UK tech scale-ups lag on gender diversity as over a third have no women on their boards

More than a third of the UK’s fastest-growing technology companies do not have women on their boards, according to new research that highlights a significant gap between rhetoric and reality regarding diversity in Britain’s technology sector.

The report by global growth consultancy Think & Grow found that women hold only 18% of board positions across the UK’s leading technology companies, while 36% of these companies have no board members at all.

This comes despite 94% of board members and key decision makers saying they believe a diverse board is essential to success.

The findings reveal a clear disconnect between the industry’s stated commitment to inclusion and its implementation in practice. Data published in Think & Grow’s latest study, Breaking and Reshaping the Next Generation of High-Impact Boards, suggests that diversity is not yet a boardroom priority for many fast-growing technology companies.

In comparison, listed technology companies are doing much better: women now represent 41% of board members across FTSE 350 technology companies, more than double the figure among start-ups. This improvement was partly driven by the Financial Conduct Authority’s diversity and inclusion rules, which require at least 40% female representation on boards.

This contradiction underscores the importance of regulatory frameworks in driving change and the need to expand – unconstrained by such requirements – to proactively incorporate diversity into their governance models.

Underrepresentation extends beyond the boardroom table. Only 12% of the UK’s fastest-growing technology companies are led by a female CEO or founder, and the same proportion are headed by a woman.

While these figures reflect the FTSE 350 technology sector, larger listed companies are significantly more likely to list women in other senior roles such as chief operating officer, chief financial officer or senior independent director. Across the FTSE 350 technology sector, 28% of senior leadership roles are held by women, and 80% of companies have appointed at least one woman to a senior executive role.

The Think & Grow report also links diversity to business results. More than a third (35%) of senior decision makers believe diverse boards improve customer representation, while others cite improved problem solving and better identification of blind spots.

Notably, companies with annual revenues of more than £50m reported 22% female representation on boards, compared to 15% among their smaller peers, suggesting that greater gender balance may be associated with stronger performance and maturity.

A similar pattern is observed among listed companies: companies with revenues of more than £500m reported 42% female board representation, compared to 37% in smaller companies.

Despite the alarming statistics, there are early signs of improvement. Women in startups founded within the past five years represent 25% on average, more than double the representation of older companies. Nearly all board members surveyed (93%) agree that progress has been made on gender diversity in recent years, indicating cultural momentum among the next generation of technology companies.

Jonathan Jeffries, CEO and co-founder of Think & Grow, stressed that diversity is not just a moral imperative but a business advantage: “There is a clear connection between diverse boards and strong company performance – yet many UK technology companies are failing to appoint board members with diverse backgrounds and experience, threatening to inhibit growth.

“Promoting diversity is not just a social responsibility, it is a strategic advantage. Founders who prioritize inclusion from day one build boards that solve problems faster, see around them, and understand a broader range of markets and people.”

Founded more than 16 years ago, Think & Grow has advised some of the world’s most innovative technology companies—including Stripe, Square, Dropbox, Peloton, and Etsy—to help them navigate the challenges of scaling in competitive global markets.