Female Leadership in the Automotive Industry Remains Low

While women occupy decision-making positions in the Mexican automotive industry, data depicts that their participation in the sector is still low. Incentives are needed to attract women to the industry and to promote their permanence in it.

In Mexico, women are part of the entire automotive supply chain from manufacturing to the C-suite, and some are even leading Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM). “Representation of women is gradually growing in the private sector and we have more and more examples of CEOs driving automotive companies,” said Lizette Gracida, Director of Government Affairs, Toyota Motor México, as reported by MBN.  Renault's Magdalena López, BMW Group's Maru Escobedo and Genesis Motor's Claudia Márquez are just some of the women playing an active role in shaping the industry.

Women are also driving the industry’s innovation. Zacua, for example, is the first Mexican brand of electric vehicles assembled and designed mostly by women. In 2018, the company started production in Mexico and released its first two models manufactured at Zacua’s facilities in Puebla, as reported by MBN.  

Although women are being more visible in the industry, data shows that there are still numerous obstacles barring their way. According to Deloitte’s Women at the Wheel 2020, 45 percent of the surveyed women would move to a different industry due to the limited opportunities, diversity and poor work-life balance in the automotive sector. “Women need specific conditions to exploit their talent,“ said Mayra González, President and General Director, Nissan.

The generation of incentives to create quality jobs and the enhancement of labor conditions are the biggest challenges for Mexican companies, reads a report from the Research Center on Public Policy (IMCO). Only Mexico City and Baja California offer good incentives for women to stay in their jobs.

According to IMCO, only three in 10 women in Mexico chose majors in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. Such a scenario decreases participation of women in the industry because only 13 percent of the working women are part of the manufacturer industry. Women also represent 27.7 percent of the workers in retail trade of motor vehicles, spare parts, combustibles and lubricants, according to the 2019 Economic Census “Men and Women on economic activities” of the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (INEGI).

In Mexico 30 percent of the concessionaire’s jobs are occupied by women, said Marta Blázquez, Vicepresident, Faconauto. If the data is reduced only to directive positions, the percentage goes down by 20 percent. “My experience demonstrates to me that concessionaries which have evolved the most in this topic tend to be those who have better results,” said Blázquez.

While measures and quotas are needed to narrow the gender gap, in the near future “all of us must be selected for our talent, skills and abilities in all positions of a company, not for being a man or a woman,” said Alexandra Laboda, Director, Maersk, as reported by MBN.