The Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award: IBM
The Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award recognizes an organization that has demonstrated measurable results in the recruitment, retention, and advancement of technical women at all levels. Grounded in organizational research and based on quantitative data, the award measures the current representation of technical women as well as improvement in women’s representation over time. The Top Company is widely recognized as a leader in leveraging diverse talent for greater innovation.
IBM is the 2011 Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award Winner
IBM’s application received the highest average score from ABI researchers and is the 2011 Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award Winner.
IBM exemplifies many of the acknowledged best practices in the creation of a diverse and vibrant technical workforce. These include having a strong pipeline of technical women from entry to executive level . Women have significant roles in technical management, in executive technical positions, and in individual contributor career tracks, which lead to strong role models at the top and allows for the significant benefits of diversity in innovation at all levels of decision making.
IBM’s journey of cultural change for greater diversity went from a focus on compliance (diversity 1.0), to a focus on eliminating barriers (diversity 2.0), to now leveraging the full benefits of diversity for innovation and creativity – a source of competitive advantage (diversity 3.0). From first hiring women in the 1930s, to naming Fran Allen the first female IBM Fellow in 1989, to the institution of executive level diversity task forces in 1995, and beyond, IBM has demonstrated that gender-inclusive cultures benefits innovation. Indeed, in a 2004 study Professor David Thomas of Harvard Business School found that since 1995, when IBM implemented a cultural-change initiative based on diversity as a cornerstone of market strategy through the establishment of executive diversity task forces and making executives at all levels accountable for diversity, IBM’s representation of women executives grew by 370% worldwide (Thomas, 2004). Today, IBM employs some of the leading women in technology.
IBM participated in the inaugural Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Workshop on Thursday afternoon, May 19, 2011, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, CA. Following the workshop, IBM was presented with the Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award at the Women of Vision Awards. Brenda L. Dietrich, IBM Fellow and Vice President in the IBM Research Division, accepted the Award on behalf of IBM.
Overview of Award Process and Methodology
How were data collected?
Applications for the 2010-11 Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award were received by November 15, 2010. As instructed on the application form, companies provided data on technical women in their U.S.-based technical workforce (regardless of where a company was headquartered). Data excluded temporary staff members who are contracted through a third-party agency.
How were companies evaluated?
Each participating company was evaluated on the basis of 1) current representation, retention, and promotion percentages of technical women (in calendar year 2009), and 2) demonstrated improvement in each of these areas (from calendar year 2008). For each of 18 metrics under consideration, companies were scored on a 1-5 scale. The Top Company for Technical Women is the company with the highest average score across all metrics.
Visit the Anita Borg Top Company for Technical Women Award homepage for additional details.