Visibility of female directors in the local licensed commercial banks in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to expose female occupational composition, trends in designation
portfolio and female visibility in the Board of Directors and Corporate Management in local licensed commercials banks in Sri Lanka. It is directed towards understanding common career advancement influences for female managers so as to increase their visibility in reaching executive positions, despite the debates about equal representation by gender. The paper identifies that most local licensed commercial banks in Sri Lanka have still not adopted dynamic
corporate practices as they claim. Therefore, the standards of human resources functions in these banks are in question. Females at the top level in local licensed commercial banks are under-represented. Female visibility at board level in 2018 was reported as 13%, while visibility at corporate management level remained at 16%.
Keywords: Gender diversity, licensed commercial banks, glass-ceiling effect, Sri Lanka