Cross says though there are equity and fairness arguments for giving women more responsibility, there is a strong business case. A 2012 Credit Suisse report on Gender Diversity and Corporate Performance concluded companies with women on the board do better and are more competitive.
It found investors got a better return from companies with women on their boards. These businesses: "delivered higher growth, better share price performance, higher average returns on equity, lower gearing and improved price-book value multiples over a six-year period". Not bad considering that period coincided with the global financial crisis.
Cross says things are changing: "Boards face a changing regulatory environment. The bar is being raised and many boards are now considering whether they have the right composition. They are aware diversity is a problem and most thinking leaders now agree getting more women on board is a business issue".
She says the problem is particularly pressing in New Zealand - 120 years after we led the world giving women the vote. "New Zealand is small. We need to take advantage of all our resources and draw from the entire talent pool.".
Some countries have introduced quotas to force change. Cross says there's been a push back against that in New Zealand, where women don't want to be seen as a token board member, and there needs to be an emphasis on the benefits and skills a woman can bring: "It's about women adding value. Diversity means a diversity of perspective with different experiences. Having diversity is a way a board can demonstrate it understands its market".
Cross is the New Zealand chair of an organisation called Leadership Alliance for Women (Law), which aims to quicken the pace of change. In September she travelled to the organisation's Global Woman's Leadership Summit in Chicago where strategies were discussed. One topic was how women are not generally comfortable with talking about their accomplishments. This means their skills are not always apparent. Or as speaker at the Summit put it: "It's not a question of who you know, but of who knows what you know".
Cross says this need to change and that means giving women a voice. There's a responsibility for women who have already made it up the ladder to play a role. "If you have a seat at the table, then you have to ask others why there are not more women sitting there."
One woman corporate lawyer found herself at a meeting preparing for a large scale Initial Public Offering where advisors from banks and other organisations turned up. All were men. She told them this wasn't good enough, to go away and bring some women with them when they came back.
Cross says it's important for women to encourage and support one another. She quotes former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright who famously said: "There's a special place in hell for women who don't help other women."
Cross says this is something she does at DLA Phillips Fox: "It means getting women focused on leadership from early in their careers. We need to work on these areas and support each other, we all need to be champions of diversity. Women need help when it comes to learning how to sell their skills and that means finding a champion or a mentor - that person doesn't have to be male."
