It feels like yesterday, but it was back in 2020 when I interviewed Deanna Mulligan, who was the CEO of one of the largest companies in America at the time.
Deanna was the CEO of Guardian Insurance – a Fortune 250 company – and was regularly named as one of the 50 most powerful women in business.
I told Deanna that as I was preparing for the interview, I was troubled to learn that she was one of only 37 female Fortune 500 CEOs. “I knew the number was low, but 37, that is an embarrassing number. That’s a number that as a society we should be ashamed of.”
Deanna’s response surprised me.
“Well, you say 37 Fortune 500 CEOs. When I became CEO of Guardian, there were only 14. So we’ve actually made progress in the last nine years. Now, not fast enough, but we are making progress. When I graduated from business school, there was only one and there had been very few in history, so it didn’t even seem like a realistic goal to me to be CEO of a Fortune 500 company. So I think, first of all, things are changing. Not changing fast enough, but they are changing.”
She was 100% right. Today there are 51 female Fortune 500 CEOs. Still way too low, but an increase of more than a third since our conversation less than four years ago.
An important takeaway not only from this exchange but from my conversations with hundreds of the most successful leaders across a wide range of fields is that representation matters.
I have asked many prominent female leaders in male-dominated industries what men can do to become better allies and I have heard lots of different answers, but the first step is caring about making a difference. The next step is translating that care into some form of action.
As we mark and reflect upon International Women’s Day, there is no better time than now to ask ourselves what actions we can take to make an impact.
