On March 30th, top business women and men gathered at New York’s Waldorf Astoria for the 2009 Catalyst Awards Conference. This year the event celebrated Baxter International Inc., CH2M HILL, Gibbons P.C., and KPMG LLP for their innovative programs designed to support diversity in the workplace, including the advancement of women.

“This year’s award-winning initiatives represent the business success that bringing women into leadership can deliver across industries and geographies. No matter where we look, whether in New York or Asia Pacific, from engineering to pharmaceuticals, we find achievement through inclusion of women,” said Ilene H. Lang, President and CEO of Catalyst. At the morning general session, each of the honored companies spoke and took questions on the programs for which they were recognized. Baxter International Inc., a global developer and manufacturer of pharmaceuticals, was acknowledged for its Asia Pacific initiative, Building Talent Edge, through which it reached its goals of a 50/50 gender balance across management-level two years ahead of the target date.

Speakers from CH2M Hill shared how their firm—an engineering and construction leader—built on an already-existing culture of diversity to help foster women’s advancement through their Constructing Pathways for Women Through Inclusion initiative.

Representatives from Gibbons P.C., a progressive law firm based in the New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia and Delaware metropolitan regions, spoke about their success with The Woman’s Initiative: Driving Success Through Diversity Investment. This program has become critical to its branding in the marketplace and in fostering a workplace culture that is flexible and inclusive.

Finally, KPMG discussed its initiative—Great Place to Build a Career—that includes a variety of programs intended to foster a bond with KPMG for an entire career lifespan, from recruiting to maintaining connections with KPMG alumni.

Panelists from all the companies spoke of the business case to be made for the meaningful inclusion of women at all levels of management. In the Gibbons presenetation, Patrick C. Dunican, Jr., Chairman and Managing Director said, “Last year at Gibbons, we could attribute $6 million of business to our Women’s Initiative so we know the Initiative has made a direct impact on our bottom line….Diversity of thinking brings the best results.” Christine Amalfe, who is the Chair of the Employment Law section added, “There is no doubt that there is a business case for promoting, retaining and advancing women in law firms and in every company. And if the senior management gets that, even in difficult economic times, they will find a way to continue.”

All the companies also stressed the importance of “buy in” from men at all levels of the organization. In both the general session and the breakout sessions, panelist after panelist cited the “men who get it” – those who champion the career development, mentoring and networking programs to ensure that highly capable women are in the pipeline and to encourage female representation in management.

During the luncheon session, Andrea Jung, Chairman & CEO of Avon Products, Inc. had an in-depth dialogue with Ms. Lang. The two covered a wide range of topics including how Ms. Jung’s traditional Chinese upbringing impacted her leadership style and career, her rise within the ranks of Avon, the hard choices she had to make along the way, and how she handles the sticky issue of work/life balance.

Stay tuned for more coverage over the next couple of weeks on the award-winning companies and the topics addressed at the conference, including work-life effectiveness, the effect of the unwritten rules on women’s advancement and the elements of an inclusive corporate culture.

Discussion Topic: Korean Comfort Women: The Pros and Cons of Using International Human Rights Law as an Advocacy Platform

The FWLA is honored to invite Dr. Etsuro Totsuka, Professor of International Human Rights Law at Ryukoku University’s School of Law, as our special guest speaker for our April 7th meeting. Dr. Totsuka will address the international and domestic legal issues arising in connection with, and his first hand experiences, defending the rights of the Comfort Women — namely, the women who were forced into sexual slavery by the Japanese military during World War II. Dr. Totsuka has been actively advocating on behalf of these women, mostly Korean, since 1992. He will share the challenges he has faced raising the issue at the United Nations Commission on Human Rights, the Japanese Government’s counter-argument and attitude, the United Nation’s jurisdiction over slavery, actions taken by the United Nations, the de facto impunity of responsible parties, the interpretation of the 1965 Korea-Japan Agreement in light of historical facts, and proposed legislative solutions by the National Diet. Dr. Totsuka will also share some of the success stories. Temple University School of Law, Japan Campus is offering one MCLE credit* to U.S. qualified attorneys attending this meeting. Please bring your state attorney ID number (if applicable) so that you can complete the necessary paperwork at the meeting.We hope you will be able to join us for this informative presentation and unique opportunity to meet Dr. Totsuka. Please invite your friends and colleagues to attend this meeting.FWLA meetings are open to the public. Everyone — men and women, lawyers and those interested in the law or simply the featured topic of discussion — are always welcome to attend our meetings so please invite your friends and colleagues to attend this timely presentation. Guests do not need to accompany a member.

It’s no longer business as usual. The rules are changing. And you might need a new play book for 2009. The economic recession—on both global and national fronts—will have important implications for your organization. Cliff-diving commodity prices have changed the landscape for Western provinces. The near-term outlook for U.S. and global growth will determine the turnaround in energy prices. How have capital investment plans changed? What are the implications for interprovincial migration? Will labour markets remain tight through the downturn? What will this take away from federal and provincial coffers?

The Conference Board is pleased to deliver an event that gets you on the right page to start 2009.Weathering the Global Storm: an Economic Outlook will bring you up to date with the economic information and understanding you need to update your strategies and business plans.Here is a sampling of the topics to be discussed:

Find out how the U.S. financial crisis will affect specific industries in Alberta, B.C. and the Prairies. Explore the major economic forces and factors affecting your organization and your region. Hear about the global credit crunch and how it is affecting households.

Understand how government policy might affect the forecast.

Join in the discussion of today’s most important business issues.

Get your information from Canada’s most respected economic forecasters

Accurate information is the cornerstone of a solid strategic plan. The Conference Board of Canada is renowned for its expertise in economic forecasting and analysis, and has been recognized as one of Canada’s top economic forecasters. Take advantage of this expertise to anticipate and capitalize on the major forces affecting your organization.

For more than 30 years, Canadian business has relied on the economic perspective, analysis, and insights if the Conference Board. Learn from our respected economists and ensure your business has the advantage of an informed outlook on future trends.

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The 2009 Conference will focus on the Management of Green Technology (GT). The conference will inform about technologies, issues related to its management, trends and research in this technology which is receiving much attention and interest. From green energy to green construction, material, and services; developed and developing countries are racing for innovations and development of new products that promise a high impact on living, the environment, national and regional policies.

The conference will address other issues related to MOT Education, R&D, technology transfer, and theory of technology, with special attention to emerging technologies that contribute to the quality of life.

Who Should Participate

• Presidents and Vice-Presidents of Corporations
• Policy Makers
• R&D Managers
• Entrepreneurs and Technology Innovators
• Engineers in areas of Design, Production, Manufacturing, Quality, Marketing and Sales
• Managers in the areas of Services, Finance, Marketing, Economics and Public Policy
• Project and Operations Managers
• Educators involved in Technology, Innovations, Engineering, Management, Industrial Administration, Management of Productivity and Quality, Business Administration and Economics Tracks

Register here