Germany’s Gender Gap on Boards Widens Despite EU Pressure—Cybersecurity Sector Hits Rock Bottom

Female executive board share falls in DAX, MDax, and Mittelstand; EU mandates 40% non-executive by June 2026 while Germany lags at 29.1% average.

The share of women in German executive boards has stopped growing, with the steepest drop registered among midsize companies that form the backbone of the country’s economy. New data for 2026 show the first reversal in years.

On DAX-listed corporations, female representation slipped to 25.5 percent, a decline of 0.2 percentage points. The MDax fared worse: its figure fell 0.4 points to 19.5 percent. More alarming is the Mittelstand—Germany’s celebrated mid?cap sector—where women now hold 23.5 percent of leadership roles, the lowest level in six years. Supervisory boards in that segment still have 34 percent women, but only one in ten such bodies has a female chair.

By comparison, Germany’s federal administration stands at 47 percent. Internationally, the country ranks in the lower third of the European Union with an average of 29.1 percent.

The European Union is ratcheting up the pressure. By June 2026, companies must ensure that either 40 percent of non?executive board members or 33 percent of all director positions are held by women. Seven member states have yet to transpose the directive into national law. France has already exceeded the target at 45 percent, while Italy and the Netherlands are also on track. Germany has ground to make up.

Since 7 June 2026, the EU’s Pay Transparency Directive has also taken effect. It aims to close existing wage gaps. Experts point to economic uncertainty and a saturation effect following Germany’s Führungspositionen?Gesetz II (Leadership Positions Act II) as reasons for the stagnation.

Nowhere is the under?representation more stark than in cybersecurity. Women account for just 14.6 percent of the sector’s workforce—the lowest rate in Europe. Globally, the figure ranges between 22 and 25 percent, against roughly four million unfilled positions.

Structural obstacles around reconciling family and career remain chronic. In the media industry, the case of Frankfurter Rundschau editor?in?chief Sabrina Hoffmann illustrates the difficulty: she resigned after six months. As a single mother, she lacked childcare support and acceptance of flexible working hours within the newsroom.

The education sector reveals a similar pattern. In the 2024/2025 school year, part?time work among teachers hit 44 percent, the highest since 2009. Among female teachers the rate reached 51 percent, while male colleagues stayed at 23 percent.

Neighbouring countries face their own challenges. In Switzerland, the Schillingreport shows that 78 percent of managers in listed companies are men. The few women in top positions often accumulate multiple board mandates—Monique Bourquin, for instance, sits on the boards of Swisscom, Lindt & Sprüngli and Rivella.

Austria is embroiled in a budget dispute. In early July 2026, the opposition criticised planned spending cuts that it said would disproportionately burden women. Austria’s gender pension gap stands at 39 percent, above the EU average, partly because 30 percent of women work part?time.

Reforms in the pipeline. The federal government is preparing several measures:

• Pension reform 2026: The pension level is to be kept at a minimum of 48 percent until 2040. Mothers’ pensions remain a focal point, as women often accrue lower claims due to part?time work and pay gaps.
• Parental allowance reform: From October 2027, each parent will have three reserved months, and six months can be freely distributed. The maximum claim period drops from 14 to 12 months, while the cap stays at 1,900 euros.
• Promotion: Experts recommend job?sharing programmes and greater involvement of men in unpaid care work. Only that, they argue, can sustainably improve women’s career trajectories.