Abstract
This paper examines the experience of women on boards during the voluntary target regime in the UK from the lens of the ‘stigma of incompetence’ and explores how they cope with it. Set in the context of listed companies in the UK, with interviews of 27 female directors, the findings of the study report nonchalance on the part of female directors about opportunities made available to them and their positions, even though they acknowledge having been appointed in larger numbers due to the voluntary targets. Female directors in the study point out the target's limitations and maintain that those targets do not compromise merit. The study findings contribute uniquely to the literature on passive coping strategies and the ‘stigma of incompetence’, guide corporate praxis on board appointments, and may inform policy.