Blog

Last week, we hosted the annual Catalyst Awards Conference at the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. The theme of the conference was #DisruptTheDefault, a call to action for companies and individuals to shake up the way we think, speak, and act, and to make bold moves that will forge meaningful change for women, as well as men, in the workplace and the world.

We are celebrating Chevron’s US-based initiative, The Chevron Way: Engineering Opportunities for Women and Procter & Gamble’s Everyone Valued, Everyone Included, Everyone Performing at Their Peak™ at today’s Catalyst Awards Conference and Dinner!

What’s at stake if we don’t get more women into leadership positions? The innovation, progression, and longevity of a company.

Serving as our career confidants and coaches, mentors inspire us to work harder and push further.

Most people don’t exactly live by the phrases they saw on inspirational posters in their ninth grade classrooms. But as someone who has never been afraid to ask questions (how else are you going to learn anything?), I think some of these corny sayings actually apply to real life a lot more often than we think.

To expedite matters, I recommend celebrating “International Wake Up, Don’t Lose Your Talent Year”—and continuing the celebration and focus all year long!

We were paying attention in 2014—were you? Take our quiz below to celebrate some of the year’s most empowering feminist moments.

In this month’s Ask Deborah, in preparation for International Women’s Day, we posed a reader’s question about the biggest challenges facing women and girls around the world today.

Saying that ambition comes in one size only—or that it means a burning desire to reach the very top of your company—is limiting. Not everyone can be on the fast-track to be CEO.

As we reflect on the strides and accomplishments made by African Americans during Black History Month, we’re also faced with the reality that women of color are still confronted with hurdles in the workplace. They’re often stereotyped, have limited opportunities, and they’re on the low end of the wage gap.

Board service is an important part of a well-rounded professional portfolio, offering you opportunities to have an impact and learn as you contribute your unique perspective and expertise to other organizations

Catalyst’s first MOOC (Massive Online Open Course) is called “Inclusive Leadership Training: Becoming a Successful Leader.” It’s an introduction to inclusive leadership, a practice that brings out the best in people by emphasizing the importance of traits like accountability, empowering others, and being courageous and humble.

Last fall, during an inaugural speech at its GROW Leadership Summit, Arun Kumar Jain, Managing Director of Fluor India and member of Catalyst’s India Advisory Board, addressed issues that women face in the workplace today and highlighted a new initiative that’s centered on the importance of attracting, developing, and retaining female talent within organizations.

Trewstar is a boutique search firm that focuses on placing qualified women on Fortune 500 boards. Since 2013, Trewstar has placed 18 women on boards—many of them first-time directors.

A mentor will talk with you, but a sponsor will talk about you.

To put it very simply, organizations need more than capital to run well, and different people bring different skill sets to a good working board.

Every year since 1987, Catalyst has honored initiatives designed to help advance women in the workplace. Since becoming President & CEO of Catalyst, I’ve often been approached by executives who want to know: how can my company win the Catalyst Award?

We’ve rounded up the top seven gems that have been shared by senior women business leaders at the Connects events over the last few years. We hope the words of these women inspire you, as they have thousands of participants thus far, in both your professional and personal journeys.

You’ll never know unless you ask!