Index indicates pool of women executive talent barely tapped

For more than three decades, increasing numbers of women have earned degrees in business, law and engineering—subjects long considered valuable preparation for corporate leadership.

But a new U-M study indicates the state's 100 largest publicly held companies are barely tapping the pool of women executive talent in the workforce.

The 2003 Michigan Women's Leadership Index, which measures the number of women executives in the highest levels of leadership in companies headquartered in Michigan, is being released today (Oct. 20) in Detroit.

The University's Center for the Education of Women (CEW) conducted the research in conjunction with the Women's Leadership Forum, an education and research organization affiliated with the Women's Economic Club in Detroit.

"The time has come for a realistic look at the levels of executive leadership women have presently achieved." –Terry Barclay, president and CEO of the Women's Leadership Forum

This index, the first of its kind, is based on the number of women holding top-five officer and board of director positions. Index points range from zero to 30, based on the percentages of women holding board seats and top-five compensated officer positions. Officers are awarded more points than directors to recognize their greater degree of influence on the day-to-day life of the company.

Ten companies earned more than 12 index points out of a possible 30, including Ann Arbor-based Borders Group Inc., the only Fortune 500 company in the top 10.

"We salute the 10 Michigan companies where women's leadership is clearly valued at the top," says Terry Barclay, president and chief executive officer of the Women's Leadership Forum.

"However, we believe the time has come for a realistic look at the levels of executive leadership women have presently achieved and a re-examination of the reasons why their leadership influence is still so rare at the top, even today."

Women executives held 9.6 percent of the seats on corporate boards and 7.1 percent of the top-five compensated officer positions in Michigan's top companies.

The index disputes the long-held belief that the lack of women executives at the top is due to the lack of a significant pool of qualified and experienced candidates.

"Certainly this was true in the past, but the workforce has changed markedly in the past three decades," says Carol Hollenshead, CEW director. "The pool is there, it has been there, and now it must be developed and tapped."

The research identified three groups: Group I includes the 24 Fortune 500 companies in Michigan; Group II, companies with annual revenues of $100 million or more, but not among the Fortune 500; and Group III, companies with annual revenues less than $100 million.

Among the top-10 scoring companies:

• Group I: Borders Group Inc. (Ann Arbor)

• Group II: Compuware Corp. (Detroit); Flagstar Bancorp Inc. (Troy); Herman Miller Inc. (Zeeland); Tower Automotive Inc. (Grand Rapids)

• Group III: FNBH Bancorp Inc. (Howell); Energy Conversion Devices Inc. (Rochester Hills); Somanetics Corp. (Troy); Pavilion Bancorp Inc. (Adrian); X-Rite Inc. (Grandville)

More than half (57 percent) of the remaining 90 companies earned between one and 10 index points, and one-third did not receive any points.

Other key findings include:

• 76 percent of the companies have no women executives among their top-five officers

• Less than one quarter of the companies have more than one female board director

• Overall, larger companies are more likely to have more female directors than smaller companies. The reverse is true for top-officers; smaller companies are more likely to have more-qualified women in officer positions than are large companies.

The executive summary is available on the CEW Web site, http://www.umich.edu/~cew/.

Copies of the report, which includes scores for each of the Michigan Index 100 companies and detailed research findings, are available for $25 through the Women's Leadership Forum Web site, http://www.womenseconomicclub.org/.

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