More women are joining the labor force, a trend that has been edging upward for more than 10 years. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, by 2008, women will make up about 48 percent of the labor force and men 52 percent. In terms of economic power, one in four women earns more than her spouse/mate, controls nearly 80 percent of household spending, and comprises 47 percent of investors in companies.
Clearly, there should be the expectation that women should have equal representation on corporate boards. Yet, despite these economic facts and according to the 2005 Catalyst Census of Women Board of Directors of the Fortune 500, women held only 14.7 percent of all Fortune 500 board seats. Women of color represent only 3.4 percent of the total number of board members. And, sadly, one in nine Fortune 500 companies have no women representation.Since 1995 when Catalyst first began the census, on average, women on boards have increased only one-half of one percentage point per year. Catalyst President Ilene Lang estimates that at the current rate of growth of women on corporate boards, it may take about 70 years for women to reach parity with men at that level. What with the seemingly trendy rush to espouse inclusiveness and diversity, corporations have been slow on the uptake to correct this apparent lack of female leaders, and hypocritical.
More and more, the lack of a diverse presence of women in the boardrooms Ð called the “glacial divide” and also referred to as the “ultimate glass ceiling” Ð is being examined from coast to coast, in states and cities large and small. Numerous newspaper and magazine articles, and much research data and studies, have been compiled that supports the realization that more women are needed but under-sought for these coveted positions of governance.
In Florida, the Women Executive Leadership (WEL) organization found that women hold only 7.9 percent of board seats in the state’s top 150 companies, which is reflective of the 7.6 percent of women-held executive officer positions in those same companies. A 2004 study conducted by the Los Angeles Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) Enterprise Institute showed that there are less than 14 percent of women on corporate boards in the entire state. In 2003, the statistics in Tennessee proved to be even more dismal: only one company had three female board members, 12 had two members and 25 had one member. No women were represented on 63 percent of the remaining companies polled.
Just recently in Kansas City, the Star 50 Women on Board report substantiated the public companies’ lack of women on corporate boards statistics. Of the available 474 regional board positions, women hold only 34, or one-half of the national average and thirty-two of the 58 companies surveyed have no female representation.
Why is this so? There are numerous reasons. “Perhaps a factor is that, right or wrong, many women don’t believe they have the business skills and experience to add value to a corporation in a governance capacity,” said Laura McKnight, President & CEO of the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. McKnight’s organization, the fifth largest community foundation in the country, manages more than $1 billion in assets.
McKnight, a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Trinity University (San Antonio, TX) and former law review managing editor at the University of Kansas, added that many more women gravitate to nonprofit boards versus corporate boards of directors. “It would be interesting to compare and contrast the skills required to serve on each type of board,” she said, noting that few women are in top management positions and tapping that group for board membership could be difficult.
In part, Parthy Evans, partner with the Stinson Morrison Hecker, LLC law firm, agreed. “Women have to be stellar to be as good as men,” she said. “In our own companies, we need to build better teams, delegate more, find additional resources to get the job done, and then focus on where we’re going.” Evans, an expert in environmental regulatory law, serves on her firm’s Policy Committee, which is akin to serving on a board of directors, added, ”It’s not that women don’t have the talent. We need to switch our focus from merely managing to leading.”
Many organizations, external to companies, are extolling that practice. Many entities are currently involved in educating and grooming women to join corporate boards of directors. NAWBO-LA united with other women business groups to present a panel of corporate and business experts who discussed how to place more women on boards. The daylong conference was designed to increase the awareness of women executives about the benefits of serving on boards and how to work toward making it happen to them.
In November of this year, a three-day residential conference called “Positioning Women for Corporate Boards” is planned to help women leaders learn how to get noticed, selected, and positioned on corporate boards. The conference will be led by The Leadership Center at the University of Texas-Dallas and the Institute for Excellence in Corporate Governance (IECG).
In Kansas City, the Central Exchange, an organization which provides professional and personal development opportunities for women through leadership training and access to resources, is offering the same type of coaching and assistance.
“Many more men are in the executive ranks, so the pool of women qualified to serve on boards is smaller than the pool of men,” concedes Valerie Bonebrake, Executive Vice President/Chief Logistics Officer for MeridianIQ, and board chair of the Central Exchange. “One of our key initiatives is to help qualified women earn seats on boards of publicly held companies,” she said.
“Two years ago, the Central Exchange engaged 55 women in a series of networking sessions and provided them the opportunity to hear from seated female corporate board members, CEOs, and search firms who specialize in board searches to help them prepare for board service,” Bonebrake explained. “In the first year, four women participants were placed on corporate boards.”
To further assist potential and current corporate board members, the Corporate Board Member Magazine is readily available, even on-line. Touted as “the leading information source for senior officers and directors of publicly traded, large private companies, and Global 1000 firms,” this publication provides a listing of available programs offered at America’s premier academic institutions.
But what can propel more women to corporate board positions? Evans said, “Women need to ’toot’ their own horns” more. “We also need to ask for what we want and to find a champion,” she added. “There’s also a balance issue: time is needed to serve on a board, and often women are juggling many balls Ð at home and in the office.”
Bonebrake concurs. “Awareness is an obstacle,” she said. “The Central Exchange’s partnership with the Star 50 Women on Board report helped make sure that locally based companies are aware that there are qualified, competent women in the community available to serve on boards. The fact that we have so many qualified women is a message we need to continue to deliver.”
Professionally, an elite group of CEOs from metropolitan Kansas City and others, who serve on her organization’s nonprofit volunteer board of directors, surround McKnight. “I constantly try to improve. The day you think you are ’there,’ is the day it’s all over!” She admits that she would like a few more years running the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation before she tackles a corporate board membership, but does not rule it out.
Bonebrake has high hopes for the Central Exchange program for executive women desiring to make the leap to the corporate boardroom. “I wish I had known earlier to recognize when a defining moment was occurring in my career,” she said. “Or, that I had the opportunity to create a defining moment.”
For many executive women, the defining moment may be the choice to join a corporate board rather than “shopping” for a place at the table. The duties of such a position can be tremendous and daunting. Corporate boards are charged with a variety of responsibilities including helping management develop business strategies and to set policy objectives; select the chief executive of the corporation; ensure efficient planning and resource management; oversee the adherence to regulatory requirements; and, of course, monitor financial performance.
For these complex and sometimes daunting tasks, board members of major corporations are paid well. According to the Corporate Board Member Magazine, remuneration at Fortune 500 companies increased 12 percent in 2004 to $157,200 for the year. One report indicated that board directors can earn anywhere from $50,000 Ð plus fees for attending each board meeting Ð and upwards plus stock options, depending on the company rank.
While corporate board of directors are traditionally chosen from the existing ranks of CEOs, it seems logical to thaw the glacial pace at which women are added to corporate boards. In general, top-level executives Ð whatever the gender Ð mimic certain characteristics including age, education, background, and over-all qualifications and experience. By de-emphasizing or negating gender, there is a tremendous untapped pool of women leaders available for board service.
Studies have illustrated that by including females, based on their inherent characteristics, companies would benefit mightily from unhealthy “group think” that persists today. Women can bring to the table, so to speak, different skills that complement other directors; additional knowledge and experiences; enhanced strategic thinking; additional accountability; and fresh ideas that aid in problem solving.
With the changing climate in board rooms and scandals like Enron, boards serve multi-challenging and changing roles, doesn’t it make sense to include women Ð who are as Evans deftly described Ð those people who are “wonderful, mysterious and complicated creatures”? This is not to dismiss that women are on par educationally and intellectually. It’s time to take advantage of this natural resource that translates to real parity in the workforce, equity in the workplace, enhanced confidence in our companies, and diversity in our collective communities.
Anita K. Parran is principal for KK Charles Communications, LLC which specializes in public and media relations, writing and communications seminars.
Article Source: http://www.flourishmagazine.com
The Glacial Divide