Exposed: Glass ceiling at India Inc.

Here's proof that India Inc.'s worst kept dirty secret is actually based on facts. A report by HR firm Redileon points out that the glass ceiling does, indeed, exist for women executives. Sample this: less than 1 per cent of CEOs in India are women; and, of a total of about 9,000 board members in the 1,500 listed companies surveyed, only 465 were women. The survey also shows that women draw 40 per cent less salary than men and that 90 per cent of them feel that they are underpaid. "There are perceptions that women are not strong and that they don't want to build a consensus," says Vikram Bhardwaj, MD, Redileon.