Female representation on the Irish Stock Exchange (ISEQ) has increased from 8% to 14% since 2013, however women only make up 61 out of a total of 423 board seats, according to figures from executive search firm Accreate published in the Irish Independent.

The data from Accreate showed that six companies, or 11.5% have three or more women on the board. Under EU rules, by 2020 the boards of all stock exchange-listed companies must have at least 40% representation for each gender among their non-executive directors. Furthermore, while 62% of ISEQ companies have one or more women on the board, women make up 14% of the total seats on Irish boards.

Of the three female chief executives managing Irish-listed companies, one is Anne Heraty of staffing firm, CPL Recruitment.

"The figures clearly show that progress on improving gender balance on boards is painfully slow in Ireland. We remain an outlier from the progress being made among other European countries," Accreate partner Caroline Baldwin said. "As things stand, Irish boards are missing out on the proven benefits of having more balanced boards. The overwhelming finding of research from around the globe is that boards with gender balance perform better and produce better results. This includes key business indicators like return on equity, capital investment and sales.

"There is a good case for the Government to increase pressure on these boards through measures like publishing a list of companies that are meeting and those that are missing these targets," Baldwin said.