PwC's "Age diversity in the boardroom" benchmarks board age diversity with a plethora of data on new directors aged 50 and under ("Younger Directors").
Key findings among S&P 500 companies (as of December 31, 2018) include:
- Younger Directors fill 6% of S&P 500 board seats.
- 46% of companies have at least one Younger Director; 60% joined when the board increased its size.
- Women outnumber men in the 2018 class of independent Younger Directors (61% vs. 39%, respectively), and 37% of the total population of Younger Directors are women – compared to 24% of S&P 500 directors overall.
- 24% of the new independent Younger Directors are current or former CEOs – compared to 37% of the existing class.
- 95% of Younger Directors have active careers.
- 44% of independent Younger Directors have a background in finance or investing.
- 49% of independent Younger Directors (49%) serve on the audit committee – vs. 46%of independent directors in the S&P 500 overall.
- Companies in the IT, Consumer Staples, and Consumer Discretionary industries are most likely to have Younger Directors (i.e., these industries have the highest percentage of companies with at least one Younger Director).
In addition to educating on how, where, and to what extent these Younger Directors are infiltrating the boardroom, the report presents a strong case for making a concerted effort to consider the diversity of perspective, skills, and experiences that younger directors can bring to boards that are increasingly pressured to diversify their ranks to mitigate the potential for groupthink and more closely reflect and relate to an increasingly diverse constituency.
Note that according to the Society/Deloitte Board Practices Report, although just 6% of respondents said their board is not looking to increasing its diversity, age diversity specifically ranked last among the board diversity-related attributes identified and sought - well below gender (61%), race & ethnicity (48%), specific professional skills or experience (43%), and specific international geography or an international background (7%).
See these prior reports: "Next-Gen Directors: Onboarding & Integration," Onboarding Next-Gen Directors: Here's How"; "Board Age Diversity: Benchmarking & Considerations," "Next-Gen Digital Director Considerations"; Equilar's "How Board Skills Vary by Director Age Groups"; and additional resources on our Board Diversity page. This post first appeared in the weekly Society Alert!