Women’s Share of Top Private-Company Jobs Falls, Study Shows

Women held a smaller share of senior posts at privately held businesses in the past year as companies’ rebound from the recession outpaced their willingness to overhaul management, Grant Thornton International Ltd. said.

Women accounted for 20 percent of leadership positions at closely held companies, down from 24 percent a year earlier, the London-based consulting firm said today in a summary of a 39-nation study compiled in the four months through February. Thailand had the highest share of female senior management at 45 percent, while India, the United Arab Emirates and Japan had the lowest, at fewer than 10 percent.