Women Empowerment and Opportunity in Outsourcing: Survey Results by Avasant and IAOP

In 2016, the outsourcing industry was valued at almost US$550 billion globally. Recruitment and career growth have been stimulated further by new income streams and entrepreneurship in various high growth emerging markets and sourcing destinations.

Despite the industry’s phenomenal growth, women remain underrepresented in executive roles. Quite like in other industries, the higher you rise, the fewer women you see in leadership positions. In business today, only 5% of CEOs in the Standard and Poor’s 500 company list are women.1 Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg notes that 21% of Fortune 500 CEOs are women and women hold about 14% of executive officer positions, 17% of board seats, and constitute 18% of elected congressional officials.