The Quorum Initiative and Women in the Boardroom

We know that companies whose boards include women perform better.

Companies with the most women on their boards of directors outperform those with the fewest women on their boards on myriad key performance measures – return on invested capital is 66 percent higher in firms with strong female representation, return on equity is 53 percent higher, and return on sales is 42 percent higher. -Invest in Women, Invest in America

And we know that companies with more women on their boards also have more women in senior executive positions – and studies suggest that it is the presence of women on boards that increases female presence in executive suites and not the other way around.

When ranked by percentage of women board directors in 2001, companies in the top 25 percent would have 33 percent more women corporate officers in 2006 than companies in the lowest quartile in 2001. Put simply, women board directors are a predictor of women corporate officers : the more women board directors a company has in the past, the more women corporate officers it will have in the future. –Catalyst report Advancing Women Leaders

So it makes sense that women on boards has become such a watershed issue for everyone concerned with advancing women in the workplace.

And it makes sense that we at The Quorum Initiative think this is one of the important ways that our members can take action and create change.  Board membership gives women experience, clout, know-how and expanded networks, as well as a way to explore their fields of interest or their philanthropic passions.  Everyone wins.

Although this issue has gotten a lot of press over the last few years, it’s something people have been concerned with for a long time, so when we started thinking about the best way to prepare TQI members for board membership, it made sense to seek the expertise of someone who has been working on this issue for years.  We are thrilled to announce the collaboration between TQI and Women in the Boardroom, founded 10 years ago by Sheila Ronning, and dedicated to preparing women for board membership through skills-building seminars, individual coaching and networking with organizations looking to fill spots on their boards, and the search organizations charged with that task.

What does that mean for you? It means that you have access to VIP membership at a preferential price, and it puts a whole new world of contacts and experience at your disposal.  Women in the Boardroom VIP members are also offered special pricing for TQI membership, so we can’t wait to see the change that all of us create as we put our heads and experience together.