The Hidden Cost of Hiring Diversely: On Professional Executive Recruitment for Gender Equality

This article offers rare insight into the Danish executive recruitment industry and its struggles to hire women into C-suite and board-level positions of their corporate clients. Even though both Danish and EU legislators are pushing for more diversity among corporate leaders, progress has been slow. We investigate why that is the case using interviews and observational material, interrogating executive recruitment firms, their clients, as well as candidates that have been placed. Findings indicate that there is hidden cost, both economically and socially, that renders hiring women and other diverse leaders still today an expensive choice.