Is 30% Just a Number?

In many ways we relate to numbers that are ingrained in our consciousness.  50% off sale. 110% effort. But 30%? According to Victor Dodig, Chair of the 30% Club Canada, when it comes to workplace diversity, it’s a stake in the ground, and one that all businesses should get behind.

On September 14th, Rotman’s Initiative for Women in Business hosted Growing the Diversity Dividend: The 30% Club Advantage, a speaker event sponsored by CIBC.  The 30% Club started in the UK in 2010 with a goal of achieving 30% women on public boards, and this campaign has spread to several countries, including Canada, which opened a chapter in 2015. Here are the key takeaways.  

Gender Diversity Leads to Better Corporate Performance

The 30% Club believes that gender balance on boards not only encourages better leadership and governance, but diversity further contributes to better all-round board performance, and ultimately increased corporate performance for both companies and their shareholders. 

Both Victor Dodig, President and CEO of CIBC, and Peter Grauer, Executive Chairman of Bloomberg and the founding Chair of the US 30% Club, were at the Rotman School of Management to talk about the progress and developments within their respective organizations. In their very personal and engaging conversation on stage, moderated by Kate Stevenson, they shared key learnings and advice on what senior leaders can do to achieve gender diversity across all levels within organizations. 

Four Actionable Steps Organizations Can Take

1. Focus on talent at every level of the organization. You may need to develop people throughout the talent pipeline, from staff positions, middle management, senior management to executive levels.
2. It’s not enough to mentors women executives, it’s important to get to know them as people and begin to sponsor women executives. Talented women executives need a sponsor to advocate for them.
3. Continue to provide women networking opportunities and access to executives.
4. Set up targets for gender diversity and an action plan that includes recruitment, retention and development. What gets measured, gets done.

The Role of Universities in Developing the Talent Pipeline

To develop the pipeline of female executives, the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management is a strong partner to many corporations seeking to advance their thinking on gender diversity. Dean Tiff Macklem has put in motion a plan to attract 40% female students into the MBA cohort by 2020. He also noted that Rotman is the only Canadian business school with a dedicated Initiative for Women in Business, supporting women at every step in their career advancement. In particular, our highly regarded program called The Judy Project prepares women ascending into executive leadership and C-suite positions, working towards the goal set by The 30% Club.

In the end, Victor and Peter inspired the audience of 300 business leaders to consider putting their own stake in the ground by joining the 30% Club campaign and setting measurable goals.