Key Takeaways:

Companies like H&M and Gap are leading in gender equality with diverse representation in leadership roles.
However, brands like Samsung and Cartier lag behind with minimal female representation at the executive level.
Gender equality efforts differ among popular consumer brands, showcasing varying levels of female leadership in different industries.

In their latest diversity report, Apple proudly announced an increased rate of hiring more women and minorities. The tech leader also reported that women and minorities are being paid the equivalent of white male employees, addressing one of the most prevalent issues of inequality: the pay gap.

But although Apple is making efforts to diverse its hiring, 68 percent of males still make up the Apple workplace compared to a small 32 percent of women. In today's workforce, these numbers aren't surprising. According to an Ernst & Young report from 2015, there are more CEOs of large companies in the United States named David than CEOs who are women.

The discrepancy is just one reason journalist Iris Kuo and marketer Camille Ricketts had the idea for LedBetter, a research group focused on spotlighting the gender makeup of leadership at the world's most popular brands. LedBetter launched earlier this year with the goal of raising awareness—to both women and men—about the lack of gender equality in leadership.

Based on LedBetter's database, here's a list of five consumer brands leading the way for gender equality, and five companies falling behind.

Leading the Way in Gender Equality

1. H&M

Industry: Fashion Retail

Headquarters: Stockholm, Sweden

Size: 148,000

Female Representation on the Board: Female (58 percent); Male (42 percent)

Female Representation in Executive Leadership: Female (41 percent); Male (69 percent)

2. Alexander McQueen

Industry: Designer Fashion

Headquarters: London, United Kingdom

Size: 200

Female Representation on the Board: Female (64 percent); Male (36 percent)

Female Representation in Executive Leadership: Female (36 percent); Male (64 percent)

3. Gap

Industry: Fashion Retail

Headquarters: San Francisco, California

Size: 137,000

Female Representation on the Board: Female (36 percent); Male (64 percent)

Female Representation in Executive Leadership: Female (57 percent); Male (43 percent)

4. Etsy

Industry: Specialty Retail

Headquarters: Brooklyn, New York

Size: 600

Female Representation on the Board: Female (50 percent); Male (50 percent)

Female Representation in Executive Leadership: Female (43 percent); Male (47 percent)

5. Best Buy

Industry: Electronics Retail

Headquarters: Richfield, Minnesota

Size: 125,000

Female Representation on the Board: Female (36 percent); Male (64 percent)

Female Representation in Executive Leadership: Female (55 percent); Male (45 percent)

Falling Behind on Gender Equality

1. Samsung

Industry: Electronics

Headquarters: Suwon, South Korea

Size: 489,000

Female Representation on the Board: Female (0 percent); Male (100 percent)