US boardroom diversity efforts 'not proceeding fast enough'

More proactive measures are required to drive forward efforts to improve boardroom diversity in the US, according to a report.

Global business research and membership organisation The Conference Board has suggested that any improvements in the number of women on Fortune 500 boards in recent years have been "painfully slow".

It noted that the proportion of female executives has risen from 9.6 per cent in 1995 to only 15.7 per cent in 2010, meaning it would take decades for gender parity to be achieved.

The comments coincide with the organisation's release of a new scenario modeller for global businesses, allowing companies to assess governance and business trends that could encourage or impede diversity efforts in hypothetical situations.

Jonathan Spector, chief executive officer of The Conference Board, said: "We want to empower companies to set bold, attainable goals that will leverage diversity at the highest level to grow their businesses."

The organisation's viewpoint is reinforced by an Alliance for Board Diversity report earlier this year, which showed that Caucasian males became more prevalent in US boardrooms between 2004 and 2010.