Revealed: Best CEOs for gender equality

Meet the year's top gender equality advocates at work

BY Rachel Ranosa 19 Jul. 2021

Career experts at Comparably.com are back with their list of the best CEOs renowned for supporting women in the workplace. All 50 winners from large companies (with 500+ workers) belong in the top five per cent of all CEOs who were rated by female employees in the past 12 months, the report said.

The year’s top CEO, recognised for championing women’s career advancement, is Shantanu Narayen of software group Adobe, who received a score of 94 out of 100. “Female Adobe employees rated the company an A+ for Gender on Comparably, with 96% of them describing the company as a positive place to work,” Comparably found.

As women see it

Female staff, particularly those involved in operations, approved of Adobe’s workplace culture, giving the company a grade of 91 out of 100. “Women at Adobe have rated Perks & Benefits, CEO Rating, and Happiness as the highest categories they have scored,” analysts said.

Apart from enjoying a great culture, however, nearly nine in 10 female employees (87%) also said they are paid fairly at the software firm. A similar percentage (86%) speaks positively of their employer to people they know. This trend gives Adobe an overall eNPS score of 82.

Nine in 10 women (89%) believe the company supports LGBTQIA+ staff, while almost all female respondents (96%) said their employer fosters a positive work environment. “[The] leadership cares about its people and their families,” one employee told Comparably. Meanwhile, another employee shared how managers are “caring, genuine, and focused on giving back, [and giving] opportunities for women [to ascend] in leadership positions”.