UC Davis study still finds few women in California boardrooms

Think California is progressive? Then you might be surprised to learn that a veritable who's who of iconic California-based businesses have no women in their corporate boardrooms and executive suites, according to a study by the University of California, Davis, to be released today.

From Apple Computer Inc. to Callaway Golf Co., TiVo to Williams-Sonoma, half of the 400 largest public companies in the world's eighth-largest economy have no women directors, and roughly a third have no female executive officers.

Now in its third year, the results of the Study of California Women Business Leaders show a marked lack of progress that disappointed Katrina Ellis, the study's author and an associate professor of management at UC Davis Graduate School of Management.

"The progress is one woman at a time -- it's a disgrace, really," she said. "Women are as much a token in California as in other places."

Consider the findings:

• Women hold only 10 percent of board seats and executive officer positions at the 400 largest companies.

• Only 87 of the 400 firms have two or more women executives.

• Three percent have a woman serving as chief executive officer.

All results are virtually unchanged from the university's initial report on the state's 200 largest public companies in 2005.

Then, as now, women held 10 percent of board seats and top executive officer positions. More than a quarter of the firms had no female directors, and more than two-thirds of the state's 200 largest public companies had no woman chief executive officers.

"For the third consecutive year, our findings continue to paint a disappointing picture – there is only one woman for every nine men in the executive suites and boardrooms of these high-profile companies," Nicole Woolsey Biggart, dean of the UC Davis Graduate School of Management, said in a statement introducing the report.

The Davis report, which will be released at the annual conference of the Professional Businesswomen of California at the Sacramento Convention Center, comes on the heels of a national study released earlier this month by New York-based research firm Catalyst.

The Catalyst report, "The Bottom Line: Corporate Performance and Women's Representation on Boards," showed that companies with the highest percentage of women on their boards outperformed those with the smallest by as much as two-thirds in three key categories: return on equity; return on sales; and return on invested capital.

"Gender equity pays off – that's the take-away message," said Kara Helander, a regional vice president at Catalyst.

"The numbers are out there suggesting that (more gender diversity) is a good business decision," Ellis said, referring to the Catalyst study and other reports. "But I think companies are sort of deaf to this."

Helander said subtle but entrenched barriers remain, including lack of access to network opportunities and gender-based stereotypes, but some companies are becoming more conscious of the need to open executive opportunities to women.

"We see a growing interest among companies to pay attention to this issue," Helander said. "People have said that time will take care of this, (but) it takes more than time."

Gender diversity was particularly lacking in the electronics and telecommunications sectors, according to the Davis study. The telecommunications sector had the lowest percentage of women directors at 3.2 percent, and roughly 3 percent of executive officers in the electronics sector were women.

In Santa Clara County's Silicon Valley, a cradle for both sectors, 9 percent of companies have women executive officers, Ellis said. "It's such a large economy that we need to shine a light on it and say, 'Something needs to change.' "

As downbeat as the data appeared, there were some encouraging signs.

The study, which monitored the state's 400 largest companies in terms of net revenue between July 1, 2006, and June 30 of this year, showed that large companies tended to show gender diversity on their boards.

Of the 25 companies that have the most women among the executive ranks, 10 have a female chief executive officer, including three of the top five: Linda Lang, chairman and chief executive officer of Jack in the Box Inc. (No. 5); Betsy McLaughlin, CEO of Hot Topic Inc. (No. 4); and Min Jung Kim, president and CEO of the study's top company, Nara Bank and Nara Bancorp.

Other household names among the Top 25 included Clorox Co. (No. 6); McKesson Corp. (No. 10); Wells Fargo & Co. (No. 19) and Guess Inc. (No. 20). McClatchy Co., which owns The Sacramento Bee, ranked No. 8.

At UC Davis, where women make up 43 percent of enrollment, professors said the study confirms what they already knew, that the glass ceiling remains a tough one to crack.

"The thing to take away from this (study) is that it is important to seek out networks of people, seek out mentors who might be able to help you get over these barriers," Ellis said.

About the writer:

• The Bee's Darrell Smith can be reached at (916) 321-1040 or dvsmith@sacbee.com.