Research background and purpose:
Gender diversity in corporate leadership is an increasingly discussed topic in the field of corporate governance and economic performance. The European Union has adopted several measures aimed at increasing the representation of women in leadership positions, including Directive (EU) 2022/2381, which sets targets for a more balanced gender representation on the boards of listed companies. This study focuses on examining the development of gender diversity in corporate leadership in the Visegrad Group (V4) countries and its impact on companies' financial performance. The objective is to verify whether listed companies in these countries are aligning with the regulatory requirements and to assess the effect of higher female representation on financial results.

Design/methodology/approach:
The research employs a quantitative approach based on data analysis from the Eurostat and Orbis databases. In the first part of the study, the development of the share of women in leadership positions in V4 companies over time is tracked and their progress toward the 33% threshold set by European legislation is examined. Subsequently, the relationship between gender diversity in leadership and financial indicators is analyzed using statistical tests and regression analysis.

Findings:
The financial indicators analysis suggests that gender diversity has a statistically significant positive relationship with solvency and profitability indicators, however, a direct impact on traditional financial metrics such as ROA and ROE were not confirmed. This study contributes to a deeper understanding of the impact of gender diversity on the management and performance of listed companies in the V4 countries and provides an up-to-date perspective on its development in connection with the implementation of the EU directive.

Value added and limitations:
Among the study's limitations are differences in the number of listed companies across countries and incomplete data. Companies lacking key financial indicators or information on leadership composition were excluded from the analysis. Additionally, external economic factors that are not fully accounted for in the analysis may influence the results.