Articles

A Woman's Right to a Life Without Violence

It takes a special kind of coward to target a maternity ward for a terrorist attack. But that’s what happened in Afghanistan on Tuesday, when gunmen stormed a maternity clinic in Kabul, killing 24 individuals, mostly moms and newborns. The attack was clearly targeted, in a country where women live precarious lives at best. 

Who's Going to Take Care of the Children?

This is why having more moms in leadership roles is critical, because clearly no one around the decision-making tables has noticed that the plans for the next six to eighteen months are missing some resources - the ones that take care of the children while mothers and fathers are at work. 

Women's Equality: Sometimes It is a Zero Sum Game

It’s a popular argument - women’s equality is not a zero sum game. More women in leadership is not a zero sum game. Men v. women is not a zero game. 

Except sometimes it is. A zero sum game.

Men Take Risks, Women Take Responsibility

Faced with a global pandemic, it hasn't escaped anyone's attention that it has been the women world leaders who have been most effective in handling this crisis while many of their male counterparts have stumbled. What explains the difference? One factor could be who takes the risks, and who takes responsibility.

Women, Wicked Problems, & Pandemics

There’s an irony in here somewhere: women’s typical career path through positions of support (not production) is the very thing that provides them skills and capabilities needed to lead in a time of crisis - in a time when the problems we face can only be described as “wicked.” 

Office Housework: Women Do More

Taking notes, getting a conference room, planning parties and retirement recognitions, straightening up after a lunch meeting - these are all tasks that have to be done, but they are not directly related to core business activities and don't help when it comes time for pay increases and promotions. So why do women end up with these assignments more often than not?

What Drives My Work on Gender Equality?

For the past 20 years, my work has been driven by a single question (that those of you who know me are probably sick of hearing): what if half of the leaders were women?

The Final Four that Wasn't

If it were a normal year, my husband and I would be packed and ready to head out today for New Orleans, the site of the 2020 Women's Final Four. But this is no ordinary year.

What I Want for Women: Lives Without Limits

You'd think this would an easy one for me; someone asked me for my definition of feminism. In the past, I've undoubtedly used something along the lines of equal rights for women and men or equality among the sexes. 

But this time, something stopped me. Maybe it was that the individual posing the question asked me for my personal definition - what did it mean to me? This is what I discovered.

Women Chairs: Who Does the Work?

Research found that women directors step into leadership positions on boards up to two years faster than men. Is this a sign or progress or is it just a way to keep them busy?