I want my Board!

Interesting article about Carol Bartz, forme CEO and current Chair of Autodesk in Sunday (Dec 17) NY Times Business section "How Suite it Isn't". Same old review of the low number of women in CEO positions blah blah blah (I'm just kind of tired of the same old story, you know, dropping out of the workforce, challenges to being taken seriously ). What was of interest to me was the data on women serving on boards and the relative roles they play: it points out that only when you have 3 or more women on the board does the gender issue go away and they are perceived as peers not "special interests." It points out that only 76 companies of the Fortune 500 have more than 3 women.

My current board at TRUSTe has 2 women including me (and Christine is such a superstar). This is a recent change and I believe the men on the board would be welcoming to women. Even so, they have been more likely to recommend other men. I don't serve on any boards (aside from "advisory boards") but I believe my male peers who run similarly sized non profits do sit on boards.

So yes, I want MY board.