Recent studies suggest that there is a direct correlation between diversity and corporate financial performance. At the Council’s fall 2008 meeting in Chicago, Janice Hester-Amey of CalSTRS proposed that the Council should update its diversity policy to reflect new information on board diversity, and a subcommittee was established to explore these issues. The board diversity subcommittee crafted draft policy language incorporating the findings, and the Policies Committee approved the language on Feb. 11, 2009. The language was adopted by Council General Members on May 1, 2009, and has been incorporated as Section 2.7b of the Council’s full corporate governance policies, available at http://www.cii.org/policies.
If you are aware of additional studies on the important topic of board diversity and would like to share them with fellow Council members, please contact Council staff Justin Levis at justin@cii.org.
Relevant Documents
The 2008 Census of Women Directors and Executive Officers of Massachusetts Public Companies (Bentley University, Boston Club and Mercer)
Advancing Women Leaders: The Connection Between Women Board Directors and Women Corporate Officers (Catalyst)
Board Diversification Strategy: Realizing Competitive Advantage and Shareowner Value (Virtcom Consulting)
The Bottom Line: Connecting Corporate Performance and Gender Diversity (Catalyst)
The Bottom Line: Corporate Performance and Women’s Representations on Boards (Catalyst)
Planning for Tomorrow’s Boardroom: Making Room for More Women (InterOrganization Network)
Women and Minorities on Fortune 100 Boards (Alliance for Board Diversity)
Women Matter (McKinsey)