Women are CEOs at just 4 of 100 Philly-area public companies

Women’s share of leadership and top-earning roles at Philadelphia-area public companies remained mostly stagnant in the past year, and parity at the top ranks remains far off.

That’s according to a report from the Forum of Executive Women, which tracks the number of women who are CEOs, top earners, executives, and board members in the area. The report has been published annually for over 20 years.

“We’re seeing what we’ve seen every year, which is very small gains or no movement at all, which can be difficult to be motivated by,” Meghan Pierce, president and CEO of the Forum, said in an interview.

Since last year, the region’s public companies have one more female CEO — making a total of four.

The share of board seats held by women increased just barely, from 27% to 28%. The share of top earners who are women increased by two percentage points to 17%.

The percentage of executives who are women didn’t change at all.

“We really need to think about what are the economic security policies that help women remain in the workforce. Women in leadership, not rising to the top, equal pay — this stuff doesn’t happen in a vacuum,” Pierce said. “There are policies that can be put in place that help level the playing field for women.”

The report looked at the 100 largest public companies in the region, using data from their U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

Despite the slim progress last year, women have made gains in workplace leadership roles in the Philadelphia region in the last 10 years, Pierce noted. The total number of women on boards has more than doubled, and fewer companies have no women executives at all.

“Although I’m not incredibly moved by the increase this year, it always is helpful to sort of look at the grand scheme of things,” Pierce said.

This year’s additions to the short list of area CEOs who are women are Denise Dignam of the Chemours Co., which produces chemicals products, and Carole Ben-Maimon of Larimar Therapeutics, a biotechnology company.

They join Susan Hardwick at American Water Works Co., a Camden-based water utility company, and Ellen Cooper of Lincoln National Corp., which offers insurance and retirement planning.

Elizabeth Burr, who was appointed interim CEO of Rite Aid Corp. in January 2023, dropped off the list when Jeffrey Stein was appointed CEO in October 2023. When Rite Aid emerged from bankruptcy in September, former chief financial officer Matt Schroeder became CEO. Rite Aid also became a private company when it emerged from bankruptcy, so even if it has a female CEO in the future, she would no longer be on the Forum’s list.

Out of the top 100 public companies in the region, three had no women on their boards in 2023. They were AMREP Corp., a real estate development firm based in Havertown; inTEST Corp., a technology company based in Mount Laurel; and Omega Flex, an Exton-based hose and piping manufacturer.

This is one area where change is clear over the past decade — in 2013, 35 of Philadelphia’s top public companies had no women on their boards.

Open board seats are still more frequently going to men: 36% of open board seats went to women in the last year, down from a high of 39% in 2019.

Women still make up less than one in five top earners at Philly public companies, and just about one in five executives are women.

Still, that shows progress over the decade. Women were 10% of top earners and 14% of executives in 2013.

In the report, Marianne Fray, CEO of Maternity Care Coalition, notes the importance of affordable child care, comprehensive maternity benefits, and paid family leave in achieving parity.

Pennsylvania does not currently have a paid family leave program, Pierce noted. Policy and legislation could also be used to help alleviate pay secrecy at companies, she said.

“We can call on individual companies to do this work, but I think until we have legislation at the city, state, and federal level, we’re not going to see a big jump or a big shift in these areas that we measure,” said Pierce, speaking just a few days after the presidential election. The election results show that women are not a “monolithic voting block,” she said.

The Associated Press reports that 53% of white women voted for former President Donald Trump, while only 10% of Black women did, and 39% of Latina women.

“We have a diversity of experiences and priorities that will impact who we vote for and what we prioritize in terms of policies and candidates,” Pierce said.

At a Tuesday event launching the Forum’s report, Pierce noted “the incredibly challenging political climate we find ourselves in.”

“We have differing priorities and policies that matter to us,” Pierce said, referring to the diversity of members of the Forum, which number over 600. “However, we are united in this room under a shared mission and values. We all believe in advancing women in their workplaces, their homes, and their communities.”