Building a Pipeline to Women’s Leadership
Female students have now surpassed their male peers in high school and college graduation rates. Yet across sectors, women’s representation in professional leadership roles has stalled at 15-17%. If women make up the majority of students earning Bachelor’s, Master’s and Doctoral degrees why are there so few women in top management positions? Further aggravating women’s uneven progress, the disparity is often most pronounced in the most lucrative fields, especially STEM, economics, and finance.
These on-going disparities are of intense interest to the NCRW network. The Council’s latest report, Women in Fund Management, demonstrates the important talents women bring to risk-taking and decision-making. The Council also delved into previous research on where women stand in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) in its seminal Balancing the Equation report.
The National Council for Research on Women gathered a group of experts to explore pipeline issues in greater depth at its Afternoon Program, Building a Pipeline to Women’s Leadership, Monday, February 28, 2011. The panel consisted of visionary leaders from higher education and the corporate arena. They examined the uneven progress women are making in their academic and professional trajectories. Speakers included: Ed Gilligan, Vice Chairman of American Express; Annalisa Jenkins, SVP of Global Health at Bristol-Myers Squibb; Sara Manzano-Díaz, Director, Women's Bureau, United States Department of Labor; Ruth J. Simmons, President of Brown University; Debora Spar [moderator], President, Barnard College; and Susan Sturm, George M. Jaffin Professor of Law and Social Responsibility, Columbia University Law School.
Hosted by American Express and sponsored by Bristol-Myers Squibb, the panel was opened by welcoming remarks from Council President Linda Basch, and Chief Diversity Officer of American Express, Kerrie Peraino.
For background, listen to Dr. Ruth Simmons on the Tavis Smiley Show discussing changing leadership for women and the role of Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Videos of the program are posted below.
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What We Do
NCRW is a network of leading university and community based research, policy, and advocacy centers with a growing global reach dedicated to advancing rights and opportunities for women and girls. We also have a Corporate Circle comprised of senior diversity professionals from leading U.S. and global member companies and a Presidents Circle of college and university leaders who share our commitment. NCRW harnesses the collective power of its network to provide knowledge, analysis, and thought leadership on issues ranging from reducing women’s poverty to building a critical mass of women’s leadership across sectors.
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