LONDON, March 20 (Reuters) - BHP's surprise appointment of Americas head Brandon Craig as chief executive this week has revived concerns in the mining sector over talent retention and the lack of leadership diversity, as senior female contenders were overlooked.

Craig will succeed Mike Henry after a tenure that has included senior operational and commercial positions across BHP's global portfolio.

Traditional stepping stones to the CEO role, however, include the positions held by Australia president Geraldine Slattery and CFO Vandita Pant, who sources had said were the leading contenders. Neither immediately responded to a Reuters request for comment.

Craig's appointment highlights a familiar tension in mining: workforce gender balance has improved, but not at the highest levels, raising questions about the retention of senior female talent.

GLASS CEILING IS HARD TO BREAK

While framed as the outcome of competitive succession planning, passing over female executives risks deterring talent, investors and recruiters said.

"There is a problem for women trying to break the glass ceiling in the mining industry," said a recruiter who asked not to be named to protect client relationships.

"Intentions are good, but often they (companies' leaders) opt for someone who looks like them, comes from a similar background, someone they think they will be comfortable with," the recruiter said.

Chairman Ross McEwan said the potential departure of unsuccessful candidates is a natural consequence of strong succession planning, rather than a reflection of shortcomings in the company's approach to diversity.      

"It's not surprising that when somebody out of a group of 10 gets it and some of the others don't, you will lose a bit of talent out of the organisation because you've built that expectation," he told reporters in a call after the announcement, addressing questions about retention, especially among female leaders.

MINING LAGS OTHER SECTORS

Gender representation at the top of major mining companies has lagged behind other sectors, even as many have improved diversity across their broader workforce.      

S&P Global Commodity Insights' data showed women filled 12.1% of the highest-ranking executive positions across more than 2,000 publicly listed miners globally by April 2023.

BHP said women make up 43% of its global workforce including representation at board level, having pledged in 2016 to have 40% female staff by 2025 compared with the industry average of 25%-27%.      

Across the sector, progress remains uneven.

At Rio Tinto, several senior female executives have left following Simon Trott's appointment as CEO in August. Only two women will remain in its top leadership team after chief legal officer Isabelle Deschamps exits mid-year. Women made up 32.5% of senior leadership in 2025, according to its annual report.

Such departures risk eroding diversity gains if companies fail to retain senior female talent, investors said.       

Glencore's total female representation was 19% in 2025, according to its annual report, with 28% in leadership roles.

Mining has struggled to elevate women compared to the energy sector, for example, where Meg O'Neill has been appointed to lead BP from April. O'Neill's previous company, Australia's Woodside Energy, this week appointed Liz Westcott as her replacement.

In contrast, both Rio Tinto and BHP have opted for company lifers, with decades of operationally focused mining expertise in the ranks, said Yhana Lanwin, CEO of Perth-based management consultancy Sans Prejudice Solutions. 

She added that women passed over for CEO roles often move into board positions at mid-tier miners, while male counterparts are more likely to secure CEO roles at smaller companies before later joining major boards.

Among the handful of women at the very top, Kathleen Quirk became the highest-ranking woman in the history of mining when in 2024 she was named CEO of Freeport-McMoRan, the world's largest publicly traded copper producer.

At the time, she told Reuters that she hoped her ascension would inspire other women.      

"There are women that are very, very capable and can be very successful in our industry," Quirk said. "We're seeing more and more women join our industry and build their careers over time and lead."

The rewards are significant. Quirk received $13.3 million in pay for 2024, exceeding Henry's $8.5 million for the financial year to June 2025, but remaining significantly below her predecessor Richard C. Adkerson's total compensation of $24 million in 2023.