Pam Henry, a diversity expert and long time WITI friend in , asked me to review her about-to-be-published book called "Diversity and the Bottom Line".

When I read the section I have included in this article about women, the numbers confirmed our perception as to how little progress women have made - especially in the areas of access to capital and moving into the top executive leadership roles - since WITI began 15 years ago.

Pam generously gave me permission to share the information from her book with WITI constituents. It's time to take a long, hard look at ourselves to consider what we, as women, should be doing, are not doing to change these numbers.

We are planning a dynamic discussion about what women should be, could be, are not doing to change the numbers at the top in WITI's Town Hall event at the June conference. If you plan to be at the conference, I encourage you to attend the Town Hall event and share your insights about these issues. Either way, please send me your thinking as to why you believe the numbers aren't changing and what you think women should be doing or are not doing to make that happen, so we can publish them on our web site.

You will have an opportunity to meet this wonderful woman if you attend WITI's Dallas conference in October. Pam will be speaking and doing a book signing.

Excerpt from Pam Henry's book, "Diversity and the Bottom Line"

Today, women comprise 46.6% of the workforce here in the U.S. By 2020 they will be 50 percent. Women-owned businesses have increased 43% in the last decade to approximately eight million firms, generating over $1.4 trillion in sales. Women are forming new businesses at twice the rate as men. Women head up 28% of all (non-farm) businesses in the U.S. They employ 15.5 million people, 35% more than all of the Fortune 500 companies. The University of Michigan has completed research that indicates that companies with women executives who make an initial public offering (IPO) are valued higher than newly public companies with an all male management team.

And yet -
Women-owned businesses receive only 8.2% of all venture capital, less than 10% of all equity capital, and less than 12% of debt capital that fund businesses.

In Corporate America women have moved up the ranks relatively slowly. According to the Catalyst organization, while women hold almost half the lower and mid-level managerial positions at Fortune 500 companies, they occupy only 7% to 9% of senior leadership positions. In 1996, women occupied 10% of all officer positions in companies; in 2000, those ranks had increased by only 2.5 percent. There is still a pay disparity between men and women, with men earning one and a half times overall more than women. It is not surprising that women are leaving the corporate sector at twice the rate of men.

What is your point of view? Please post your thoughts on the discussion board.

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