounds and a more diverse pool of expertise.

Figure 7: Highest career level reached by DAX 40 supervisory board members (2013 vs 2025)

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

Board expertise: Growth in digital; stability in sustainability

The proportion of supervisory boards with digital expertise has reached a new high, rising from 72% in 2022 to 85% in the current reporting period. Moreover, 13 boards are considered “highly digital” with multiple members having relevant digital experience.

In parallel, sustainability governance structures have continued to improve. The percentage of DAX 40 supervisory boards with a dedicated ESG committee has increased to 50%, up from 48% in the previous year. An additional seven boards have at least one member with recognized sustainability expertise (but no formal committee yet). A combined approach — integrating both a dedicated committee and individual expertise — is being increasingly adopted.

Imbalanced regional composition in the DAX 40: A view across shareholder representatives, shareholders, revenues, and workforce

The regional alignment between DAX 40 shareholder representatives, shareholders, company revenues, and employee distribution continues to reflect a notable imbalance. Whilst 66% of current shareholder representatives are German, only 12% of shareholders originate from Germany (Figure 8). At the operational level, approximately 19% of total revenue is generated in Germany, and 36% of employees are based there. This raises the question of what an appropriate or desirable regional ratio across governance, ownership, and operations might look like in the context of globalized capital markets.

Figure 8: Shareholder representatives, shareholders, revenue, and employees by region (2025)

^{Sources: RRA analysis: Revenue: CapIQ (10 April 2024), 2023 data, Annual Reports, Notes: “market-cap-weighted averages of company revenues”; without six DAX 40 companies that do not report turnover by geographical regions, Shareholders: “Who owns the German DAX?”, S&P Global Market Intelligence and DIRK, June 2023, 2022-data, Employees: “Wie deutsch ist der Dax? (How German is the DAX?)“, WirtschaftsWoche, June 2024}

The share of foreign nationals amongst DAX 40 shareholder representatives increased slightly during the reporting period, following two consecutive years of decline. This shift is partly attributed to the high proportion of outgoing board members being German nationals. Amongst newly elected representatives, 70% of women (down from 82% last year) and 83% of men (up from 79% last year) are German, indicating a modest change in the geographic diversity of new appointments (Figure 9).

Figure 9: Development of the share of foreign nationals on DAX company boards over time

^{Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

DAX 40 supervisory boards remuneration trends

In the reporting period, supervisory board remuneration for chairs increased by 4.4% and by 6% for the lowest-compensated members (Figure 10). However, overall growth remained modest. Deutsche Bank, Allianz, Volkswagen, Airbus, BMW and Siemens had the highest remuneration for Supervisory Board chairs. Deutsche Bank, SAP and Allianz provided the highest average compensation for their Board members.

Figure 10: Remuneration of DAX 40 supervisory board members by company (2024)

^{* Usually the Supervisory Board chair; Source: Russell Reynolds Associates Analysis 2025. Based on company communication and publicly available information | Note: The DAX 30 was expanded into DAX 40 in 2021}

Authors

• Jens-Thomas Pietralla co-leads Russell Reynolds Associates’ Board & CEO Advisory Practice globally and formerly led the firm’s Industrial Practice. He is based in Munich.

• Tobias Blickle is a member of Russell Reynolds Associates’ Board & CEO Advisory Practice. He is based in Munich.