Diversity & Inclusion

GM Named One of the 2015 ‘Top Companies for Executive Women’

Mar 11, 2015 5:20 PM ET
Campaign: Women's History Month
General Motors has been named one of the 2015 “Top Companies for Executive Women” by the National Association for Female Executives, which recognizes American corporations that identify and promote successful women. Senior leadership at General Motors includes Senior Vice President Global Connected Customer Experience Alicia Boler-Davis (left) and GM CEO Mary Barra, who are pictured here at a Michigan Women's Foundation dinner in Detroit last April. (Photo by Monica Morgan for General Motors)

NEW YORK, March 11, 2015 /3BL Media/ – General Motors has been named one of the 2015 “Top Companies for Executive Women” by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), which recognizes American corporations that identify and promote successful women.

“We encourage diverse thinking and collaboration in everything we do at GM on our journey to become the most valued automotive company,” said GM CEO Mary Barra. “At GM, one-fifth of our executives, one-fourth of our officers and more than one-third of our board members are women.”

Said NAFE President Betty Spence: “We’re counting the numbers of women in senior management at America’s top companies and are happy to find that companies are responding to the competition. The 2015 NAFE Top Companies demonstrate their understanding that having women in top executive posts increases the bottom line.”

The full list of this year’s winners is posted on workingmother.com and nafe.com.

Compared with last year’s list, findings for the 2015 NAFE Top 50 Companies reveal:

  • The percentage of women who hold board seats at the 2015 NAFE Top Companies grew to 29 percent from 27 percent last year. Forty percent of top earners at the 2015 NAFE Top 50 are women, up from 35 percent last year.
  • Half of the winning companies now have four or more women board directors; at the NAFE Top 50, 29 percent of board members are women, compared with just 19 percent among companies that make up the S&P 500. The GM Board of Directors has five women comprising 38 percent of its members.
  • Fifty-eight percent of the 2015 NAFE Top Companies now offer sponsorship programs, compared with 42 percent in 2013; 98 percent offer job rotations, up from 80 percent two years ago.
  • Female representation at the CEO level held steady at 10 percent over the last four years at NAFE Top Companies – twice the percentage at Fortune 500 companies

General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM, TSX: GMM) and its partners produce vehicles in 30 countries, and the company has leadership positions in the world's largest and fastest-growing automotive markets. GM, its subsidiaries and joint venture entities sell vehicles under the Chevrolet, Cadillac, Baojun, Buick, GMC, Holden, Jiefang, Opel, Vauxhall and Wuling brands. More information on the company and its subsidiaries, including OnStar, a global leader in vehicle safety, security and information services, can be found at http://www.gm.com.

About the Methodology

The 2015 NAFE Top Companies application includes more than 200 questions on female representation at all levels, especially the corporate officer and profit-and-loss ranks. The vetting process includes tracking access and usage of programs and policies that promote the advancement of women as well as the training and accountability of managers in relation to the number of women who advance. In order to be eligible for the NAFE Top Companies survey, entrants must have a minimum of 1,000 employees, two women on the Board of Directors and be a public or private company. NAFE also separately names the Top 10 companies in the non-profit sector.

ABOUT NAFE

The National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), founded in 1972, serves 20,000 members nationwide with networking, tools and solutions to strengthen and grow their careers and businesses. Working Mother magazine publishes the annual NAFE Top Companies list. NAFE.com provides up-to-date information, community for women in business and access to member benefits. NAFE is a division of Working Mother Media, owned by the Bonnier Corporation.