WTW forges gender equality with Women in Governance

WTW understands that a culture of inclusion and diversity is critical to its business.

The company has partnered with non-profit organization, Women in Governance that supports women's leadership development and career advancement at senior levels.

To celebrate WTW's progress towards gender equity and reinforce its ongoing commitment, three WTW colleagues [pictured above alongside Angela Olden, CFO, Girl Scouts USA] participated in the Women in Governance Parity Gala:

Market Leader for Toronto & Canadian Client Management Leader, Martine Sohier
Retirement Director, Vinoja Kumareswaran
Retirement Senior Director, Vishul Shah

Supporting women in leadership development

Women in Governance was founded in 2010 to support women in their leadership development, career advancement and access to boardroom seats. Alarming statistics regarding the lack of women in senior management positions or as board directors motivated the creation of the non-profit organization.

According to Women in Governance, "Research demonstrates that companies and organizations with a greater number of women at the executive level or on the board tend to perform better financially. Allowing women to progress without glass ceilings or sticky floors is therefore not only in the interest of women, but a good business decision, as well as a great benefit to the economy and society overall, particularly in a context of talent shortage."

Evaluating parity at the decision-making level

Women in Governance advocates for women's equality by hosting and partnering on major events featuring prominent thought leaders and world-renowned speakers, a governance training program, mentoring programs for executive and professional women, a dynamic social media exchange platform, as well as its Parity Certification. Available across Canada and the United States, the Parity Certification - developed with the pro-bono support of McKinsey & Company in 2017 - helps organizations increase the representation of women in sectors where they have historically been underrepresented, as well as in senior management positions.

WTW, Accenture and Mercer support the Women in Governance team in the assessment of applications. Its robust questionnaire not only evaluates parity at the decision-making level of an organization, but also assesses the implementation of mechanisms that enable women at all levels of its hierarchy to achieve career advancement, thus helping to create a pipeline of female talent. Particular attention is also given to intersectionality to ensure that Black women, women of color, indigenous and LGBTQ women, and women with disabilities are not left behind.