Firm Management
Accounting Firms Make List of Best Companies for Executive Women
BDO, EY, KPMG, Deloitte, Grant Thornton and Moss Adams, all large national accounting firms, have been named to the 2020 “Top Companies for Executive Women” by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE).
Mar. 11, 2020
BDO, EY, KPMG, Deloitte, Grant Thornton and Moss Adams, all large national accounting firms, have been named to the 2020 “Top Companies for Executive Women” by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE).
Featured in the April/May issue of Working Mother, the NAFE Top Companies list recognizes organizations that have made a significant impact in helping women advance to executive levels. It evaluates mentoring and sponsorship programs, as well as employee resource groups and leadership development training opportunities. The CEO and other leaders at the top 70 companies are deeply involved in establishing notable company benefits and corporate culture initiatives that have made a significant impact for gender-equity.
Highlights of the 2019 NAFE Top 70 Companies include:
- Female representation among CEOs at the NAFE Top 70 companies increased 5 percentage points to 19 percent this year, outpacing the S&P 500 at 5 percent.
- The percentage of women on the boards of directors at the NAFE Top 70 companies increased two points to 32 percent, up from 30 percent in 2018. S&P 500 held steady year over year at 21 percent.
- Female executives responsible for divisions worth more than $1 billion increased from 21 percent to 26 percent in the past year.
“A commitment to workplace inclusion and professional advancement is a critical part of BDO’s culture and business,” said Cathy Moy, chief people officer of BDO USA. “We’re proud to have a strong pipeline that advances women into leadership roles, and that our board of directors includes four women, including our board chair. Being recognized by NAFE for the sixth year is a testament to our commitment as a people-first organization and our core purpose of helping people thrive every day.”
Referring to the S&P 500, where only 6% of CEOs are women, NAFE President Dr. Betty Spence said: “Our research ‘The Gender Gap at the Top: What’s Keeping Women from Leading Corporate America’ uncovered the alarming fact that men — not women — are being trained and selected for the revenue-generating positions that lead to the top job. At the NAFE Top Companies, we do report small increases in women running major operations and moving into the C-suite, and we encourage all companies to focus on gender equity in their succession planning.”
“The 2020 NAFE Top Companies continue to tell the story of what organizations are doing to move women into executive positions by communicating the value of P&L roles and ensuring equity in executive succession planning,” said Subha V. Barry, president, Working Mother Media. “However, corporate America is finally beginning to realize that there is still much work to do. There are still too few women with this experience, but the NAFE Top Companies continue to pave the way for the advancement of women.”
“The 2019 NAFE Top Companies continue to tell a progressive story about what organizations are doing to move women up into executive positions,” says Subha V. Barry, president of Working Mother Media. “While the results are encouraging, there is still much work to do. There are still too few women serving as CEOs, managing large asset portfolios, and seated on boards of directors, but the NAFE Top Companies are paving the way for the advancement of women.”