’It’s a challenge we need to be tackling right now’

Positive developments in the representation of female scientists across various stages of scientific careers. Positive trend: this chart shows how the proportion of women in management positions in the Max Planck Society has been changing. MPG The Max Planck Society's Voluntary Commitment (SVP) aims to achieve two primary objectives: increasing the representation of female scientists in leadership positions by one percentage point annually until 2030 and ensuring that each Max Planck Institute has at least one female director. A review of the 2023 data indicates progress towards these goals: the MPG successfully elevated the proportion of female scientists in newly appointed leadership roles (W3/female directors and W2/independent research group leaders). With appointment rates reaching 54.5% and 66% respectively, these figures notably surpass the MPG's target benchmarks. "It's incredibly gratifying to see our remarkable success in appointing female scientists to leadership roles in 2023," says Asifa Akthar from the Vice Presidents Circle. Since the summer of 2023, this has been composed of three female and one male scientist.