family companies such as Miele, Deichmann, Haniel and co. are considered to be icons of the German economy. The tradition-rich companies have adapted successfully to changes, however, in a point, many are lagging behind.

Frankfurt/Main (dpa) - rich in Tradition and frauenarm: managers of a company to create it in the large family of rare in the tope days than in listed companies.

According to a study by the non-profit Allbright Foundation, the proportion of managers were women in the management of the 100 top-selling family firms at the beginning of March at 6.9 percent. In the case of the 160 companies in the stock exchange indices Dax, MDax and SDax there were a total of 10 percent in the 30 trading heavyweights in the Dax 15 percent.

"a family company in the second, fourth or sixth Generation of Adaptation, they survived for decades because they have always detected in time the signs of the time and used", said the managing Director of the Allbright Foundation, Wiebke Ankersen and Christian Berg. "The proportion of women in company management but they have still a "Blind Spot"."

Tradition is a family business, a very strong value, "currently, he threatens to suffocate the renewal," said Ankersen more. "There is the risk that the company will miss the development of its management structure, with consequences for their future ability."

Less than one-third (29 percent) of the large family businesses has a woman in management. Overall, worked according to the study, at 1. March 406 men and 30 women in the tope days. The highest proportion of women is 10.3 percent in the 20 corporations that are also listed on the stock exchange. They include BMW, Continental, Henkel, Merck, and Volkswagen count. Companies that are 100 percent family-owned, cut off, therefore, with a share of 4.8 per cent, significantly worse.

"These companies are not so strong in the light of the Public. Transparency helps, because it is increasingly expected that companies ensure diversity and equal opportunities, as well as, for example, for sustainability," said Ankersen.

Better, it looks at the Supervisory or management boards in total. The proportion of women in Supervisory bodies of large family firms is 24.5 percent.

In the owner's family are powerful positions such as the chairmanship of the management Board or the Supervisory Board, according to the study, mainly men entrusted to. In only two of the biggest family-owned companies, female members hold the information, according to the Chairman of the Board: Anna Maria Braun medical company B. Braun Melsungen and Nicola Leibinger-Kammüller at the machine manufacturer Trumpf.

the Supervisory Board, the heads of there was in early March, three women from the family: Cathrina Claas-Mühlhäuser at the agricultural machinery manufacturer Claas, Simone Bagel-Trah at Henkel, and Bettina Würth at the Würth group. As a non-family Manager Doreen Nowotne, since may, the Supervisory body of the company with a long tradition Haniel.

"About your Position of power in the family could bring to your company a fast and pragmatic as role models to the top - you just have to recognize the strategic advantages," argued Ankersen and mountain.

The new appointments in the past year - between March 2019 and March 2020 - were reported to be female and more international. Accordingly, 22 percent of the Recruitments accounted for in the management of family businesses to managers, 26 percent came from abroad. "The Figures show that the first family for a change in thinking of companies to start," said Ankersen.

has also Helped, according to their evaluation, that the statutory quota for women in Supervisory has shown councils, "that there are enough qualified women.

would you find the same for the Board of Directors, or the management of the company." Basically, the discussion should be guided but primarily about "why more diversity is in the management bodies in the interest of the companies: they lead to better and more profitable decisions".

Since the beginning of 2016 have listed the 100 largest publicly and fully subject to codetermination company in Germany released items at the end of the Supervisory Board with women neubesetzen, up to at least a share of women of 30 percent is reached.

According to a report by the Federal government, the percentage of women in the Supervisory councils of these companies this year, to 35.2 percent. This is an increase of 10 percentage points since the inception of the quota, according to the Federal Ministry for family Affairs. In the case of other companies the share of women was "just lean" 19.9 percent. Strong managers are represented in boards of Directors. 80 percent of companies have no woman in the management Committee.

A legal quota for members of the management Board are not yet available. The SPD makes in the case of this topic, however, pressure. In the Union there is resistance to it. The draft law, according to members of the management Board of large stock exchange to be listed companies with more than 2000 employees in the future, with at least one woman busy, if you have more than three members. This is true, if new appointments are pending.

Minister for the family, Franziska Giffey (SPD) said she was calling in now. "With voluntary participation, we cannot simply continue without political pressure, nothing moves. Even more important is that we begin to tackle the Reform of the law for more women in leadership positions."

The German-Swedish Allbright Foundation is an advocate for more women and diversity in leadership positions in the economy.