WomenCorporateDirectors Announces 2015 Visionary Award Winners

Strategic Insights -

WomenCorporateDirectors, a global organization promoting women's leadership on corporate boards, has announced its 2015 Visionary Award winners. The prestigious award recognizes companies and CEOs who excel in corporate governance, sustainability, and inclusive leadership. This year's winners are Sempra Energy, Biogen Idec, L'Oreal, and Marilyn Carlson Nelson, former chairman and CEO of Carlson.

The Visionary Award winners are true leaders in their industries, setting new benchmarks for others to follow. Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 energy services holding company, is led by Debra L. Reed, CEO and chairman of the board. Biogen Idec, a global biotech firm, has a workforce of 52% women, with women making up 41% of its management team. L'Oreal, the worldwide leader in beauty, has women manage nearly half of its global brands and 70% of its global Research & Innovation workforce is women.

Marilyn Carlson Nelson, former chairman and CEO of Carlson, is being recognized for her strategic leadership and commitment to corporate citizenship. Nelson has worked with the State Department, the U.N., and numerous NGOs to fight trafficking of children and is proud to call herself a 'twenty-first century abolitionist.'

Key Takeaways:

  • Sempra Energy, a Fortune 500 energy services holding company, has been recognized for its commitment to good governance and diversity in and outside of the workplace.
  • Biogen Idec has a workforce of 52% women, with women making up 41% of its management team and is committed to increasing women's representation on corporate boards.
  • L'Oreal has women manage nearly half of its global brands and 70% of its global Research & Innovation workforce is women.
  • Marilyn Carlson Nelson, former chairman and CEO of Carlson, is being recognized for her strategic leadership and commitment to corporate citizenship.
  • WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD) has 67 global chapters and an aggregate market capitalization of public companies on whose boards WCD members serve is $8 trillion.
  • WCD's mission is to increase courage, candor, inclusion, and cohesion in the boardroom.

Statistics:

  • $8 trillion: Aggregate market capitalization of public companies on whose boards WCD members serve
  • 67: Number of global chapters of WomenCorporateDirectors
  • 52%: Percentage of Biogen Idec's workforce that are women
  • 41%: Percentage of Biogen Idec's management team that are women
  • 70%: Percentage of L'Oreal's global Research & Innovation workforce that is women
  • 17,000: Number of employees of Sempra Energy
  • 31 million: Number of consumers served by Sempra Energy worldwide

Sources:

  • "WomenCorporateDirectors Announces Sempra Energy, Biogen Idec, L'Oreal and Marilyn Carlson Nelson as 2015 Visionary Award Winners" (PR Newswire, March 9, 2015)
  • WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD) website
  • WomenCorporateDirectors (WCD) 2015 Visionary Awards press release
  • PR Newswire (Source, accessed on March 9, 2015)