International Women's Day: Private Sector Perspectives

The private sector knows that gender parity in leadership is important: more women are on boards of multi-national companies, and research shows that diverse leadership can lead to better financial results and better productivity. Gender-balanced companies perform better financially, particularly when women occupy a significant proportion of top management positions.

Women’s leadership in the public sector is equally important, and is good for good governance and economic growth. Women tend to promote policy agendas that foster increased access to education, employment and economic participation, which indirectly lead to a stronger national economy.

Even with growing evidence that shows women in leadership in the public and private sectors benefit the institutions and people they represent, barriers exist that limit their ability to move into, and upwards towards, positions of leadership.

In honor of International Women’s Day, the Women in Public Service Project will bring together private sector leaders to discuss intersections between sectors on the impact of women in leadership, barriers to women reaching senior positions, and best practices that can be shared across sectors and industries. The event will consist of a panel of individuals who work for global companies, from a variety of industries: Communications, Construction/Infrastructure, Law, Trade, and Technology to discuss women in the private sector, how we are doing in various industries, and how we can promote leadership in the private and public sector alike.

Light refreshments will be provided at 8:30am, followed by a public panel at 8:45.

Photo: Flickr - Fortune Live Media (CC BY-ND 2.0)