Wisconsin Sees Slight Increase Of Women On Corporate Boards

A nonprofit organization’s report shows the number of women on the corporate boards of publicly traded companies in Wisconsin is slowly growing.

According to Milwaukee Women Inc., almost 18 percent of directors among the state’s 50 largest public companies are women, up from almost 17 percent last year.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports women have gained three board seats since last year. There are now 79 out of 449 directors that are women, up from 76 out of 451 directors last year.

Milwaukee Women Inc. chair Sandy Wysocki said that while progress is slow, it’s still continuing an upward trend.

Women had just more than 9 percent of board seats when the nonprofit began in 2003.

Public companies don’t frequently appoint new directors. Wisconsin’s 50 largest companies only named 18 new directors in the first six months of 2017.