Jay Rosenzweig, the inspiring Chair of our Raoul Wallenberg Centre For Human Rights Board, has issued yet again his report on women in leadership, as a call to action to do more to achieve gender equity in the boardrooms of our nation and beyond. His work empowers women and puts them at the forefront not only in corporate boards, but in all walks of life, be it...

When there are barriers placed in the way of individual’s reaching their full human potential, it is not only frustrating for them, it also lessens us all. In that regard, The Rosenzweig Report serves as a powerful reminder that more needs to be done to provide women with opportunities to find fulfillment in their chosen pursuits.

We need more than women in positions of power. We need women there who are clear about the purpose of power: not just to bolster structures that already exist, but to disrupt and repair them in order to serve humanity most deeply. It’s not just about women – it’s also about children, about men, about animals, about the planet. If women are evolving, it’s for a much greater purpose than mere pay equity. It’s so we can rise up and recreate the world.

As my personal mentor Oprah Winfrey says, it is important to turn struggles into strength. Women struggle on many fronts, including in the business world. The Rosenzweig Report serves a vital role by charting women’s ability to advance to senior positions in business and serves as an inspiration to do better.

We live in a world where time is money but when it comes to Jay, time is more valuable than money and he creates time to make everyone feel valid and important. That is how he is able to rally so many disparate voices together for the cause of justice and equality. He knows that relationships, family, friends and colleagues are worth more than dollars.

The Rosenzweig Report, founded by Jay Rosenzweig, is an important and useful tool in highlighting how much more needs to be done to encourage and support women in the workplace.

As a musician and as one who travels the world practicing my art form, I have observed that collaboration and inclusion makes for better music and for better societies. The Rosenzweig Report plays an important role in that regard, because it tells us how far we have come, while also reminding us of how much further we have to go.

Companies benefit when they are led by individuals with dissimilar life experiences and outlooks, ones that better represent our current global and interdependent world. In that sense The Rosenzweig Report is an important mirror reflecting the progress we have made – and how much more we must do.

The Rosenzweig report plays an important role in highlighting that there is a lot of work to be done to close the gender gap, so that we can achieve equality and shatter glass ceilings that continue to hold women back. I commend Jay Rosenzweig for championing this report year after year. I always look forward to reading about the steps taken closer towards gender equality, as well as to his suggestions on what we can do together to make the necessary changes needed to make the goal achievable.

In 2020, there are still far too few women in our c-suites, boardrooms and leading the companies designing the tech solutions we will all rely on in the future. We have a long way to go to build a truly gender equal world in which all types of women can thrive. And each of us can play a role. If we each make the effort to go out of our way to open doors, create opportunities, build bridges, lend a hand up to advance women with more intentionality and generosity – we will move the dial way faster, together.

Obtaining dignity, respect and advancement for women is not just a woman's issue, it’s a human rights issue. It requires including men and welcoming their help to change behaviour and perceptions. Jay Rosenzweig, through The Rosenzweig Report and his support for the #MeToo movement, shows that men can be important and effective allies and advocates for real change.

I started the Humanity Helping Sudan Project to aid refugees like me and then founded a company called 734 Coffee to help fund educational programs for these refugees. Jay and I come from very different backgrounds but we both feel like the lucky ones and Jay’s fight for gender equality is his passion and I salute him for it.

The Rosenzweig Report puts a needed spotlight on a long-standing issue – the failure to properly mentor and promote women so that they can reach their full potential. Removing barriers and opening doors to allow women access to positions of influence and responsibility will pay dividends, not only to enhance communities and society as a whole, but in allowing girls and women to achieve their full potential. Only by opening doors, taking chances, and taking time to empower this next generation of powerful women from all walks of life, will real positive social change take form.

If given the opportunity, women can make a real difference as corporate leaders. The Rosenzweig Report is valuable because it meticulously charts the lagging presence of women, including women of color, in top corporate jobs. It is a clarion call to do better.

Women no less than men deserve an opportunity to aspire to be all they can be and The Rosenzweig Report plays a valuable role in reminding us that, even in Canada, there is still ample room for improvement.

In order for Canada and the world to truly move forward and make real strides in both business and humanity, we must continue to push the status quo and hire talented women. Although many may think gender equality is a non-issue, the Rosenzweig Report sheds light on the work that still needs be done for us to reach our goals. With a focus and intention, we can get there.

Diversio tracks financial performance of companies around the world, and we find a clear and direct relationship between profitability and the proportion of women in decision-making roles. The Rosenzweig Report provides an important baseline for companies to set targets against and begin to unlock this opportunity.

The Rosenzweig Report should be read by every corporation because the time is now for gender diversity and equality in the workplace to come to full fruition. Everyone should be allowed to live their one life fully, becoming all they can be through passion, love, hard work and equal opportunity. I am truly hopeful this is possible because of allies like Jay Rosenzweig.

There is an egregious lack of representation of Black, Indigenous, and Women of Color (BIWOC) in the C-Suite industry. In order to accelerate the advancement of BIWOC, organizations must ensure that there are specific strategies, designed through the lens of intersectionality and lived experiences, to address the lack of representation in the C-Suite and in board rooms.

An important element in eradicating poverty world-wide is empowering women to reach their full potential. The stark truth is that there is no country where girls and women have the same opportunities as boys and men. The Rosenzweig Report shows that even a nation as progressive as Canada has a long way to go. We should all be working to create a world where #SheIsEqual.