Shemara Wikramanayake, is the highest paid female CEO in Australia, this was according to the latest CEO pay survey of the Australian Financial Review. With an estimated earning of over AUD 18 million (Sh1.2 billion) per year; bout Sh100 million a-month.
Wikramanayake, now 57 years old, is the Managing Director/CEO of Macquarie Group Ltd after replacing Nicholas Moore on 1 December 2018. Also marking the bank’s first female CEO.
Not only is she the banks first CEO, but she is also the only woman CEO among Australia’s 20 biggest companies by market value. She steered the company to an 11 per cent rise in half-year profit to 1.46 billion AUD (Sh100.7 Billion).
The list comprises of only four women CEOs out of 50 highest-paid CEOs in Australia. The other three women in the list include Coca-Cola Amatil CEO Alison Watkins, Mirvac Group CEO Susan Lloyd-Hurwitz, and Fortescue Metals CEO Elizabeth Gaines.
Although companies benefit more from having female CEOs in executive positions, the number of female CEOs is still at an average of 5 per cent globally. Women tend to be in finance or legal positions that research shows are less likely to lead to the CEO office.
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Women face various challenges in comparison to men making it very difficult to climb up the career ladder, companies led by both women and men take similar levels of risk and earn similar profits, however those with female CEOs will generate smaller investor returns. This is because investors value companies with men in charge more than those with women in charge.
Women are discriminated based on gender and qualities of effective leadership such as aggression, ambition and dominance which are stereotypical associated with men.
Women in leadership who exhibit traits of aggression are considered too masculine and are subject to mockery for being too aggressive while men who are aggressive are considered natural leaders.
Favouritism is another factor that prevents women from getting leadership roles, most company boards are comprised of men and as a result they tend to evaluate men who are similar to them more favorably. This bias hurts women because these boards are responsible for hiring and paying CEOs at large.
Additionally, women experience different growth processes than men. Growing up, males receive more encouragement to lead and take risks than females. They are encouraged to lead and take risks than females and as a result, men are more likely to have more opportunities to develop skills that may eventually ascend and succeed in CEO positions.
