Favorite Women of March,08 Triumph Over Turmoil

Erin Callan, Chief Financial Officer of Lehman Brothers(image borrowed from cnnmoney.com), was the number one woman searched for on Newsonwomen.com in March,08 - understandable given the turmoil in the financial markets this past month.

I have been wondering if the economic slowdown would keep women from getting good jobs, but March had a significant number of important appointments, particularly in the media and information arena. Sheryl Sandberg was named Chief Operating Officer of Facebook. Bonnie Hammer was made President, Cable Entertainment and Cable Studio at NBC Universal. Mary Parent was made Chairperson, Worldwide Motion Picture Group at MGM. Lynda Clarizio was made President, Platform A at AOL. Rene Aiu was appointed Chief Executive Officer of ShopNBC. And there are more to read about if you scroll down NewsonWomen.com. In the financial world, Teresa Dial was made CEO of Consumer Banking, North America at Citigroup. Jane Mendillo was made CEO of Harvard Managemet Company.

Despite the turmoil in the markets, Goldman Sachs donated $100 million dollars to build business education programs for women in underdeveloped countries. Goldman will be working with business schools including Harvard and Columbia to develop programs in countries like Nigeria and Rwanda. Speaking of Harvard, Evelynn Hammonds was appointed Dean of Harvard College. Other philanthropy news included Jean Blackwell being made CEO of the Cummins Foundation. March came in like a lion. Let's hope these major appointments keep on rolling in as the year progresses.