The Glass Ceiling Persists in Korean Startups... Startup Leaders Emphasize "Execution and Connecting Abilities"

Proportion of Women on Startup Boards at 6.9%
Only 30% of Startups Have at Least One Female Director
Gender Diversity Becomes Critical in Organizations in the AI Era
Problem-Solving Skills Key to Becoming Indispensable Talent

It has been found that only 3 out of every 10 startups have at least one female board director, with the overall proportion of female board members standing at just 6.9%. Although the value of "diversity" has become increasingly important in the era of AI, women still remain in a vulnerable position when it comes to leadership roles.

On March 12, Startup Alliance held the "2026 Women in Startup Conference" at Dreamplus Gangnam in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Senior Specialist Jiyoung Lee gave a presentation on "Startup Boards and Gender Diversity."

On the 12th, Lee Ji-young, Senior Specialist, presented on the startup board of directors and gender diversity at the "2026 Women in Startup Conference" held by Startup Alliance at Dreamplus Gangnam in Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Jinju Han

Proportion of Women on Startup Boards at 6.9%

According to Startup Alliance's analysis of data from 1,122 registered board members at 250 major domestic startups, the average proportion of female directors was only 6.9%. Of these startups, 70.8% (177 companies) operated boards composed exclusively of men, while only 29.2% (73 companies) had at least one female board member.

By board position, the proportion of women as inside directors was the highest at 10.1%, followed by outside directors at 7.9%, and other non-executive directors at 6.8%. Only 3.2% of CEOs were women. Furthermore, 93.7% of female directors participated on the board of only a single company.

Senior Specialist Jiyoung Lee stated, "It is difficult to explain the gender imbalance on boards solely by a lack of talent pool. The proportion of women among outside directors and other non-executive directors, who are typically external experts, was even lower. While male directors serve concurrently on up to 10 boards, female directors are limited to a maximum of 4."

Board Composition by Position in the "Startup Board of Directors and Gender Diversity" Report. Startup Alliance

Differentiation in company performance was also observed depending on whether the proportion of female directors exceeded 20%. The average cumulative investment attracted by companies with at least 20% female directors was approximately 138 billion won, which was 26.2 billion won higher than companies with less than 20% female directors (111.8 billion won). In technology-intensive industries such as bio, the sales growth rate for companies with at least 20% female directors was 145.3%, more than double that of companies with less than 20% female directors (70.0%).

There are three reasons why gender diversity can drive performance: it secures "cognitive diversity" to prevent groupthink through different perspectives; it serves as a bridge to new external resources that male-dominated networks may not reach; and the presence of female board members instills trust by signaling a rational governance structure.

Senior Specialist Lee explained, "Gender diversity is not simply an issue of representation, but a governance issue for better decision-making. As uncertainty increases, we need more perspectives and viewpoints, and we must continue to bring in professional talent to support this."

Startup Alliance CEO Lee Gidae commented, "Even in the startup ecosystem, which is oriented toward innovation, board composition remains strongly male-dominated. Gender diversity on boards needs to be recognized not just as an ESG metric but as a governance factor that enhances strategic decision-making and long-term competitiveness of companies."

"AI: Men Start Faster, but Women Use It More Consistently"

Seo Jeonghun, CEO of Kakao Style, is giving a lecture on the theme of 'Organizational Cases Turning Diversity into Performance' at the Women in Startup Conference held on the 12th. Photo by Jinju Han

Seo Jung-hoon, CEO of Kakao Style, which operates "Zigzag," gave a lecture on "Organizational Cases That Turn Diversity into Performance." He emphasized that women need "execution capability" in the AI era. He assessed that companies must recognize AI not just as a tool, but as an essential organizational competency. As differences in AI utilization arise from the number of attempts, he advised that organizations with strong execution capability can adapt faster.

Seo explained, "The pace of technological change is so rapid that a system of constant re-education determines an organization’s survival. Rather than relying on a single model like a 'unicorn,' organizations now need to evolve like a 'chameleon' to fit their environment. Organizations should use AI to identify problems and accomplish more work, at a faster speed and with higher quality."

He stressed the importance of first experimenting with and using AI, then iterating and correcting results. Seo said, "Key skills for leveraging AI include language proficiency, contextual understanding, and empathetic communication—all of which are strengths for women. In fact, the proportion of women among top AI users is rising rapidly. AI proficiency is directly tied to frequency of use. On average, men tend to act first, while women tend to prepare before acting, but it is women who use AI more consistently."

Seo added, "AI does not replace human work; rather, people who use AI will replace those who do not. We need to become 'Renaissance people' who cross multiple fields, not just experts in one area."

Jae-hwa Choi, CEO of Bungaejangter: "Need 'System Understanding' and 'Connecting Ability'"

Choi Jaehwa, CEO of Bungaejangter, is giving a lecture on the theme "The Attitude of Growth Beyond Boundaries" at the Women in Startup Conference held on the 12th. Photo by Hanjinju

Jae-hwa Choi, CEO of Bungaejangter, in a lecture on the theme of "The Attitude of Growth Beyond Boundaries," emphasized that for women to attain leadership, it is important to understand power and organizational structures and to develop the ability to connect for problem-solving.

Choi stated, "The difficulty women face in approaching leadership may stem from organizational and power structures, networks, and access to opportunities. We must acknowledge these structural vulnerabilities and strive to overcome them. It is important to build confidence and system understanding, and to pay attention to how structural issues like diplomacy are interconnected."

Choi also noted, "Perfect information is nowhere to be found. We must become accustomed to making decisions amid uncertainty. After becoming CEO, the scale of problems I faced shifted from the team to the company, and from the company to the industry. The essence, however, remains 'problem-solving.' In the AI era, defining problems is more important than executing solutions, framing problems is more important than simply holding information, and connecting ability is more important than deep expertise."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.