Dodd-Frank and Diversity – Will It be a Game Changer?

Young business womanBy Kelly Tanner (New York City)

Would greater diversity in financial institutions strengthen or, as some have charged, destroy them? Next year, we may find out.

The recent financial reform legislation is making new waves recently due to a provision buried 454 pages in that requires 30 federal agencies to create an Office of Minority and Women Inclusion, in order to “take affirmative steps to seek diversity in its workforce at all levels of the agency consistent with the demographic diversity of the United States and the Federal Government.

Each office is required to appoint a Director, who must be at senior staff level and report regularly to the agency administrator, ensuring that this new office cannot be tucked safely away into some basement corner and ignored. The Director holds the power to cancel contracts with companies that do not show a good faith effort to actively promote diversity. The bill calls out the agencies in question, including the FDIC, Department of the Treasury, Federal Reserve banks, and the SEC.

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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-Up

Beth 005Contributed by Beth Collinge of CTG – a division of ILX Group plc.

Tough rules to clamp down on the use of privately-traded derivatives and speculation in shares by short-selling were unveiled by European Commission in bid to tame the “wild west” of financial markets. The central bank in Japan intervened to force the yen lower. Mixed economic data in the US and talk on a further quantitative easing pushed gold prices to record highs.

Economic Backdrop

  • Economic data from the US were mixed last week. Positive numbers from US initial jobless claims were then offset by downbeat Philadelphia Fed data, which showed factory activity on the US east coast contracting for a second month. US consumer sentiment unexpectedly fell to its weakest level in more than a year in September, while the consumer price index showed that inflation was muted in August. The equity markets were driven by speculation about further asset purchases by the US Federal Reserve.
  • In the UK the number of people in employment for the quarter rose by 286,000 to 29.16m. This is the biggest quarterly rise since 1971. The figure was boosted by 166,000 part-time jobs, continuing a trend during the year for employers to rely increasingly on part-time workers. Part-time workers now account for 27.2 per cent of total employment.
  • The annual rate of consumer price inflation remained at 3.1 per cent in August, having declined from a peak of 3.7 per cent in April. Inflation as measured by the retail price index fell from 4.8 per cent to 4.7 per cent. Core inflation, which cuts out volatile food, tobacco, alcohol and energy prices, rose to 2.8 per cent from 2.6 per cent, as price pressures in consumer services grew to their highest in 18 months. Retail sales on Britain’s high streets unexpectedly fell in August after strong growth earlier in the summer, fuelling fears of a slowdown in the sector.
  • The eurozone’s economy (as measured by gross domestic product)will grow this year at at 1.7 per cent in 2010 up from the 0.9 per cent forecast in May, according to the Economic and Financial Affairs directorate of the European Commission, mostly because of the growth spurt the region experienced in the second quarter. However, European Union economists warned of “a moderation of growth” in the second half of the year.
  • Gold prices hit an all-time high, rising 16.35 per cent since January, due to investor concerns about the global economy, rising fiscal deficits, renewed US dollar weakness against the euro and talk of another round of quantitative easing by the US Fed. This also led to a further fall in 10-year US bond yields, to 2.74 per cent.
  • The Japanese stock market rose after the Japanese central bank intervened unilaterally to force the yen lower: the yen fell nearly 2 per cent against the dollar.

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Are Quotas the Answer in the EU and UK?

Elegant leaderBy Cleo Thompson (London), Founder of TheGenderBlog

Three years ago, Professor Lynda Gratton of the London Business School used the phrase the “leaking pipeline,” when she declared:

“… across most industrial sectors, while 50 per cent of graduates recruited are women, only 30 per cent of managers are women and about 15 per cent of senior executives are women. Clearly, there is a leak in the pipeline that filters out many women en route to the corporate suite. Many reasons for this leak have been explored. Women fail to see role models at the top and leave to find a better working situation or create one of their own. They might also leave because they feel forced to choose between work and home. Only 48 per cent of female team leaders we surveyed have children, while 96 per cent of their male colleagues are fathers. A worrying trend is that more women are leaving. Without swift action, the 50:30:15 ratios will continue to be a drain on talent and a negative pull on performance.”

As the global economy slowly emerges into a brave new post-credit crunch world, statistics from Catalyst, McKinsey, the University of Cranfield and others indicate that the last three years have seen little change for women in business, and there is certainly still no evidence that the leaking pipeline will fix itself – so has the time now come for more direct action?

Time for Quotas in the EU?

Viviane Reading, who heads up equality and equal rights in her role as the European Union’s Fundamental Rights’ Commissioner, seems to think so. She has warned that, unless more board room seats are filled by women by the end of 2011, she will use new powers under the Lisbon Treaty to impose gender quotas at the European level, meaning that privately owned British companies (and others from countries which fall under EU legislation) would be required to more than double women’s representation from the current 1 in 10 number of seats now occupied by female board members.

Quoted in the Daily Telegraph, the Commissioner hopes that her ultimatum will change both the European business culture and the gender mix and has suggested that she does not “… rule out the possibility of legislation in this area.”

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When is an ERG not an ERG?

iStock_000014130873XSmallBy Dr. Eric Shoars, author of Women Under Glass: The Secret Nature of Glass Ceilings and the Steps to Overcome Them

Corporate America has seen the rise of ERGs – Employee Resource Groups – to help advance women and minorities in the workplace. Though this is a good trend, an employee resource group will do no good if there is not a definitive, concentrated effort toward getting women into clout title positions i.e. CEO, CFO, COO, Boards of Directors. An ERG group simply for the purpose of having one only increases the perception of how progressive the company seems to be rather than actually advancing women through the barriers keeping them from corner offices. A female colleague sent me an email the other day about an ERG in her company that seems to the former rather than the latter.

The Fortune 500 company – who I’ll refer to as Company X to protect my colleague who works there – has created an Employee Resource Group called “Women Our Way.” The stated mission of Women Our Way is to “fulfill our vision by encouraging inclusion in the workplace. We will provide a voice to our leadership regarding barriers and opportunities. We will encourage women to maximize their potential and advancement through education, leadership, networking, and mentoring.” The question this mission statement does not address is: “To what end?” The company says they will provide a voice to their leadership regarding barriers and opportunities… but through what barriers and to what opportunities? Advancement to where? Middle management? Senior management? As mission statements go this one is vague and creates more questions than it answers. Mission statements as a whole have been a pet peeve of mine for years because they usually contain a lot of warm, fuzzy phrases that are more slogan than substance. We only need look to Patrick Henry for the best mission statement ever – “Give me liberty or give me death!” No ambiguity there. A lot of companies could learn from Mr. Henry’s example.

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The Female Mastermind: Developing a Professional Women’s Network

iStock_000002762853XSmallContributed by Tanya Hall (Austin, Texas)

Achieving a successful career depends just as much on your network as it does on your skills, knowledge, and experience. Though any professional connection you make is important, nothing impacts your career or has as much influence on your success as a group of likeminded women vested in each other’s success. Referred to as a “mastermind group,” these women work together to help each other identify strengths and weaknesses, sets goals and hold each other accountable to them, and share resources and valuable personal experiences.

There are many reasons why it’s important to align yourself with other professional women. First of all, professional women share a common and unique perspective on what success looks like and how to achieve it. They understand the challenges specific to professional women—especially for those who are also mothers—and can share advice on how to balance family and work without sacrificing your ambitions. Also, by holding each other accountable, the group increases the likelihood of each individual achieving her goals and finding success.

I asked one of my clients, author and organization consultant Lorie Marrero, a few questions about the benefits of a mastermind group. She said, “I get to be in a supportive but challenging group of peers of my choosing and am accountable to them for my goals and results.” In fact, the group helped her write her first book by making her accountable for regularly producing material. Because of her success, she recently made a commitment to the group to write a second book.

When I asked her what the key to a successful mastermind group was, Marrero responded with a few important considerations: Start by “identifying the right people to join you.” Potential members should think similarly to you, “but not so similarly that they won’t have a valuable perspective to share.” She also recommended selecting people who are willing to put into the group as much as they take out of it and emphasized the importance of making sure that potential members are honestly and wholeheartedly committed to the group.

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Building Your Strategic Personal Network

iStock_000014169834XSmallBy Stephanie Wilcox (Middlefield, CT)

“Women are the original prototype of a network,” said Susan RoAne, an influential networking and business communication expert and author of The Secrets of Savvy Networking. “They helped each other through famine and harsh times. They got together on the farm or in quilting groups, which were the first examples of historic networking groups, and they would quietly quilt and talk.”

Whether it’s over a quilt, lunch or the telephone, women still need their networks, including personal advisory boards and small strategic networking groups, and RoAne shares why they are so beneficial and how to build them.

“There is no question, you have to have personal networks,” said RoAne. “It’s necessary to have people whose feedback and opinions you respect and trust, and the feedback and opinions have to be entirely based on a person’s complete commitment to you, your success, happiness and joy.”

You need a group of three, four or five real friends who will form your personal advisory board to help with advice, career decisions and family/personal matters. Ideally, to have a diverse network, these people will be a mix of ages and will be smart, savvy, informed and experienced. Of course, these relationships will need to be built, but it won’t happen overnight. According to RoAne, it’s best to include people in your personal advisory board who you think have a good head on their shoulders. And do not include people who you don’t think are smart. “There are different kinds of smart,” she said. “Someone with a good grasp on the subject at hand or even someone with a good BS detector. That’s what smart CEOs do when building a team; they find people who balance them out.”

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5 Ways to Leverage the Power of Employee Resource Groups for Leadership Development

jenniferbBy Jennifer Brown, President & Founder of Jennifer Brown Consulting

Picture the most efficient, productive, and innovative organization you can imagine. What does it look like? Chances are that it resembles a highly-advanced form of an Employee Resource Group (ERG), also known as Affinity Groups or Business Resource Groups — a multi-disciplinary, globally dispersed, diverse yet inclusive organization — in which ideas flow up and down the hierarchy and across silos.

ERGs should be considered the best resource and opportunity for the next generation of women leaders, and other diverse talent, and here’s why. Today (or in the near future), ERGs enable women to:
1. gain exposure and visibility within broader networks
2. learn a broader set of skills by collaborating on ERG projects and initiatives
3. seize leadership opportunities within ERGs that they may not otherwise realize in their day jobs, and
4. contribute to their company’s “cultural competency” through participation in sales, market, and product development.

ERGs provide a win-win opportunity for employers and female employees because they will realize the value and bottom line impact of women who are empowered and connected like never before. JBC has developed the following insights to help women think most strategically about where they can gain leverage. We encourage women to take advantage of and leverage the existence of these networks, to not only grow their careers but also demonstrate the value of female talent, and markets, to organizations everywhere.

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5 Ways to Make Quality Time Count with Your Kids

iStock_000000909343XSmallBy Elisabeth Grant (Washington, D.C.)

A recent University of Maryland study, cited in this Washington Post article, finds that moms today are spending more time with their kids (an average of 14.1 hours a week) than they did 40 years ago (10.2 hours a week). But despite reports that moms are doing better balancing their time at home, many working moms still worry about spending quality time with their kids.

Alleviate the concern by focusing on the time you have together, and aiming for quality over quantity. Read on for five ways to spend time with your children and make it count.

1. Eat.
Eating is, of course, a necessity, but eating with your kids can have more benefits than just relieving hunger. Research has found that meal time together as a family can have numerous positive effects. For instance, Purdue University’s Center for Families says shared family meal times can contribute to “improving dietary quality, preventing obesity, enhancing language acquisition and academic performance, improving social skills and family unity, and reducing risk-taking behaviors.”

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Are Family-Friendly Benefits on the Decline?

working momBy Tina Vasquez (Los Angeles)

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) recently released the results of its annual study [PDF], which gathers information on the types of benefits employers offer their employees. It was found that most benefits remained stable this past year, though many benefit offerings are down from five years ago. It was also discovered benefits for working parents took some unexpected turns.

One of the hardest hit areas was flextime, with only 49 percent of employers offering flextime in 2010, down from 57 percent in 2006. Paid family leave also took a major hit, with just 24 percent of companies currently offering it, compared to 32 percent in 2006. The findings, which are based on a survey of 534 human resources professionals, aren’t very surprising. During rough economic patches it is not uncommon to see medical benefits reduced or 401(k) matching eliminated. What is perplexing, however, is sorting through the numbers and not being able to detect any rhyme or reason as to why certain benefits stay, while others go.

For example, 7 percent of HR respondents said they plan to reduce or eliminate paid-maternity leave policies within the next 12 months, while paid paternity leave is offered by 17 percent of companies today vs. 13 percent in 2006. The figures are also similar for paid maternity leave and 16 percent of firms now offer adoption leave. So, how do companies juggle different family friendly benefits during a tough economy? And more specifically, why would they decide to cut flex time while increasing maternity/paternity paid time off? How are these tradeoffs considered?

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In Case You Missed It: Business News Round-Up

Beth 005Contributed by Beth Collinge of CTG – a division of ILX Group plc.

The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision revealed new capital requirements. The Bank of England kept interest rates unchanged. Yields on peripheral eurozone bonds rose with renewed sovereign debt issuance. A Beige Book survey revealed economic growth mixed or slow in USA.

Economic Backdrop

  • Global equity and oil prices made modest gains while core government bonds and gold eased back.
  • Plans by Deutsche Bank to raise over €9bn unsettled the equity market on Friday ahead of the weekend’s Basel Committee on Banking Supervision summit, that set fresh capital requirements for the sector.
  • This week there were also claims that July’s “stress tests” on Europe’s banks had understated some lenders’ holdings of potentially risky sovereign debt. The spread of peripheral government bond yields over German Bunds widened sharply in the early part of the week – to record levels in the cases of Portugal and Ireland – prompting fresh buying by the European Central Bank. Economic data from Germany appeared to suggest that the strong growth seen in the eurozone’s powerhouse in the second quarter of the year might be tailing off.
  • The US Federal Reserve released its snapshot of the economy, which showed “widespread signs” of slowing in recent weeks. The Fed said in its Beige Book survey of businesses that three of the 12 districts questioned said economic growth was mixed or slow.
  • The Bank of England left interest rates and the level of quantitative easing unchanged as expected, after recent economic signs pointed to a relatively robust recovery.
  • During the week the euro ground against the dollar, and against the pound.
  • The Canadian dollar was given an extra boost when the Bank of Canada raised interest rates by 25 basis points to 1 per cent after its policy meeting on Wednesday, but the Reserve Bank of Australia kept interest rates on hold at its policy meeting on Tuesday, citing fears over a global slowdown.
  • In commodities, oil was trading above $76 a barrel late on Friday, up from $74.60 a week earlier, although it eased back in choppy trading. Gold rose to within a whisker of its June record high of $1,265 but eased back to $1,247 as risk aversion faded.
  • China’s trade surplus dropped in August after imports grew at a faster rate than expected, an indication that domestic demand could be rebounding after several months of slowdown.
  • Beijing allowed its currency to appreciate by 0.5 per cent this week, taking the total increase in the value of the renminbi to 0.95 per cent since it abandoned the dollar peg in June.

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