A third of female managers say their gender has hindered career progression

Almost three-quarters of women believe there are still barriers for women looking to be appointed to senior management and board-level positions in the UK, according to research by the Institute of Leadership & Management. In contrast, just 38 percent of men believe there is a glass ceiling.

Nearly 3,000 managers were surveyed for the report, Ambition and Gender at Work, which reveals that 36 percent of women feel their gender has hindered their career progression. This figure rises to almost half among those women over the age of 45.

With Lord Davies’ review on gender equality in Britain’s boardrooms due this week, the research asked whether quotas hold the answer to increasing the number of women in senior roles. While just under half of women support the idea of quotas, only 24 percent of men do.

However, a majority of female managers are in favour of a more subtle approach to gender equality in the boardroom and senior management. Almost two-thirds agreed that ‘positive action’ should be taken to increase the number of women in senior positions, compared with 42 percent of men.

Financial Director’s 2010 salary survey revealed that female finance directors are now earning 68 percent of the average remuneration of their male counterparts.

Read our report into the gender pay gap here

Read the survey in full here