Research of 3,600 staff across 18 countries by Accenture, found 56% of men compared to 48% of women had asked for pay rises and 42% of men compared to 37% of women had asked for a promotion.
But the survey shows 46% of women believe they are not sufficiently challenged in their roles but 59% think their career is either successful or very successful.
Almost half (47%) of women in the UK feel they are stretching themselves outside of their comfort zone more than usual compared to only 28% of men and 45% of women regularly ask their superiors for new challenges. Women also come across as more pro-active than their male counterparts with 52% working on developing new skills compared to 37% of men.
And a third of women in the UK feel they have to work harder to differentiate themselves from colleagues, while only 22% of male employees feel this way.
Commenting on the findings, Adrian Lajtha, Accenture's chief leadership officer, said: "Organisations that want to develop and advance all they people will regularly examine the objectives and outcomes of their programmes, including mentoring efforts, Forward thinking organisations know promoting careers - particularly for women - is not just about opening doors but offering employees challenges and enhancing their abilities so they can perform at their highest level."
And Armelle Carminati, managing director of human capital and diversity at Accenture, added: "The untapped potential [of women] offers great promise for organisations, which should engage their employees and build confident individuals with deep skills and capabilities. Through an agile and innovative approach to training and development, organisations can help ensure their success, particularly in this constrained economic environment."
