Diversity Will Benefit Your Bottom Line

Diversity is coming quickly to the corporate world. This year, the State of California has implemented a new law requiring female board representation at all publicly held companies—a move that will shake up some major real estate companies based here. This movement toward more gender diversity in the workplace could prove to have a positive impact on company profits.

“The statistic around profitability are impressive. First of all, 80% of consumption decisions are made by women, 60% of the wealth will be managed by women within this generation and companies that have women in the executive ranks and on their boards are markedly more profitable,” Paige Serden, EVP at Newmark Realty Capital, tells GlobeSt.com. “While I have always been an advocate that merit is as good a qualifier, these statistics alone should scream “ wake-up” to those who have not embraced the concept of gender diversity. All of the 50 California companies with the highest revenues have at least one female director and 23% of their board seats are held by women.”

The opposite is also true for companies that have eschewed gender diversity, and the numbers are staggering. In California, the 50 companies with the lowest revenues also have the lowest female executives. “Research shows that among the 50 California companies with the lowest revenues, only 8% of the board seats are held by women. Nearly half, 48%, of these smaller companies have no female directors,” says Serden.