October 2020 Report Summary

The WBC Women Joining Public Boards October Monthly Report, empowered by Equilar, shows a record number of women joining public boards. In October 2020, public companies appointed women to fill 125 seats, or 40.2% of seats filled—the largest number ever—including 44 women who identified as women of color. Healthcare and Tech companies led the way.

In October 2020, public companies appointed women to fill 40.2% of board seats. 123 women were named to public boards last month, and two of those women joined the boards of more than one company. It is noteworthy that several high-profile women are included in the list. Among them, Valerie B. Jarrett, a former senior advisor to President Obama, was named to the Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.; and Dr. Nancy Snyderman, a former journalist with ABC News, was named to the Lyra Therapeutics board.

In October, 44 women identified as women of color with 34 identifying as African American. This is a critical measurement as diversity in business leadership is at the forefront of leadership practices in 2020. The large percentage of women of color appointed to public boards is accompanied by an increase in the number of women of color appointed to boards of companies in the Russell 3000 index. For comparison, in January 2020 no women appointed to boards of public companies in the Russell 3000 index identified as women of color while in October that number was 30.

Disclaimer: All Ethnicity data is collected through self reporting and thus percentages are calculated based on the number women who identified their race or ethnicity. In the case of October’s report, 44 women self-reported their race or ethnicity.