Women, Leadership & Charging Bulls
Gotta love the news on Wall Street last week, especially the “Fearless Girl” staring down Wall Street’s charging bull. She is resolute, defiant, full of sass, and looking at that bull like, “C’mon you. I dare you!” It is clear from that photo that if the bull charged, she’d manage to win. How can that image not make us grin? I hope she stays there forever.
What made me grin even more was the news from Thomson Reuters’ CEO, Jim Smith. He made a commitment that women would hold a minimum of 40% of the firm’s senior leadership positions by 2020. Way to go Jim. I have tremendous respect for this leader and the transformation he continues to oversee. Under his leadership, Thomson Reuters has gone from conglomerate to concentrated corporation, largely based on a single set of industries and customers — doing what we call leading with “focused-scale.” Here he is again, taking the lead. Ensuring diversity in leadership is part of the firms’ DNA.
I see a lot of firms in this industry and a lot of leaders. I see it all. One thing we at Outsell know for sure is that Thomson Reuters is acting as a pacesetter in this regard. Two weeks ago, our post on diversity in our industry (or the lack thereof) got a lot of attention. I asked, who would join Tim (Armstrong) in his challenge to make AOL’s top ranks more balanced by 2020? How lovely that less than a month later, Jim joins with a similar announcement and a commitment he’ll take seriously. Forty-three percent of the company’s employees and 30% of its senior leadership are women. Moving the needle 10 points in three years is impressive. We’ll be watching. We’ll be tracking. We’ll be celebrating, and we’ll be looking at the results.
Now, to the next 20 or so companies in our industry who are market share leaders, who is going to join Tim and Jim in laying down this gauntlet at their firms?
Anthea C. Stratigos is Co-founder & CEO of Outsell, Inc., the leading research and advisory firm focused exclusively on data, media, information, and technology. Join our exclusive global community supporting over 3,000 executives and influencing billions of dollars in deals. Advance the business of data, see around the corner, grow revenue, and build truly meaningful relationships. Contact us today to start your journey!