The drive to get more women and minorities on boards is picking up speed. This week the Nasdaq stock exchange headed by female CEO Adena Friedman proposed new diversity and inclusion rules for corporate boards that most companies don’t meet. In short, Nasdaq is proposing to delist companies that don’t have at least one woman and one minority on their boards. https://www.wsj.com/articles/nasdaq-proposes-board-diversity-rule-for-listed-companies-11606829244?mod=article_inline.
Mandates can make a difference. Just last year, California passed a similar mandate and it’s working. Already, California has increased the representation of women and minorities on the boards of companies with headquarters in California. Of the 138 women who joined all male boards in California since the mandate, 62% are serving on their first company board according to reporting by Axios’ Courtnay Brown. https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-nasdaq-chiefs-diversity-stunt-11607469679
Not everyone is pleased by the idea of mandates. The WSJ’s Holman Jenkins Jr calls the proposal “A Nasdaq Chief’s Diversity Stunt.https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-nasdaq-chiefs-diversity-stunt-11607469679