On Oct. 17, the Council of the EU approved a law to improve gender balance on corporate boards. The development comes 10 years after the European Commission first proposed the rules, and occurs at a time when many companies face pressure to increase diversity on their boards and management teams. In this episode of the ESG Insider podcast, we look at what the new law means for companies, investors and women.

"If we want to be sure that women have equal rights, but also if we want to ensure that companies have the best potential leads in their executive committee and their boards, you really need to tap into all talent," Hedwige Nuyens, Chair of European Women on Boards, a lobby group, tells us.

In the episode we also talk to Miriam Marra, Associate Professor of Finance at Henley Business School in the U.K., who explains the role of gender quotas in improving gender balance on corporate boards. And we speak to Martin Winner, Professor for Business Law at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, who tells us how the new law could encourage EU countries lagging on board diversity to take action.

We'd love to hear from you. To give us feedback on this episode or share ideas for future episodes, please contact hosts Lindsey Hall (lindsey.hall@spglobal.com) and Esther Whieldon (esther.whieldon@spglobal.com).

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How new EU law aims to improve gender diversity on corporate boards 24:17 Share

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How new EU law aims to improve gender diversity on corporate boards