Opinion: To improve diversity and equity at work, we need more men to speak up – The San Diego Union-Tribune

Mohr is the general manager with Republic Services and the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce board chair. He lives in Poway.

It is no surprise that women are leading efforts to advance leadership opportunities and company diversity. This responsibility, however, belongs to all of us. Everyone across the business community men and women must be aligned in this effort. And to really move the needle, vocal male allies must step up and speak out.

Studies show that organizations perform better, are more successful, and have a competitive advantage when they are driven by diverse and gender-balanced leadership. Companies are also more innovative and nimble when women and men are leading together. Varied perspectives, experiences and backgrounds bring a more robust discussion and enhance decision-making. And bottom line, it makes financial sense. A 2017 study by Morgan Stanley Capital International found that U.S. companies with three or more female directors reported earnings that were 45 percent higher per-share than companies with no female directors.

So, how do we get there? Sacramento legislators took bold steps in 2018 with Senate Bill 826 a first-in-the-nation law requiring publicly held companies to put women on their boards of directors. Before then, 29 percent of public companies headquartered in California had zero women on their boards.

Locally, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce is taking action to ensure our communitys workforce has what it needs to be successful and businesses have the resources they need to thrive. Success requires that our regions leadership is gender-balanced and truly reflective of the community it serves. We must be intentional about connecting talented women from diverse backgrounds particularly women of color with opportunities to lead. The chamber partners with theBoardList to link outstanding female talent from our region with potential opportunities to serve on a corporate board.

And this summer, the chamber hosted a statewide symposium titled All Our Talent: Women on Boards and Commissions facilitating a lively discussion on how to increase the numbers of women on company and nonprofit boards and local government commissions. One of the key takeaways from the symposium was the importance of vocal male allies.

The reality is that today men still hold most top business roles in San Diego, men still have 77 percent of seats on public company boards. Men in these powerful positions are key to shifting companies strategic focus toward investing and cultivating female talent. Male business leaders must be central advocates for addressing the gender disparity in leadership and must publicly communicate that this is a problem that limits the success and growth of an organization and society. We must also reflect on personal and cultural bias that creates barriers for historically excluded communities.

The pandemic has challenged us to reimagine how we work and live and the movement to dismantle systemic racism in our country includes ensuring our workplaces are equitable and inclusive. Now we challenge the businesses that drive San Diegos economy to lead with more gender diversity at the board level to ensure financially stable, innovative and resilient companies at a time when our region needs it most.

This week, as we celebrate Womens Equality Day and the anniversary of the Nineteenth Amendment granting American women the constitutional right to vote, we invite all of San Diegos business leaders to join us in a pledge to improve gender equity and representation on boards and commissions.

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Opinion: To improve diversity and equity at work, we need more men to speak up - The San Diego Union-Tribune