Women hold 25.9% of CEO roles in Australia as leadership gender gap persists, report finds

Women held 25.9% of chief executive officer (CEO) positions in Australia in 2025, despite making up 40% of senior managers and 44.9% of other managers, highlighting a persistent gap in women’s representation at the top of organisations.

The findings are from Gender Equity Insights 2026: Unlocking Australia’s Workforce Potential, a report by the Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC) and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA). 

The research, drawing on a decade of employer data, finds that women’s representation has increased across management levels, but progress through the leadership pipeline has not translated into a comparable share of CEO roles.

Leadership gains

Women’s share of CEO positions rose from around 15% in 2015 to 25.9% in 2025, an increase of approximately 10.9 percentage points over the decade. Their representation also reached 40% of senior manager roles and 44.9% of other manager roles in 2025.

However, the figures show a clear difference between women’s representation in management and at the highest level of organisational leadership. While women accounted for nearly 45% of other managers, their share of CEO positions remained below 26%.

The report notes that women are considerably more likely to hold a management position than to lead an organisation, indicating that progress at lower management levels has yet to translate into equivalent representation in the most senior roles.

Boardroom representation

The gap is also evident in board leadership. Women held 36% of board seats in 2025, but accounted for only 21.5% of board chairs, according to the report.

The figures point to a difference between gaining representation within leadership structures and reaching the roles with the highest levels of authority. 

Although women’s presence on boards has increased, their share of chair positions remains substantially lower than their overall share of board seats.

Pay gap remains

The report also highlights continuing disparities in remuneration. 

Australia’s national full-time base salary gender pay gap narrowed from 19.5% in 2020-21 to 15.8% in 2024-25. However, the total remuneration gender pay gap remained at 21%.

The findings indicate that improvements in base salaries have not translated into an equivalent reduction in the overall remuneration gap. The report also identifies differences in workforce composition and pay within occupations as factors contributing to the disparity.

In Western Australia, the full-time total remuneration gender pay gap stood at 28.8%, well above the national figure. 

Among professionals, salary differences were estimated to add $7,800 to the overall remuneration gap.

Progression under scrutiny

The findings place career progression and access to senior roles among the issues to be addressed in efforts to improve workplace gender equality. 

The report examines how the distribution of women and men across industries and occupations, alongside progression through management levels, shapes workforce outcomes.

Its analysis suggests that increasing women’s representation across the leadership pipeline remains important, alongside addressing differences in pay and access to roles. 

The gap between women’s share of other management positions and their share of CEO roles illustrates the distance still to be covered.

While women have made gains across management and board positions over the past decade, the report’s 2025 figures show that representation remains uneven at the top of Australian organisations.