Women on Boards co-founder to keynote OKC event Wednesday
Q: Oklahoma City’s third annual
2020 Women on Boards discussion is slated for Wednesday. Tell us about the event.
A: Across the country on Nov.
15, thousands of leaders, highlevel executives, authors and recognized experts will discuss the benefits, obstacles and strategies to achieving gender equity on corporate boards.
Oklahoma City’s discussion on how women can find and prepare themselves for board activities will be held 7:30 a.m. to noon at Oklahoma City
University’s Meinders School of
Business, with a kickoff reception 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday at the OU Price College of Business in Oklahoma City. Joining
OCU and OU as sponsors are The Chickasaw Nation, LSB Industries, Sonic, Devon Energy, Lopez Foods, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Purse Power Inc.
Q: Why is it important to increase the number of women on corporate boards?
A: Gender equity isn’t just the fair thing to do, it’s a smart business decision. Across all industries, companies with significant numbers of women on their boards of directors outperform companies without. The Bostonbased 2020 Women on Boards has set a goal for women to represent an average of 20 percent of all corporate boards by 2020. Currently, women hold 19.8 percent of board seats of Fortune 1000 companies.
Q: Who’s on tap to speak at the Oklahoma City event? A: Stephanie Sonnabend, co-founder of 2020 Women on Boards, will share six steps to create a personal strategic plan, and Nancy Parsons, CEO of the CDR Assessment Group, will present the latest research, along with insights to end the glass ceiling. Local businesswomen Jacque Fiegel of Prosperity Bank and Jack Henry and Associates, Debbie Fleming of Meinders School of Business and Oklahoma Capital Bank, Jennifer Grigsby of Ascent Resources and CrossFirst Bank, and Marran Ogilvie of Four Corners Property Trust, LSB Industries and Korea Fund will participate in a panel discussion moderated by Terry Neese, CEO of the Institute for Economic Empowerment of Women and the Small Business Advisory Council. Lindy Ritz, president of the Ritz Group and former director of the FAA, will serve as emcee of the event.
Q: How can interested persons register for the event?
A: Go to 2020wob.com and type “Oklahoma City” in the search bar. Costs range from $15 for a box lunch networking section only from noon to 1 p.m., Wednesday to $125 for all events.