The Best Companies For Senior Women To Work For Right Now
Woman make up half of the workforce, yet only 4.2 percent of Fortune 500 CEOs are female.
That's a shocking percentage when you also consider that there are more women than men graduating from universities and graduate schools in America.
According to Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg, we're in a "stalled revolution" for women.
Ultimately having fewer women at the top is bad business.
It's proven that companies perform better when they have more women on boards. "Women add their own perspectives, experience and knowledge to the board, which cannot be found any other way than by having gender diversity," says Carol Evans, CEO of the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE).
To identify the top companies that support women in leadership roles, NAFE recently compiled a list of the top 10 companies for women to work for right now, based off a survey that resulted in 200 applications. Here's the final list of companies and why they're great for women:
1. IBM
Why it's great: Aside from having a female CEO, Ginni Rometty, this technology company has " more than 12,000 women that are considered part of the executive pipeline."
Headquartered in Armonk, N.Y., 30 percent of IBM's global workforce of 441,912 employees are women and 27 percent of them are senior managers.
2. Abbott
Why it's great: "In 2011, there were 77 percent more women in executive management roles at Abbott than there were in 2001."
Headquartered in Abbott Park, Ill., 49 percent of Abbott's workforce of 32,683 employees are women and 42 percent of them are senior managers.
3. AstraZeneca
Why it's great: "Formal mentoring programs (live and virtual) support women with the potential to move into leadership roles."
Headquartered in Wilmington, Del., 55 percent of AstraZeneca's workforce of 9,249 employees are women and 41 percent of them are senior managers.
4. General Mills
Why it's great: "There are sponsorship initiatives that pair vice-president-and director-level advocates with promising female leaders in the manufacturing, information systems and engineering functions."
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., 40 percent of General Mills' workforce of 16,939 employees are women and 37 percent of them are senior managers.
5. Johnson & Johnson
Why it's great: "Johnson & Johnson’s Crossing the Finish Line program educates multicultural women and their supervisors about how to overcome barriers to advancement and accelerate their careers; in 2011, the program’s offerings doubled."
Headquartered in New Brunswick, N.J., 47 percent of Johnson & Johnson's workforce of 35,942 employees are women and 31 percent of them are senior managers.
6. KPMG
Why it's great: "In a recent employee survey, 81 percent of the women who work for this audit, tax and advisory services firm said they had opportunities for learning and professional development."
Headquartered in New York, N.Y., 47 percent of KPMG's workforce of 22,152 employees are women and 37 percent of them are senior managers.
7. Marriott International
Why it's great: "The number of female corporate executives at Marriott International has increased 80 percent since 2002."
Headquartered in B ethesda, Md., 55 percent of Marriott International's workforce of 100,412 employees are women and 40 percent of them are senior managers.
8. Proctor & Gamble
Why it's great: "Up-and-coming female employees also have access to valuable networking and coaching opportunities that can help advance them into key positions, largely due to the efforts of the company’s Corporate Women’s Leadership Team, comprised of senior female managers from every business function."
Headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, 43 percent of Proctor & Gamble's workforce of 34,300 employees are women and 34 percent of them are senior managers.
9. Prudential Financial
Why it's great: "Women not only represent the majority of employees studying for the firm’s on-site MBA degree but also have increased their participation in executive coaching by at least 40 percent since 2010."
Headquartered in Newark, N.J., 52 percent of Prudential Financial's workforce of 18,866 employees are women and 33 percent of them are senior managers.
10. State Farm Insurance
Why it's great: "Women who are looking to refine their leadership skills participate in the company’s 194 employee resource groups or take advantage of its myriad mentoring opportunities, which help them accelerate their professional growth, manage the arc of their careers and navigate different cultures and generations."
Headquartered in Bloomington, Ill., 63 percent of State Farm Insurance's workforce of 63,258 employees are women and 40 percent of them are senior managers.
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