Worcester Business Journal

12 Worcester Business Journal | February 5, 2018 | wbjournal.com sidered a leader in gender diversity. The group puts that figure at 30 percent. In WBJ's examination, 39 of the 75 organizations achieved this 30-percent threshold (10 had a 50-percent or higher gender mix), but no public companies. e Boston Club has found slow progress over the years in its annual census of the state's 100 largest public companies. Women accounted for an all-time high of 19 percent of directors, the Bos- ton Club found in its 2017 report. e number of companies it calls zero-zeros — those with no women on their board or in their executive offices — is down two-thirds from a decade ago. But progress toward gender equal- ity was minimal, the report concluded. Companies with board vacancies oen filled them with male directors, and those zero-zero companies still com- prise one-tenth of the list. Of the 100 companies in the report, 47 did not have a single female executive officer. Among Central Mass. public compa- nies, six are zero-zero firms, according to WBJ's analysis. Patricia Flynn, a business professor at Bentley University who studies women in business, doubted that com- panies committed to hiring women would struggle to find at least one female leader. "If you've been trying to do this for several years and you're still zero-zero, you need help," Flynn said. Central Massachusetts has 141 women serving on boards in the region's colleges, social service non- profits and healthcare organizations, so the talent would seemingly be available for public companies. Yet, Craig Huntley, the chief develop- ment officer of Hopkinton solar energy company Solect Energy — a private company with no women in its nine top leadership positions — said his firm struggles to hire women to key positions because his industry is over- whelmingly male. "Gender diversity is a challenge in an industry that's comprised of construc- tion workers and electricians and engi- neers," Huntley said. "We deal with that challenge every day." The benefits of female leadership Gender equality isn't just a noble goal for businesses. It can improve the bottom line. Companies with female CEOs were found to have a 19-percent better return on equity than those with male CEOs, according to a 2016 report from Swiss multinational financial institution Credit Suisse. When companies had women in at least 15 percent of their senior management positions, the pre- mium was 18 percent. Share price was found to have risen in direct correlation with each step a company takes toward greater gender diversity, especially those in which women make up at least half of senior management roles, said Credit Suisse. A 2017 report from New York City research firm McKinsey & Co. found a significant correlation between diversity and performance. Companies in the top quartile for gender diversity on corporate teams are 21 percent more likely to outperform on profitability and 27 percent more likely to have better value creation. The revelation over the lack of gender diversity on area boards and executive suites comes amid the national #MeToo movement of women who've disclosed workplace sexual harassment, in some cases dating back decades. Susan Adams, a Bentley University professor who's conducted research for The Boston Club, said having female executives helps with the first step of addressing sexual harassment: awareness. "Women will listen to [harassment concerns] a little bit more than men because they understand what's going on," Adams said. Central Mass. vs. state & nation Central Massachusetts's performance on business leadership gender diversity isn't particularly surprising or an outli- er, said Jean Beaupre, the faculty direc- tor of Nichols College's Institute for Women's Leadership. "When you look at the corporate side, it's fairly in keeping with the national numbers, but in some places it was certainly lower," said Beaupre. A report by Nichols College's Institute for Women's Leadership reported in March women made up 12 percent of executive officers at 100 public compa- nies in Massachusetts, slightly behind a 14.2-percent national average. In Central Massachusetts, it's 7.7 percent. This region's record among nonprof- its – including colleges, hospitals and social service organizations – is better. Among nonprofits, 27 percent of Central Massachusetts chief executives are women, which beats the state and national averages, according to the Nichols report. The rate of women serv- ing on nonprofit boards in this area, 38 percent, falls in between the state and national averages. Central Massachusetts colleges – with 39 percent female leadership – do better than the national average, Beaupre said, but added, "at the end of the day, nei- ther one is great." "Neither one gets to where we'd like to be for parity," she said. Making progress At the Boys the Girls Club of Worcester, executive director Liz Hamilton is the first female head in 128 years. Nancy Crimmin is the first Eversource Energy, Boston 2 of 12 1 of 8 15% American Tower Corp., Boston 3 of 10 0 of 7 18% Raytheon, Waltham 2 of 10 2 of 10 20% State Street Corp., Boston 3 of 10 3 of 15 24% Biogen, Inc., Cambridge 3 of 11 2 of 10 24% Dunkin' Brands, Canton 3 of 9 2 of 10 26% General Electric, Boston 5 of 18 3 of 8 31% The Massachusetts and U.S. Boardroom Gaps, by select companies Female Female Total MASSACHUSETTS COMPANY board members executives percent Sources: The Boston Club (Massachusetts companies), U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings (national companies). Berkshire Hathaway, Omaha 3 of 12 0 of 3 20% Walmart, Bentonville, Ark. 4 of 15 0 of 5 20% Apple, Cupertino, Calif. 2 of 8 1 of 6 21% Female Female Total NATIONAL COMPANY board members executives percent 6 Number of female executives at public companies in Central Massachusetts. 7 Number of male Central Massachusetts public company executives last year named John. Continued from previous page

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