Paradigm for Parity Expands to Close Gender Leadership Gap

Catalyst and Simmons University Institute for Inclusive Leadership Join its Center for Action and former Accenture Executive Debbie Polishook Named to the Board

NEW YORK, May 22, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Paradigm for Parity (P4P), a nonprofit, supporting companies around the world in achieving their commitment to gender parity in corporate leadership, today announced the expansion of its Center for Action and the appointment of Debbie Polishook to its Board of Directors.

"Our recently launched Center for Action brings together best in class service providers and mission-aligned nonprofits to support our coalition member companies in closing the gender leadership gap," stated Paradigm for Parity CEO, Nadine Bullock-Pottinga.

New program partners in the Paradigm for Parity Center for Action include:

Catalyst, a global nonprofit dedicated to driving gender equity through workplace inclusion, creates workplaces that work for women. Paradigm for Parity's members can now access Catalyst's MARC (Men Advocating Real Change) Leaders immersive workshop, a fee-for-service program delivered by Catalyst experts. Catalyst's MARC Leaders is an interactive cross-company immersive learning experience for directors through senior executives that inspires participants to stand up for gender equity. The program increases effective gender partnership, builds skills to communicate more courageously and inclusively across gender and other forms of difference, and provides tools to enable and support a culture of inclusion through disruptive dialogue.

Simmons University for Inclusive Leadership, is a global authority on inclusive leadership and gender equity, focused on fostering equity in leadership and advancing women leaders in organizations globally. The Institute delivers research-based programming designed to develop greater understanding of inclusive leadership and identify specific actions that anyone can take to lead more inclusively.

Girls With Impact (GWI), is the nation's only live, online business and leadership program for young women, equipping them with skills, tools, and mentoring to thrive and advance in the workplace. GWI will support the coalition member companies by offering their mini-"MBA" program, which teaches essential business acumen to early career women employees.

They join current Center for Action partners AceUp,  Linkage, a SHRM company, LiveGirl, and TONE Networks.

In step with its programmatic expansion, Paradigm for Parity also announced the addition of Debbie Polishook to its Board of Directors.

Debbie is the Former Group Chief Executive of Accenture Operations who led a top-line double digit growth $6B+ portfolio of business process services (BPO). She is a results-driven strategic thinker, mentor, and problem solver with a long track record of envisioning and executing transformative change, deploying leading edge technologies such as blockchain, RPA (Robotic Process Automation) and machine learning/artificial intelligence for a multitude of Fortune 500 companies.  

P4P Board President, Jewelle Bickford, commented, "Debbie's global experience in leading operations combined with her deep knowledge of technologies including artificial intelligence brings a new dimension of expertise to our Board at a pivotal time in our growth as an organization."

Ms. Polishook also serves as a corporate Board Director for Wawa, Inc., Micro Focus, Trinity Consultants and Globality, Inc. and one not-for profit Board, C200 (an organization focused on the advancement of women corporate executives and entrepreneurs). She previously served on the board of Avanade, an Accenture/Microsoft JV offering innovative technology solutions and managed services based on Microsoft technologies.

"I am honored to join the Paradigm for Parity board. There is so much at stake for women, the business community and society to close the gender leadership gap quickly," said Ms. Polishook

About Paradigm for Parity®

As a nonprofit founded by a group of women executives in 2015, the Paradigm for Parity® coalition supports its member companies around the world in achieving gender parity including racial equity in their corporate leadership within 15 years of joining the coalition. In partnership with member company executives and recognized experts, the organization develops and promotes actionable strategies that transform corporate culture, so that women of all races, cultures and backgrounds have equal power and opportunity.

SOURCE Paradigm for Parity