Germany is lagging behind in the women’s quota

Germany's economy makes too little of its potential in the promotion of women in management, says Clarke Murphy, CEO of Russell Reynolds Associates, one of the worldwide leading executive search firms. "Even in Germany, it is not that there would be lack of talents," Murphy told "Welt am Sonntag."

"There are hundreds of women in Germany who are on track to be able to take on a group CEO positions in the future." But it is true: "Germany hasn’t been moving fast enough on this to date."

Internationally, Murphy sees Germany behind on this issue: "Other countries are already ahead." As examples in Europe he names the UK, Sweden and Poland. Outside of Europe, he sees the USA, Brazil, South Korea and "particularly Singapore too" in lead.

Performance instead of quotas

Murphy does not think much about quotas. "I personally do not believe in quotas, I believe in promotion through performance," he says. "In the past, the issue of women in management positions simply wasn’t so much of a focus for companies. As soon as that truly changes, we will definitely see rapid progress. You do not need a quota for that."

Murphy is the CEO of Russell Reynolds Associates since 2012. The company was founded in 1969 in New York and counts more than 370 consultants in 46 offices worldwide today. It belongs to the "Big Five" in the executive search sector together with Egon Zehnder, Heidrick & Struggles, Korn Ferry and Spencer Stuart.

To read the article in the original German, click here.