The feminization of French corporate management bodies is currently a sensitive topic. Nothing new about that. Thanks to regulations, companies are embracing it more systematically and committedly, with feminization now being part of the succession planning metrics. At the same time, the intention of réindustrialisation remains present.
Feminization of management bodies and reindustrialization are currently in the news and fuel debates. However, it is necessary that we learn to look at them simultaneously. According to a study conducted in 2020 by France Stratégie (an organization under the Prime Minister), France has lost almost half of its workforce (2.2million jobs) since 1980. Among the major industrialized countries, France has experienced the most significant deindustrialization. Faced with such a situation, a question arises: how can we today simultaneously address the challenges of reindustrialization and the feminization of management bodies?
The question is all the more pertinent in light of the goals set by the Rixain law. As of March 1st, 2026, large French companies (more than 1,000 employees) will be required to have at least 30% women and men in executive positions and at least 30% women and men among their management bodies. This quota will increase to 40% in 2029.
By deindustrializing, we have gradually and significantly reduced the pool of industrial leaders, both male and female. There are too few French industrial companies now to serve as pool for our future industrial leaders. The majority of female leaders we have encountered in recent years for roles such as general management of a business unit or region within industrial companies (at the Executive Committee level or reporting to the Executive Committee) have been either non-French, or French but coming from ‘non-French’ companies.
Reindustrialization and feminization can go hand in hand provided we are willing to train and recruit non-French profiles (or French profiles from non-French companies), whose backgrounds and companies will be less familiar to us. Are we ready? Are we sufficiently aware of this?
The illusion of an ‘English’ company
It's obvious: the commitment to gender diversity first requires the ability to integrate female leaders who do not speak - or barely speak- French. The widespread use of English as a working language initially suggests that this obstacle can be easily overcome. However, recruitment projects where we are asked to recruit a leader, regardless of nationality, "but with a good command of French," are frequent...! English has not yet been adopted by all our companies in their Executive Committee and Board of Director meetings. Moreover, it is not unusual for English to prevail at the top of an organization while the level of English proficiency varies widely in the rest of the company. The integration of a female leader with little or no French proficiency can be compromised because much of the organization's "small talk" escapes them.
Thus, integrating a non-French-speaking female leader may be feasible on paper but very difficult in practice without specific safeguards; conducting Executive Committee and Board of Director meetings in English, along with the member’s willingness to make the switch, seem to us to be the first prerequisites.
"Key roles" and succession plans
Feminization and reindustrialization will go hand in hand if we are able to recruit industrial leaders whose careers, built in other environments, have followed different dynamics. Must we dare to bet on a candidate whose profile does not exactly match the "typical" profile formally defined for a succession plan? Some recruitments will require a compromise between the various sought-after criteria, necessitating thorough support for the selected candidate. Controlled audacity will be one of the rules of the game, as too big a gamble can pose a risk for both the candidate and the company, but the gamble will be necessary.
We must also accept different career paths and challenge the logic of the "key roles" that have historically enabled access to the organization's key positions. Large industrial groups have managed to develop top-level female leaders through increasing responsibilities in sales & marketing, supply chain, finance, and Research & Development. The sales & marketing function is particularly utilized by some American and German industrial companies, as it attracts more young female engineers or business school graduates than other industrial functions. Over time, promoted to general management roles, these high-potential profiles who have taken on market or customer-related responsibilities have been able to gain an excellent understanding of industrial challenges without having climbed the ranks of industrial responsibilities (plant management, industrial management). Are we prepared to entrust the responsibility of a global industrial activity to a leader whose primary expertise is not industrial (related to the optimization of production tools)?
Dare to get off the beaten path
This is the least tangible element of this reflection. It holds a discreet but central place in the feminization of general management positions. Considering female leaders who are not French and issued from non-French companies means confronting companies, industries, organizational models, academic backgrounds, and networks with which we are less familiar. It means accepting a different culture and trusting leaders whose profiles do not match those of the "usual suspects" typically recruited from the well-trodden paths of SBF 120 companies.
Organizational models can be a very concrete expression of this different culture. We know the strong preference some large German and American industrial groups have for highly developed matrix organizational models with multiple reporting lines. We also know the risks associated with these models of overly "diluted" responsibility within the company. Are we ready to recruit a top leader trained in such an environment, even if it means supporting her as she takes on the role? Or, without even wanting to meet her, will we immediately question her "accountability," that is, her ability to assume end-to-end responsibility across the entire value chain? Let us be willing to bet on the potential of a female leader, just as we would for a male leader at the same level of responsibility.
The reindustrialization of France and the feminization of the leadership of French industrial companies can be pursued simultaneously. However, this will only be possible if we accept that reindustrialization and feminization go hand in hand with internationalization. Our ability to modify our benchmarks and demonstrate boldness in succession plans will be crucial. At the same time, we will need to invest more in mechanisms that enable the successful integration of a leader from a different environment (onboarding programs, mentoring, training, etc.). Let's not just see this leader as the one who must adapt to our corporate culture, let's dare to recognize her added value and challenge our corporate cultures to adapt to such leaders. It is under these conditions that feminization and reindustrialization will go hand in hand.
English Translation - Victor de Couessin, Juin 2024, Journal L’Opinion (link)