Women on the Job's Where are the Women? Project is inviting Long Island's corporate leaders to the table for our first "Get On Board" Luncheon on May 8th at the Crest Hollow Country Club saluting corporations that have a woman on their board of directors. Companies that understand the value women bring to the table, such as Keyspan, Treiber Insurance and Strategic Personnel were among the first to sponsor. The Women's business community represented by LIWA, NAWBO, the LI Center, 100 Black Women and SCWBEC are excited to participate in this first of its kind event. We intend to open the dialogue about the lack of female representation on Long Island's corporate boards.

Only nineteen companies out of Long Island's Top 100 Public Corporations have a woman on their board of directors. This luncheon will salute those companies that have recognized the women who can add value to their bottom line. Companies, such as, Computer Associates, Cablevision, Keyspan and Arrow Electronics are part of this elite group.

The Where Are the Women? Project is seeking to facilitate the placement of more women on corporate boards. But first we want to create the awareness that this is something women are concerned about.

Women spend 80 cents of every dollar spent in this country. We now have resources of our own that we invest. We have achieved an economic status that affords us the opportunity to make decisions. So we are the consumers and we are the shareholders. Women are now looking to see who is running the companies that we invest in and whether we are represented. We want to know that there is a women's voice in the corporate decision-making.

Statistics show that companies with a woman on the board tend to be more profitable. Is it because they have a women on board, or is it because they have a finger on the pulse of the current trends? A woman's skills may be the same as any man's on the board, but her perspective tends to be different. She has a different set of life experiences. Very often when you put two different perspectives together one isn't right and one isn't wrong. What you tend to get is a perspective that neither have ever thought of before.

Although women haven't been locked out of the boardroom, a study done for Women on the Job by Hofstra University found that only 3.6 % of board members of Long Island's Top Public Corporations were female. So, where are the women? The funny thing is that men are asking us the same question.

The most important criteria for board placement seems to be a personal recommendation. Since men and women aren't necessarily networking in the same circles, they may not personally know any women that fit their criteria. But is that the only thing holding women back? We want corporate leaders to let us know why they think there aren't more women at the top. What steps can be taken to create more opportunities for women to be invited into the boardroom?

As we move forward with our project we keep finding more and more talented women who would be assets to a board of directors. Now we need to make CEO's aware that they exist. By creating networking opportunities, such as, our luncheon on May 8th, we hope that corporations will begin to see that there may be talent that they have overlooked. Or that someone who was previously unknown to them may bring a fresh perspective to the board.

Companies that don't have a woman on their board yet don't have to worry about us getting irate and burning our proxy ballots. However, we are going to suggest that when they have an open board seat they should consider the possibility that the best person for the job may just be a woman.

The Get On Board Luncheon promises to be a very exciting event. We have already caught the attention of The NY Times and Ms. Magazine and Networking magazine/www.networkwomen.com. This year we are recognizing companies for having one woman on their board, but we think there is more room at the table. The Where Are the Women? Project wants to assist corporations in achieving balance on their board. We don't want a woman placed there as a token and we don't want to rock the boat. We want to help them find talented women that can best help them serve their consumers and their shareholders. This is a mission in which everyone wins. 

Editors Note:  This article first appeared in the March 2001 edition Of Networking www.networkwomen.com