NewsonWomen

Top Women in Business Put on Boards in 2008

December board appointments helped us end the year on a high note, with 32 women appointed to Boards of Directors reported on NewsonWomen, the highest monthly total all year. Major companies appointing women to Boards in December included Avon, Whole Foods Market, Stancorp Financial, BJ's Wholesale Club, Fifth Third Bancorp, Live Wire, Perot Systems, Blue Nile, Pierre Foods, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The year end total of 255 board appointments of women falls short of the total of 293 appointments of women to board seats in 2007. The difficult economic enviroment expected in 2009 presents presents a challenge for women, and we all need to look for new ways to overcome this negative trend and work toward getting more women appointed to Boards in the coming year. Read through the list of women appointed to Boards in 2008 highlighted on NewsonWomen.com and you will see many accomplished and experienced women stepping up to the plate. For more analysis on appointments by state see Elizabeth Ghaffari's comments on Championboards.com.

Top Women in Business Added to Boards this Week

The Federal Housing Finance Board in Washington, acting as Conservator for Fannie Mae, named the following women as new members of Fannie Mae's Board of Directors:  Brenda J. Gaines, former CEO of Diners Club North America (picture from chicagobusiness.com); Charlynn Goins, former Chairman of New York City Health and Hospitals Corp; and Diana Taylor, a Managing Director at Wolfensohn & Company. (See Fannie Mae press release.)

A number of women were also newly appointed to Freddie Mac's Board of Directors: Barbara Alexander, an Independent Consultant and former senior advisor to UBS Warburg LLC; Linda Bammann, who retired in 2005 at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.'s chief risk officer; and Carolyn Byrd, GlobalTech Financial LLC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. (See Freddie Mac press release.)

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago appointed Diane Aigotti, former Senior Vice President, Chief Risk Officer and Treasurer for the Aon Corporation, and Deborah Jean Lucas, a Professor in Consumer Finance at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, as new independent directors. (See prnewswire press release.)

The Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco appointed Patricia E. Yarrington, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Chevron Corporation, to its Board of Directors. (See Business Wire press release.)

Gretchen Bataille, President of the University of North Texas, recently joined the Board of Directors of Sage, the publishing company. (See article.)

Disability Access Corporation, located in Nevada, appointed Barbara Thorpe to its Board of Directors. Barbara was also appointed President of Disability Access Corporation. (See Business Wire press release.)

Paula Stern Joins Rent-A-Center Board

Rent-A-Center, Inc, headquartered in Texas, appointed Paula Stern to its Board of Directors. Paula is Chairwoman of The Stern Group, Inc., an international advisory firm in areas of business and government strategy. Read more about Paula's career in the Business Wire press release.

JPMorgan's Margaret Cannella Joins Pierre Foods Board.

Pierre Foods Inc, headquartered in Ohio, appointed Margaret Cannella to its Board of Directors. Margaret, who holds an MBA from Columbia, is the Global Head of Credit Research and U.S. Corporate Strategy at JPMorgan. See prnewswire press release.

A List of Women in Business Put on Boards this Week

Leslie Lane, Vice President and General Manager of Nike’s Global Running Group, was appointed to the Blue Nile Inc. (Nasdaq: NILE) Board of Directors, a Washington based company. Leslie holds an MBA from Harvard. Read more about Leslie's career in the Business Wire press release.

MWH, a provider of environmental engineering, construction and strategic consulting services heaquartered in Colorado, appointed Carol Moseley Braun, who holds a JD degree from University of Chicago Law School and has had a 30 year career in government, and Janet Linden Cooper, who holds an MBA from University of Chicago and has previously served as CFO of McDATA Corporation and as Senior Vice President and Treasurer of Qwest Communications, to their Board of Directors. (Business Wire press release.)

Delcath Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: DCTH), headquartered in New York, today appointed Pamela Contag, Ph.D., to its Board of Directors. Dr. Contag founded Cobalt Technologies, Inc. in 2006 and served as CEO. She is a consulting Professor at the Stanford School of Medicine and is widely published in the field of non-invasive molecular and cellular imaging. (See prnewswire press release.)

Fifth Third Bancorp (Nasdaq: FITB), headquartered in Ohio, appointed Marsha Williams to its Board of Directors. Marsha is Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for Orbitz Worldwide, Inc. (See prnewswire press release.)

Perot Systems Corporation, headquartered in Texas, appointed  Caroline S. "Caz" Matthews to its Board of Directors. Caroline is President of the WellPoint Foundation, Inc. and Vice President, social responsibility for WellPoint, Inc. See the prnewswire press release on msn.com.

Women in Business Put on Boards Including BJ's and LiveWire

BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc. (NYSE: BJ), headquartered in Massachusetts, appointed Christine Cournoyer (pictured) to its Board of Directors. Christine is President and Chief Operating Officer of Picis, Inc. (Business Wire press release.) 

LiveWire Mobile Inc (Nasdaq: LVWR), headquartered in Massachusetts, appointed Jill Thoerle to its Board of Directors. Jill is CFO of Mediaport Entertainment, Inc.(Business Wire press release)

Oasis Online Technologies Corp, headquartered in Arizona, appointed Jean Rice to its Board of Directors. Jean is President and a principal of Action Healthcare Management Services, Inc.(Business Wire press release.)

A List of Women in Business Put on Boards this Week

Mary Sammons (pictured), Chief Executive Officer of Rite-Aid, has been named to the StanCorp Financial (NYSE: SFG) Board of Directors, headquartered in Oregon (Business Wire press release).

Susannah O'Sullivan, Director of Private Funds for the Private Funds Group of Morgan Keegan & Company, Inc, was named to the Luminetx Board of Directors, headquartered in Tennessee (Business Wire press release).

Linda Rabbitt, Chief Executive Officer, Rand Construction Corporation, was named to the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond's Board of Directors (prnewswire press release on yahoo).

A List of Women in Business put on Boards Last Week

Pamela Lenehan (pictured left) was named to the Board of Directors of National Mentor Holdings Inc, headquartered in Massachusetts. Pamela is President of Ridge Hill Consulting. Before starting Ridge Hill Consulting, Pamela was CFO for a technology start-up where she led a team that raised $80 million in private equity and filed an IPO, and before that, she was Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Treasurer of Oak Industries. (Business Wire press release)

Stephanie Kugelman was Named to the Board of Directors of Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFMI), headquuartered in Texas. Stephanie is Vice Chairman Emeritus of Young & Rubicam Inc. and Chairman of A Second Opinion Strategic Consulting Group. (prnewswire press release)

Louise Goeser (pictured left) was named to the Board of Directors of MSC Industrial Direct Co. Inc. (NYSE: MSM), headquartered in New York. Louise recently retired as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Ford of Mexico, a manufacturing division of Ford Motor Company. (Business Wire press release)

Linda Shelley was named to the Board of Consolidated-Tomoka Land Co., headquartered in Florida. Linda is a Shareholder in the law firm of Fowler White Boggs PA, where she specializes in environmental and land use issues and chairs the firm's business department. (prnewswire press release on yahoo)

V. Ann Hailey Named to Avon Board

Avon Products Inc (NYSE: AVP), headquartered in New York, appointed V. Ann Hailey to its Board of Directors. Ann is a former Executive Vice President, Corporate Development for Limited Brands Inc. Read more about Ann's career in the prnewswire press release.

The Slide Continues for Women in Business getting on Boards

The downward slide in board appointments continues as only eighteen women were appointed to Corporate Boards of Directors in November08 as reported on NewsonWomen.com, higher than October but lower than the 23 women appointed in November07. Some of the major corporations bucking this trend and appointing women to Boards included Ann Taylor, CA, Timex, Alcoa, LSI, Red Hat, and Electronic Arts. Read more analysis of the board appointments on Elizabeth Ghaffari's Champion Boards. Will December beat last year's monthly total and increase the total number of board appointments for 2008 so it will at least equal 2007? Stay tuned to find out.

Mary Brainerd Named to SurModics Board

SurModics Inc, (Nasdaq: SRDX), headquartered in Minnesota, appointed Mary Brainerd to its Board of Directors. Mary is President and Chief Executive Officer of HealthPartners, Inc. See more in the Business Wire press release.

Starbucks Exec Michelle Gass Joins Board of Ann Taylor. Kami Howard Joins Zytos Board

  Ann Taylor Stores Corporation (NYSE: ANN), headquartered in New York, appointed Michelle Gass to its Board of Directors. Michelle (pictured) is Executive Vice President, Marketing and Category, at Starbucks Coffee Company. (See prnewswire press release on marketwatch.com.)

Zytos Corporation, headquartered in Utah, appointed Kami Howard to its Board of Directors. Kami is Chief Financial Officer of Zytos. See Business Wire press release.

Kay Koplovitz Joins CA Board. Shelly Meyers Joins Modavox Board. Veronica Lubatkin Joins PDI Board

  

CA (Nasdaq), headquartered in New York, appointed Kay Koplovitz (pictured) to its Board of Directors. Kay, who founded the USA Network, is Chairman and CEO of Koplovitz & Co. LLC. Read about it in the Business Wire press release on yahoo.

Modavox, headquartered in Arizona, appointed Shelly Meyers to its Board of Directors. Shelly, who holds an MBA from Dartmouth and has over 20 years of financial and investment experience, is Founder and President of Palisades Management LLC. Read more about Shelly's career in the Business Wire press release.

PDI, Inc (Nasdq: PDII), headquartered in New Jersey, appointed Veronica Lubatkin to its Board of Directors. Veronica is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Par Pharmaceutical Companies, Inc. (See Business Wire press release.)

Bath & Body Works EVP Camille McDonald Goes on Timex Board. Marina Hatsopoulos Joins Cynosure Board

Timex Group B.V., in Connecticut, appointed Camille McDonald to its Board of Directors. Camille is Executive Vice President of Brand Development and Merchandising at Bath & Body Works, and before that was President and CEO of American Designer Fragrances and Givenchy/Guerlain North America at LVMH. (see Business Wire press release).

Cynosure (Nasdaq: CYNO), headquartered in Massachusetts, appointed Marina Hatsopoulos to its Board of Directors. Marina, who holds an M.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT, is the founding CEO of Z Corporation, a market leader in 3D printing, from 1994 through its sale in 2005. Read more about Marina's career in the prnewswire press release.

Woe to Women in California

UC Davis released a study of California Women Business Leaders, or should I say lack thereof. Half of California's 400 largest public companies have no women in top executive offices according to UC Davis researchers. I am surprised by the results for a state that prides itself on being so liberal and forward thinking. Note to California - there are so many great women out there! Read more about the report in the Business Wire press release. The only good news I can think of after reading this is that I don't live in California.

Alcoa Puts Patricia Russo on its Board. Susan Whitney Joins LSI Board.

Alcoa Inc (NYSE: AA), headquartered in New York, appointed Patricia Russo to its Board of Directors. Patricia (pictured) is the former Chief Executive Officer of Alcatel-Lucent. (See Business Wire press release.)

LSI Corporation (NYSE: LSI), headquartered in California, appointed Susan Whitney to its Board of Directors. Susan is a former IBM Executive who most recently served as General Manager, IBM System x, retiring from the company in 2007. (See prnewswire press release on msn.com.)

A Woman in Charge Makes All the Difference

Corporate Women Directors International (CWDI) studied the effect of having a woman CEO in Canada and the U.S., and the findings definitely show that having a woman in charge leads to more women in other leadership positions. Companies with Women CEO's in Canada have twice as many women executives, and an equally impressive impact can be seen on Boards of Directors. U.S. companies also show a favorable comparison. Read the results of the report on globewomen.org.

Ellen Wolf Joins Airgas Board

Airgas Inc (NYSE: ARG), headquartered in Pennsylvania, appointed Ellen Wolf to its Board of Directors. Ellen, who holds an MBA from University of Pennsylvania, is Senior Vice President  and Chief Financial Officer of American Water (NYSE: AWK). Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Lucasfilm COO Micheline Chau Joins Red Hat Board

Red Hat, Inc (NYSE: RHT), headquarterd in North Carolina, appointed Micheline Chau to its Board of Directors. Micheline, who holds an MBA from Stanford, is President and COO of Lucasfilm Ltd. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Geraldine Laybourne Named to Electronic Arts Board

Electronic Arts (Nasdaq: ERTS), the interactive entertainment software company headquartered in California, appointed Geraldine Laybourne to its Board of Directors. Geraldine is the Founder of Oxygen Media, and before that was President of Disney/ABC Cable Networks. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Former Burberry CEO Rose Marie Bravo Joins Godiva Board. Dany Garcia Joins Pediatrix Board

Godiva Chocolatier, headquartered in New York, appointed Rose Marie Bravo to its Board of Directors. Rose Marie (pictured) is a former Chief Executive Officer of Burberry. What a sweet assignment! Read about it in the prnewswire press release on msn.com.

Dany Garcia,  CEO of JDM Partners, LLC, was appointed to the Board of Pediatrix Medical Group Inc (NYSE: PDX), a Florida company that provides neonatal, maternal-fetal and pediatric physician subspecialty services. Read more about Dany's career in the Business Wire press release.

Board Appointments for Women Drop in October

October was a disaster not only for stocks but for women board appointments as well. Only twelve women were appointed to Boards of Directors in October,08 versus more than 30 women in October, 07 as reported on NewsonWomen.com. Yipes! Look at that chart. That says it all. A few major companies appointed women to Boards in October included Coca Cola, Goodyear, Penton Media, Harris Interactive and Akamai Technologies.

The October statistics are disappointing because the low number makes it difficult to equal last year's total by December,08 (see more stats and charts on Elizabeth Ghaffari's Championboards). The lack of progress in board appointments was discussed in a recent report done by the Forum of Executive Women in the Philadelphia area. These women are taking action against the slowdown. They have spent time educating companies in their area about qualified candidates and are working with search firms that advise corporations on board appointments. We should all do the same.

Barbara Jeremiah put on Allegheny Technologies Board

Allegheny Technologies (NYSE: ATI), headquartered in Pennsylvania, appointed Barbara Jeremiah to its Board of Directors. Barbara, who holds a JD in law from the University of Virginia, is Executive Vice President and Chairman's Counsel at Alcoa. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Dr. Deborah Kochevar Named to Charles River Labs Board

Charles River Laboratories International Inc.  (NYSE: CRL), headquartered in Massachusetts, appointed Dr. Deborah Kochevar to its Board of Directors. Deborah is  Dean of the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Lisa Binder Named to Associated Banc-Corp Board

Associated Banc-Corp (Nasdaq: ASBC), located in Wisconsin, appointed Lisa Binder to its Board of Directors. Lisa is President and Chief Operating Officer of Associated Banc-Corp. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Nancy-Ann DeParle Named to Medco Board

Medco Health Solutions Inc. (NYSE: MHS), headquartered in New Jersey, appointed Nancy-Ann DeParle to its Board of Directors. Nancy-Ann, a health policy expert who holds a JD from Harvard Law School, is Managing Director of CCMP Capital Advisors. Read about it in the prnewswire press release.

DeAnne Julius Named to Jones Lang LaSalle Board

Jones Lang Lasalle Inc. (NYSE: JLL), headquartered in Illinois and London, appointed DeAnne Julius to its Board of Directors. DeAnne, who holds a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California, is Chairman of the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House). Read about it in the prnewswire press release.

C. Kim Goodwin Named to Akamai Board

Akamai Technologies Inc. (Nasdaq: AKAM), headquartered in Massachusetts, appointed C. Kim Goodwin to its Board of Directors. Ms Goodwin, who holds an MBA from the McCombs School of Business at Unversity of Texas, most recently served as Managing Director and Head of Equities, Globally for Credit Suisse’s Asset Management Division. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.

Kathleen McGinty Named to NRG Energy Board

NRG Energy Inc. (NYSE: NRG), headquartered in New Jersey, appointed Kathleen McGinty to its Board of Directors. Kathleen, who holds a Juris Doctor from Columbia University, is a Founding Partner of Peregrine Technology Partners and the former Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Read more about Kathleen's career in the Business Wire press release.

Maria Elena Lagomasino Named to Coca Cola Board

The Coca Cola Company, headquartered in Georgia, appointed Maria Elena Lagomasino to its Board of Directors. Maria Elena, who holds an MBA from Fordham University, is Chief Executive Officer of GenSpring Family Offices, a wealth management firm, and had previously been CEO of JPMorgan Private Bank. Read about it in the Business Wire press release.