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Moira ForbesForbes Staff

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1/27/2015 @ 2:05PM

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The 2015 Power Women Of Davos

The number of women who attended this years
World Economic Forum once again remained
scarce, with women making up just 17% of the
2,500 Davos attendees. While womens
representation at this power conclave has
remained largely stagnant in recent years, its a
reflection of the greater gender inequality issues
which includes the highest levels of global
leadership. WEFs recent Global Gender Gap
Report, for example, estimates that it will take
over 80 years to achieve gender parity in the
workplace given the current rate of womens
advancement.
These statistics are certainly bleak, yet there were
few bright spots that emerged from this years
Davos that should inspire optimism that muchneeded change may be accelerating. First, issues
of inequality dominated the Davos agenda this
year, with gender disparity emerging as a critical
theme debated amongst the gathering of global
power elites from leaders such as RenaultNissans Chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn to IMF
Managing Director Christine Lagarde. Anyone
with a decent brain must know its better to hire
from 100% of the population, noted Paul Polman,
CEO of Unilever, in a compelling session
dedicated to Ending Poverty through Parity.

L-R: Mark Weinberger, Sheryl Sandberg, Hon. Helen E. Clark, Rosalind

Brewer, Beth A. Brooke-Marciniak, Arianna Huffington, Ertharin Cousin,
Helene Gayle, Ellen Kullman, Moira Forbes

Passionate voices outside of business and policy

also galvanized momentum around advancing
womens empowerment, including Harry Potter
actress Emma Watson. Building on the success of
the HeForShe campaign launched last fall, the UN
Women goodwill ambassador introduced the
IMPACT 10X10X10 initiative with the mission of
securing firm commitments from the diverse
stakeholders needed to achieve gender balance. It
is my belief that there is a greater understanding
than ever that women need to be equal
participants in our homes, in our societies, in our
governments, and in our work places, said
Watson.
They know that the world is being held back in
every way, because they are not. Women share
this planet 50/50 and they are under-represented,
their potential astonishingly untapped.
Another bright spot: 27 leaders from Forbes list
of the 100 Most Powerful Women attended Davos
this year, collectively exemplifying how women
are now at the epicenters of global power in
politics, business, and philanthropy. Dedicated to
celebrating the dynamic female influencers of
Davos, Forbes and EY once again brought
together over 400 global leaders at the Forum
with the mission of spotlighting the critical role
women play in shaping and advancing the global
economy.

The Diversity Advantage: An eBook

From Forbes
Gender equality in the workplace isnt just good for
womenits great for business too.

In this spirit, EY CEO Mark Weinberger and

Forbes recognized ten of Davos Power Women
who included:
Christine Lagarde (#5), Managing
Director, International Monetary
Fund
Sheryl Sandberg (#9), Chief
Operating Officer, Facebook
Ellen Kullman (#31), Chair of the
Board & Chief Executive Officer,
DuPont
Helen Clark (#23), Administrator of
the United Nations Development
Programme

 Ertharin Cousin (#45), Executive

Director, World Food Programme,
United Nations
Arianna Huffington (#52), Chair,
President and Editor-in-Chief, The
Huffington Post Media Group
Rosalind Brewer (#64), President and
CEO, Sams Club
Helene Gayle (#78), President and
CEO, C.A.R.E.
Beth Brooke-Marciniak (#98), Global
Vice Chair Public Policy, EY

These Power Women underscore that women

today have the unprecedented opportunity to
achieve impact in new, and at times,
unconventional ways. So, while its true that
women made up barely one fifth of attendees at
Davos this year, its clear that the influence of
women across multiple spheres is expanding
by leaps and bounds whether its in the
boardroom, the political arena or on the global
stage.
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