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way to look into the future and predict the number of women in senior management ranks – just count the current number of women on corporate boards.
This underlines the importance of governmental regulation on this issue as seen in Norway and Spain. In Norway public limited companies now by law must have a representation of at least 40 percent of each sex in the boardrooms. A similar law has been passed in Spain.
Catalyst’s new study "Advancing Women Leaders: The Connection Between Women Board Directors and Women Corporate Officers" found that the number of women on a company’s board is directly connected to the future number of women in its senior management ranks.
This compelling predictor shows a way to increase the number of women in leadership, and further supports the findings of Catalyst’s research on the financial implications of gender diversity at the top. That analysis revealed that Fortune 500 companies with the largest representation of women board directors and corporate officers achieve, on average, higher financial performance. The study has been sponsored by Chubb Corporation with contributing sponsors Citizens Communications and IBM Corporation.
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The importance of role models “Women leaders are role models to early- and mid-career women and, simply by being there at the top, encourage pipeline women to aspire to senior positions. They see that their skills will be valued and rewarded,” says Ilene H. Lang, President of Catalyst. Documentation |
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• Companies with 30 percent women board directors in 2001 had, on
average, 45 percent more
women corporate officers by 2006, compared to companies with no
women board members.
• Companies with the lowest percentages of women board directors in
2001 had, on average, 26 percent
fewer corporate officers than those with the highest five years
later.
• Companies with two or more women members on a company’s board in
2001 had 25 percent more
women corporate officers by 2006 than companies with one woman
board member in 2001.
Bottom line contributions
The presence of women on boards had a stronger impact on the
growth of women in line positions than in staff positions. Line experience
is necessary for advancement into CEO and top leadership positions, and
women are historically underrepresented in these roles. This research
demonstrates the important contribution that women board directors play in
making sure women get this critical experience.
“The results speak directly to the sustainability and strengthening of women’s bottom line contributions,” said Eleanor Tabi Haller-Jorden, General Manager, Catalyst Europe A.G. “Talented women entering the workplace today in Europe, the U.S. and globally, will no doubt be heartened by these findings. Women’s representation on corporate boards is a critical bell-weather of corporate competitiveness.”
About the study
To conduct the regression analyses, data were used from the 2000
Catalyst Census of Women Corporate Officers and Top Earners, 2001 Catalyst
Census of Women Board Directors, and 2006 Catalyst Census of Women Corporate
Officers and Top Earners of the Fortune 500. The researchers examined the
359 companies that were in the Fortune 500 during the years under
investigation, 2000, 2001, and 2006. The data were collected from publicly
available annual reports and 10K forms and included the number of women and
men board directors and corporate officers, company rank (measured by
revenue), and industry.
Catalyst is a leading nonprofit membership organization working globally with businesses and the professions to build inclusive workplaces and expand opportunities for women and business. Catalyst has offices in the United States, Canada, and Europe.
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Read more:
www.catalyst.org
