On December 8, 2010, Ilene H. Lang , President and CEO of Catalyst, addressed IPG’s Women’s Leadership Network on the topic Women in the Business World: How Far Have We Really Come and What Can We Do About It? Speaking live in New York and webcast to 18 locations around the country, Lang was introduced by WLN Co-Chair Ranny Cooper, and focused on the current role of women in the business world and noted key facts including:
- Women still do not earn the same amount for doing similar work and are stalled at middle management
- Despite being nearly 50% of the US workforce, women are only 40% of low and middle officers and managers and are 26% of senior officers and managers. Only 12 of the Fortune 500 CEOs are women. 488 are men!
- There is a common myth that women don’t achieve high-level positions because they don’t want to. Catalyst research clearly demonstrates that women and men executives harbor similar aspirations.
- Companies that hire and promote more women have been proven to be more successful in their financial results and shareholder return.
Following Ilene’s presentation, she and WLN Co-Chair, Sheri Baron, had a “fireside chat” that was followed by questions from the audience and emailed in from folks around the country at webcast locations. More than 700 IPG employees attended the event via the live presentation in New York and through the webcast locations.