Leadership Pipelines

Building a Pipeline to Women's Leadership

Submitted by vivhdem on Wed, 01/18/2012 - 12:53pm

NCRW held an expert panel on February 28, 2011 at American Express with senior leaders from business, government, and academia to explore the case for, barriers to, and action steps needed to expand the number of women in leadership positions. While many overt barriers to women’s advancement have been largely dismantled, and the pipeline to leadership is filled with highly qualified women, the embedded prejudices in our institutions and culture as well as the expectations women have for their professional and personal lives, especially younger women, still pose challenges.

Attachment:

Action Brief -Building a Pipeline REV jan 2012.pdf

Corporate Boards: Shifting From Aging Men To New Generation Of Women?

Teaser:

Sylvia Ann Hewlett of the Center for Talent Innovation argues that, with the imminent retirement of the over 1,1000 F1000 directors over 70, demand is surging for a new generation of directors, one which better reflects the 21st-century marketplace.

Editorial:

From ForbesWoman:

Now nearly 100 years later, the dearth of women on America’s corporate boards is as striking as is the need for them. Women control nearly 75 percent of consumer purchasing decisions, yet there are still 29 Fortune 1000 consumer companies with no women on their boards, according to research by CTPartners, a global executive search firm. In a time of economic turmoil and political instability, male CEOs and directors repeatedly told CTPartners that having women in the boardroom leads to better-informed discussions and more thoughtful decision-making, sentiments backed up by a 2011 Catalyst studyshowing that major companies with three or more female directors outperformed companies with zero women on boards by 46 percent of return on equity – yet among the Fortune 1000, there are 144 boards that have no women directors, and women comprise fewer than 15 percent of all directors.

But there’s good news: More than 1,100 directors currently serving on F1000 boards are over 70 years old. With their retirement imminent, demand is surging for a new generation of directors, one which better reflects the 21^st-century marketplace. How can qualified women ensure that they’re considered as candidates to fill those slots?

....

Source:

Forbes

URL:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/sylviaannhewlett/2012/01/06/corporate-boards-shifting-from-aging-men-to-new-generation-of-women/

Date:

January 9, 2012

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

Having It All But Remaining True to Oneself

Submitted by vivhdem on Fri, 12/16/2011 - 8:01pm

By Linda Basch, PhD*

This morning, I had the opportunity to hear Véronique Morali, President of the Global Women’s Forum at Deauville, lead an inspiring conversation on leadership with Credit Suisse’s Americas Women’s Network.

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Women 2012: Taking a Worldwide Reading

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03/06/2012

What is the status of women and girls worldwide in 2012? Join us as we explore the gains and gaps, and their implications for forward action, with national and international experts, including the authors of some of the most important recent reports -- from the World Bank, the World Economic Forum Gender Gap Project and the White House.

Welcome
Christine Cumming, First Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
Linda Basch, PhD, President, National Council for Research on Women

Attachment:

Afternoon Program 2012 flyer 28.pdf

Associated Issues & Expertise:

We know diversity in tech is a problem, but what’s the solution?

Teaser:

Women and minorities are fighting for a place in fast-growth science and engineering-driven industries, and the struggle is stoking a heated dialogue, especially at its epicenters in Silicon Valley and the emerging New York City tech hub.

Editorial:

From the article:

VentureBeat recently debunked the myths about women at the helm of technology companies and conducted a roundtable about the issue.

A new generation of chief executives of giant technology companies illustrates the point amply: Virginia Rometty at IBM, Meg Whitman at HP, Carol Bartz at Yahoo, Heather Bresch at Mylan and Ursula Burns at Xerox. Their successes alone should inspire the rising generation to believe the glass ceiling has been broken.

Yet at the same time, research from the Level Playing Field Institute suggests the persistence of hostile work environments in high tech companies for women and people of color.

Two weeks ago, allegations arose about the suppression of damaging corporate diversity stats by Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook. And this past Sunday night a CNN Special Report focused on the efforts ofyoung black entrepreneurs to crack the venture code and the alleged color barriers of Silicon Valley, revealing some very deep chasms in perception, if not reality.

...

Source:

Venture Beat

URL:

http://venturebeat.com/2011/11/22/tech-diversity-solution/

Date:

November 23, 2011

Affiliate:

Females Scarce in Federal Court System

Teaser:

Article highlights the Infinity Project, based in Minnesota and created to bring awareness for the importance of gender equity to the 8th Circuit, which includes Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Arkansas.

Editorial:

From the article:

The lack of gender diversity on the federal bench seems to be an “anomaly” because since the 1980s more women have joined the legal profession, more women have entered law schools in recent years and women continue to apply when openings are available.

But women still lag behind with 328 on the federal bench, compared to 442 men, according to the Federal Judicial Center website. The imbalance is more obvious in Iowa. No women on the Supreme Court, none in the Southern District and only one in the Northern District. The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals, which includes Iowa, has one woman, the only one ever appointed.

U.S. Magistrate Celeste Bremer of the Southern District said the only conclusion she can reach after being on the bench 26 years is that it hasn’t been important enough to those who make the recommendations.

“It’s not that there is a lack of talented, experience women or enough women in the pool,” Bremer said. “I think women have made themselves available. So, how do we change that? We have to make it important to the state senators.”

Advocates working to bring gender equity to the bench remain optimistic in light of the recent Senate confirmation of three women to two federal courts in New York and Arkansas, and the recommendations Sen. Tom Harkin made of three women to fill the vacancy in the Southern District.

Debra Fitzpatrick, executive director of the Infinity Project based in Minnesota, said that’s why four years ago the project was created to bring awareness for the importance of gender equity to the 8th Circuit, which includes Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Arkansas.

The project, housed at the Center on Women and Public Policy at the University of Minnesota, started with four volunteers, including Fitzpatrick, who were “shocked and appalled” by the gender statistics.

...

Source:

KCRG

URL:

http://www.kcrg.com/news/local/Females-Scarce-in-Iowa-Court-System-132403138.html

Date:

November 21, 2011

Affiliate:

Associated Issues & Expertise:

NCRW Western Regional Conference 2011

Submitted by vivhdem on Tue, 11/15/2011 - 2:43pm

The National Council for Research on Women held its 2011 Western Regional Conference at Claremont Graduate University bringing together experts from across the network, including academic, nonprofit, philanthropic, business, and policy leaders, to focus on the status of women’s leadership across sectors. The conference identified best practices and recommended next steps for advancing women into decision-making positions in our economy and society both nationally and globally. It was an opportunity for NCRW member research, policy, and advocacy centers to strategize about a collective agenda for change.

Attachment:

NCRW Western Regional Conference 2011 Overview.pdf

Women in finance: 'Don't assume we're all warm and caring'

Teaser:

Article discusses the lack of women in executive positions but warns against conversation about the merits of employing women because of the perceived benefits that their gender might bring

Editorial:

From the article:

News that FTSE 100 companies failed to meet government recommendations that women make up at least a quarter of their boards has come as little surprise to campaigners.

Despite a "huge leap" in the number of women appointed to non-executive posts this year, the latest report from Cranfield School of Management shows that the proportion of women on FTSE 100 boards has moved up only slightly, from 12.5% in December 2010 to 14.2%.

Although some companies, such as Burberry, have a high level of female representation at senior levels, others, such as International Power, have none. Half of all companies in the FTSE 250 have no female directors at all.

In the US, the story is much the same. Despite accounting for more than half of all jobs at financial companies, women fill a very small number of leadership positions in the corporate world, and the recession might be exacerbating this situation.

Female employees appear to be losing their jobs more easily than their male counterparts. Between 2007 and 2010 12.5% of women working in the UK financial sector lost their jobs, compared to 8.8% of men, according to the Economic Policy Institute.

New research has tried to address the disparity between the high level of education and early success of women, and their lack of representation further up the corporate hierarchy.

Rather than focus blame on inherently "male" cultures in the workplace, academics have attempted to look at issues that might be more immediately addressed, such as a lack of mentoring for female candidates and lack of imagination from chairmen about the professions which proffer suitable board members.

One area that many researchers seem keen to get away from is a conversation about the merits of employing women because of the perceived benefits that their gender might bring.

Stereotypes that pigeonhole women as more caring and emotionally intelligent are barriers - cliches that paint women as inherently less aggressive and more scared of risk, says Michelle Ryan, professor of social and organisational psychology at the University of Exeter. She believes that women continue to be under-represented at the top because changes in policy are not necessarily directly followed by changes in attitudes.

...

Source:

Moneycontrol

URL:

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/features/womenfinance-%60don%60t-assume-we%60re-all-warmcaring%60_615616.html

Date:

November 14, 2011

Affiliate:

Report of the Sixth Annual National Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms

Submitted by asklar on Thu, 11/10/2011 - 3:41pm

The National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL(R)) and The NAWL Foundation(R) released the results of their sixth annual Survey on Retention and Promotion of Women in Law Firms. The Survey is the only national study of the nation's 200 largest law firms which annually tracks the progress of women lawyers at all levels of private practice, including the most senior positions, and collects data on firms as a whole rather than from a subset of individual lawyers.

For the first time since the Survey began in 2006, there was a noted decline in the number of women entering big-firm practice.

"Women lawyers already leave big-firm practice at a greater pace than their male counterparts, and this narrowing of the pipeline at the entry level, however slight, only further decreases the pool of women available for promotion," said NAWL President Heather Giordanella, Counsel at Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP.

URL:

http://nawl.timberlakepublishing.com/files/NAWL%202011%20Annual%20Survey%20Report%20FINAL%20Publication-ready%2011-9-11(2).pdf

NCRW Conference at CGU Condemns 'Let Her Die' Act - Strategizes on Collective Impact

Attachment:

NCRW REGIONAL CONFERENCE 2011 Press Release.pdf

Post Date:

11/10/2011

Associated Issues & Expertise:

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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.

Leadership Pipelines

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