Ten Big Ideas on the Minds of Women Corporate Directors

NEW YORK, Aug. 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- As women globally are gaining more foothold in boardrooms – even as numbers in the U.S. stay constant – women directors around the world share common priorities in governing their companies and ensuring the survival of their organizations. At the WomenCorporateDirectors third annual Global Institute, more than 250 women corporate directors, board chairs, CEOs, other C-level officers, and policy experts gathered to discuss and debate topics weighing on the minds of boards today – from regulation to corporate resiliency to the growing power of emerging markets.

With more than 20 countries represented at the Global Institute, the directors voiced a number of shared priorities about the top issues they and their companies face today:

10 Big Ideas on the Minds of Women Corporate Directors

1.   Competition in capital markets: Competitive pressures are tougher than ever in every area, from innovation to pricing to natural resources to consumer mindshare, but "capital markets are the most competitive markets companies have to address. You are competing with every single company in every single industry for that rare resource: equity." – Marina Brogi (Italy), Director, A2A S.p.A., Impreglio S.p.A., and UBI Banca S.p.A.

2.   Moving away from fierce investor short-termism: Relentless investor focus on quarterly earnings can inhibit company growth, exacerbated by the way companies have traditionally reported results. "Changing the language about corporate reporting to incorporate the idea of 'integrated reporting' can help change the behavior of fund managers." – Alison Winter, Director at Nordstrom

3.   Entering new markets – carefully: As companies weigh the opportunities and risks of investing in new markets, boards understand that each market requires a thoughtful, tailored approach. "We need to talk about the best way to go into these countries. Should you go in with a public/private approach? Should you be joint venturing with companies already there? How can you best connect to the local communities?" – Nancy Calderon, Global Lead Partner, KPMG

4.   Board education on a global level: When companies evaluate emerging markets, boards are also bringing in experts who can help bring them up to speed on the multiple complex issues that arise. "Our board clients are really taking the time to invite in the emerging markets leaders from the company management to provide the appropriate level of briefing – whether it's about compliance issues or the supply chain or talent. It's about bringing that expertise into the boardroom and then making this a best practice." – Anne Lim O'Brien, Vice Chairman, Heidrick & Struggles

5.   Identifying where the real risks are: Boards are starting to educate themselves about the threats and opportunities posed by big data and "the cloud," but there is still a steep learning curve around these. "Many companies worry about the security of the cloud, but for 99.9% of organizations, keeping data on the cloud is more secure than keeping it on their own." – Clara Shih, CEO of Hearsay Social and Director, Starbucks Corporation

6.   Differing pace of technology adoption across the world: Companies are learning that various consumer markets can take very different paths to current technology, as newer markets often "leapfrog" certain technologies altogether. "Boards need to understand that in emerging markets the first touchpoint consumers have with the Internet is usually not their computer but their mobile phone." – Myla Villanueva, CEO of telecom Novare Technologies (Philippines) 

7.   Becoming an agent of change: Creating sustainable enterprise is no longer just about CSR lip service, as companies are developing sustainable practices on firming footing by partnering with their consumers and the communities in which they operate. "How you turn your company into positive social movements to create a better world is an enormously motivating thing for us." – Unilever CEO Paul Polman

8.   How women's consumer power is disrupting business as usual: Women's buying power and influence are forcing companies to rethink their business models. "Disruptive innovation will become the norm, and women are the disruptive technology in the next century." – Usha Rao-Monari (India), Director, Sustainable Business Advisory, International Financial Corporation

9.   Impact of more women on boards: "Fitting in" was the old model of women in the boardroom; the new model is that women are changing the rules. "In the boardroom, women are up against a lot of unwritten rules – and we go into the game and break these rules." – Susan Oliver (Australia), Chairman, Fusion Retail Brands; Chairman and Co-Founder, scalE Investors 

10. True boardroom equality: As more women move into positions of power in companies, the "woman" identifier will become less important. "Real equality will have arrived when we stop looking for women or men or black or white or Indian or Chinese – and stop judging ourselves on how many of each we have on a board. It will be when we look to the quality of each person's work and to the different points of view they bring." – former Pearson CEO Marjorie Scardino

For more information about WomenCorporateDirectors and their programs for directors, please contact Davia Temin or Suzanne Oaks of Temin and Company at 212-588-8788 or [email protected]. 

About the WCD Global Institute
The WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD) Global Institute is an annual two-day, high-powered idea forum exploring compelling issues on the minds of today's board directors and their companies. It provides an unprecedented opportunity for global board directors to share corporate governance and business strategies and to build partnerships with a purpose, in a private, invitation-only setting. The 2014 WCD Global Institute will take place on May 14-15.  

The 2013 program included keynotes, panels, discussion groups, and sessions such as: "Beyond the Next Quarter"; "What Directors Need to Know about Technology"; "What On Earth Were You Thinking?"; "Managing Change and Disruptions around the World"; "New Trends, Ideas, and Best Practices That Directors Can Take Advantage of to Successfully Navigate the Globe"; as well as "Conversations" with Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever PLC, Fatima Al Jaber, board member of the Al Jaber Group, Marcy Syms, director of Rite Aid and former CEO and chair of Syms Corp, and Dr. Katherine Phillips, Paul Calello Professor of Leadership and Ethics at Columbia Business School.

About WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD)
WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD) is the only global membership organization and community of women corporate directors, comprised of more than 2,000 members serving on over 3,000 boards in 53 chapters around the world. In 2012, WCD launched the Global Nominating Commission, a high-level task force of select corporate board nominating committee chairs and members from around the world, as well as CEOs, focused on proactively building diverse boards and candidate slates. Each year, WCD conducts a Global Board Survey in conjunction with Heidrick & Struggles and researchers from the Harvard Business School. Heidrick & Struggles and KPMG are Global Founding Partners of WCD.

WCD has 53 global chapters, located in Arizona, Atlanta, Beijing, Boston, Brazil, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Colombia, Dallas/Fort Worth, Delhi, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Gulf Cooperation Council, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Houston, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, London, Los Angeles/Orange County, Malaysia, Melbourne, Mexico, Milan, Minnesota, Morocco, Mumbai, Netherlands, New York, New Zealand, Nigeria, Northern California, Peru, Philadelphia, Philippines, Rome, San Diego, Seattle, Shanghai, Singapore, South Africa, South Florida, Switzerland, Sydney, Tennessee, Toronto, Turkey, and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.womencorporatedirectors.com. 

SOURCE WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD)