Just over a third ( 36%) of executive roles across 133 companies analysed are occupied by women, the study found.

Of 112 companies in the study that have a chief executive role, only 14 are held by women ( 13%). Meanwhile 19% of chief financial officers are women, and women make up a quarter ( 26%) of company presidents. Of 68 companies with a chief technology officer or chief information officer role, only three of them are female ( 4%).

Human resources is the only executive function where women outnumber men (holding 89% of executive positions), while marketing almost achieves parity ( 48%).

J.D. Deitch, chief revenue officer at P2Sample, and a data collection team from the company examined the presence of women in executive roles in market research companies for the study, compiled based on GreenBook’s Top 150 Global Companies in Market Research.

Deitch said: "We have a long way to go toward equal representation for women in leadership roles, something that I believe is vital for the future success in our industry."

Data collection took place from 15th April to 10th May 2019.