2008-10-07 12:14:01 -
www.foew.com - The Forum of Executive Women Susan Baltake 856-354-9382 susan@grovestreetsolutions.com or Elva Bankins President 610-293-1115 ebankins@kelleherassociatesinc.com The Forum of Executive Women, the region's premier organization of influential women leaders, today released the research results from its 8th annual Women on Boards survey, a look at how the boards at the 100
largest publicly-held companies in the Philadelphia region reflect gender diversity on boards and in executive suites.
Although the 2007 data in this year's report shows a decrease in the total number of board seats held by women - 89 of the total 884 current seats - it is virtually the same 10 percent as the 2006 data, where 93 women held a total of 893 board seats. As an historical comparison, the female percentages in 2004 and 2005 were 9.60 percent and 9.73 percent, respectively. The Philadelphia area lags the national trend -- based on a survey by Catalyst, 14.7 percent of the board seats on the Fortune 500 are held by women.
"Now, more than ever in this challenging economy, companies must embrace strategies to recruit, retain and promote women to executive suites, creating a pipeline of talent extending all the way to the top," said Elva L. Bankins, President of The Forum of Executive Women. "American companies simply can no longer afford 'business as usual' when it comes to recruiting new directors and planning for management succession."
The research, conducted by The Forum of Executive Women's Executive Suites committee in concert with professional services firm Deloitte LLP, entitled "Not Business As Usual," is based on 2007 data reported by the region's 100 largest public companies. It shows that while there is an increase in companies lacking any female board members, there is a positive increase in the number of female top earners. The complete report is available online at www.foew.com.
Tracking trends over the past few years, the report shows the number of companies with no female board members has remained essentially static (42 in 2004, 43 in 2005, 40 in 2006, and 43 in 2007). The number of companies with no female executives has increased slightly (59 in 2004, 59 in 2005, 61 in 2006, and 61 in 2007).
-- Five of the 100 surveyed companies had 3 or more female board members: Campbell Soup Company (16 seats, 3 women); Charming Shoppes, Inc. (8 seats, 5 women); CIGNA Corporation (12 seats, 3 women); Harleysville National Corp. (11 seats, 3 women); and Willow Financial Bancorp. Inc. (14 seats, 3 women - Willow Financial was acquired by Harleysville National during 2008). These "early adopters" are gaining momentum, with published research pointing to a tipping point of three female board members.
-- "Corporate Stars" - those companies with 25% or greater women directors, has remained the same since last year's report. In alphabetical order, these are: Charming Shoppes, Inc., with 5 women of the total 8 board seats; CIGNA Corporation, with 3 women of the total 12 board seats; Genesis HealthCare Corporation, with 2 women of the total 8 board seats (note: Genesis went private in mid-2007); Harleysville National Corporation, with 3 women in 11 board seats; Kenexa Corporation, with 2 women in 8 board seats; Mothers Work, Inc., with 2 women in 7 board seats; and Penn Virginia Resource Partners, with 2 women in 8 board seats.
-- The percentages of female executives in "C-Suite" positions (Chair, CEO, President, CFO and COO) has remained static over the previous year's numbers. This number (18 in 2007) is tracked because it represents a key pool of qualified board candidates.
-- There has been a decrease in the number of female nominating chairs, with 6 percent in 2007, compared with 8 percent in 2006, 6 percent in 2005, and 7 percent in 2004.
-- The report indicates an increase in the category of female top earners (based on each company's respective filings), with 522 in 2007, compared with 505 in 2006, and 480 in both 2005 and 2004.
"The vast majority of public companies in the Philadelphia region do not reflect the demographics of their constituencies," said Bankins. "We must continue to engage in discussions with our corporate leaders to identify the barriers and take advantage of all opportunities to make strategic and meaningful improvements to help our region's biggest companies reach their fullest potential."
¶ Forum of Executive Women Urges Companies to Create 'Pipeline' for
New Board Members
¶ Research Urges Businesses to Share Best Practices
