On October 7, The Chicago Network and Catalyst held a breakfast panel, focusing on women in leadership roles, looking at both Catalyst’s research and The Network’s. It was a lively discussion titled, "When Women Lead.” Moderated by Ilene H. Lang, president and CEO of Catalyst, the panel included Chicago Network member Sheila Penrose, chairman of the board of Jones Lang LaSalle; John Rogers, chairman and CEO of Ariel Investments and John Rowe, chairman and CEO of Exelon. The event was attended by more than 100 of Chicago’s business leaders and many of the city’s top CEOs and board directors as well as Network members who've expressed interest in joining corporate boards.

The panelists offered perspectives on the importance of promoting women to leadership positions, both on boards of directors and in executive suites, along with the challenges and the needed responses.

Rick Waddell, President & CEO, Northern Trust, and Betsy Holden, Senior Advisor, McKinsey & Co	Rick Waddell, President & CEO, Northern Trust, and Jan Fields, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, McDonald’s USA	Moderator Ilene H. Lang, President & CEO of Catalyst	Jane Warner, Executive Vice President, Illinois Tool Works

Sheila Penrose, Chairman of the Board, Jones Lang LaSalle, John Rogers Chairman & CEO, Ariel Investments, and John Rowe, Chairman & CEO, Exelon	Irene Rosenfeld, Chairman & CEO, Kraft Foods Inc., and Pamela Forbes Lieberman, Former President & CEO, True Value Company	Karla Scherer, Chairman, The Karla Scherer Foundation, Sandra Helton, Former Executive Vice President & CFO, Telephone and Data Systems, Inc., Ruth Ann Gillis, Senior Vice President, Exelon Corp., and President, Business Services Company	Cheryl Francis, Co-Chairman, Corporate Leadership Center, Elaine Leavenworth, Corporate Vice President, Government Affairs, Abbott, and Gloria Santona, General Counsel, McDonald’s USA

Ilene H. Lang, President & CEO of Catalyst, Sheila Penrose, Chairman of the Board, Jones Lang LaSalle, John Rogers, Chairman & CEO, Ariel Investments, and John Rowe, Chairman & CEO, Exelon	Deborah DeHaas, Vice Chairman & Regional Managing Partner, Deloitte & Touche USA LLP	Christine Edwards, Partner, Winston & Strawn, LLP	John Rowe, Chairman & CEO, Exelon, Irene Rosenfeld, Chairman & CEO, Kraft Foods Inc., and Elizabeth Harrington, CEO, E. Harrington Global

Leaders of top-performing organizations credit their success, in part, to management teams and boardrooms that reflect the diversity of their customers, clients and employees. The discussion took place against the backdrop of growing evidence that the case for greater inclusion of women is strong. Recent research from Catalyst shows that companies with women on their boards and in executive suites perform better financially. And, studies agree that having three or more women on a board is an important threshold in terms of creating critical mass. What’s more, over time, there is a correlation between greater numbers of women on boards and women in senior management. And, yet, as the panelists pointed out, there isn’t a quick fix.

Indeed, recent studies also point to another reality. As Penrose noted, "We’ve stalled out.” After years of slow progress, the percentage of women on boards has plateaued. Catalyst’s analysis of the Fortune 500 puts the number of women at 14.7% of all board seats. There’s been no growth on Fortune 500 boards for women of color either, and the number of boards with zero women has grown. Traditional barriers remain: limited access to networks, gender stereotyping and lack of role models.

What can be done? Our panelists cited a variety of tactics – and expressed optimism. "We have to redouble our efforts to open doors, be role models, provide networking opportunities and help women create social capital in new and innovative ways,” said Penrose. "You can’t be what you can’t see.” Where companies put high-potential women on three-to-five year training paths, she suggested shortening the timeframe to two years. Asking executive search firms to develop candidate slates with women is not enough, she said. Instead, insist they produce lists with only women.

In the utility industry, noted Rowe, who has three senior women as direct reports, women tend to progress up the "R’ functions – human resources, public relations and government relations. Beyond these, however, there are other opportunities. Senior management, he said, must open up paths to other jobs that have been traditionally male and shorten what are often long periods of training.

Setting the Right Tone

Rogers embodied the notion that change must come from the top – and, significantly, pointed to the value of women leaders all of his life. He noted that his mother was the first African-American woman to graduate from the University of Chicago Law School and became a prominent judge. He also talked of leading by example. At Ariel, two of four senior managers are women. "We have tried to create a culture where women know they are welcome – and that has helped us in the long run,” he said. Additionally, he has pushed his portfolio managers to stress to companies the importance of diversity in 21st century America.

We believe wholeheartedly that Chicago should be a beacon for female executives. With four of the top ten women on Fortune’s recent Top 50 Women issue – Irene Rosenfeld at Kraft Foods Inc., Brenda Barnes at Sara Lee Corporation, Patricia Woertz at downstate Archer Daniels Midland and Oprah Winfrey of Harpo, Inc. – Chicago has made significant progress. Now more than ever, especially with current economic conditions, we must renew our commitment to getting more women into executive suites and on boards of directors. As Rowe put it, "Life is richer when you’re surrounded by those who aren’t exactly like you. The more diverse, the better.”