New group of women board directors formed

MANILA, Philippines — A group of women board directors has organized a sorority to help create a pipeline of candidates for directorships as more companies search out for independent (and women) directors.

In the Philippines, only 17 percent of publicly listed companies’ board seats are filled by women directors. Thus, a key diversity and inclusion push worldwide is the participation of more women in corporate boards, whether non-profit or a public company.  In fact, funders and institutional investors now check their investees’ scorecards for diversity, women representation and inclusion of different ages, gender and even race.

To further emphasize that young women join their ranks and include in their career development plans a clear path toward being B-suite directors, the group named themselves NOWCD or NextGen Organization of Women Corporate Directors.

Chaired by former Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) first woman chair Aurora “Boots” Garcia, a CPA and SGV alumna, the group has initially invited 25 women directors to its membership pool, and they expect this number to grow significantly over the years.  The other NOWCD officers are: Pacita “Chit” Juan, Sherisa “Baby” Nuesa, Sharon Dayoan, chair of KPMG and Maricelle Narciso, former GM of PepsiCo Philippines who now sits in the advisory council of the Philippine Navy.

“Truly many women corporate leaders retire and stop using the wealth of corporate experience when they can share it with boards who so need their expertise and independent opinions,” said Juan, president of NOWCD and former co-chair of the ASEAN Women Entrepreneurs Network.

NOWCD will launch formally on Feb. 16 with Securities and Exchange Commission and Philippine Stock Exchange officials in attendance, to raise awareness about the need for diversity in Philippine boards and to partner with regulators to bring this advocacy to life sooner rather than later.