Kellie Richter on Forefront

GENDER DIVERSITY IN THE BOARDROOM: Q&A WITH KELLIE RICHTER – CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, PROVASI CAPITAL PARTNERS LP.

Only 19% of corporate board of directors seats are filled by women.

Because our world and workplace are increasingly diverse, diverse perspectives should also be increasingly represented on company boards. Ideally, board members will reflect the demographics of not only a company’s employee base but also the company’s customers.

Historically, many women have sacrificed career growth for time at home while raising children, but as the number of women holding senior positions in companies grows, we should expect correlating growth on company boards over time.

In my view, it is critical that having a board of diverse members is more commonly viewed as a way to create value for an organization and not as compromising standards in order to fill a quota.

Sometimes we simply need the support of other experienced, successful women to encourage us. I’m proud to be part of an organization with such impressive member colleagues!