Letters - Why few of us reach the top.

I would like to comment on why so few women are finance directors and jobs are for the boys.

My personal view is that many ambitious women (like myself), who are not prepared to give up their career for a family and therefore do not need to work flexible hours etc. are not even becoming qualified, much less being able to apply for the job of finance director.

The reason the career path is not there is that they are perceived as 1) over-ambitious and 2) too confident and therefore are not understood by the mostly men and some women who make these sort of decisions.

Personally I do not understand how someone can be over ambitious, or overly confident. Both comments have been applied to me on more than one occasion recently, and also when younger and investigating which qualification to study for.

If one is discouraged from qualifying and not able to find the right career path because they are too ambitious or too confident then no wonder few women are FDs.

CIMA student, name and address supplied.