Women on Boards of Directors: Making Progress

Women Directors of Color

For the seventh year, the Minnesota Census examined directors’ seats held by women of color. Progress was made in 2015 with the appointment of two additional women of color to director positions on Minnesota’s 100 largest publicly held companies. Women of color, as classifi ed by the U.S. Census Bureau, include women identifi ed as black, Hispanic, Asian, native Hawaiian and other Pacifi c islander, and American Indian or Alaskan native.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY REBECCA STUDIOS LLC

X In 2015, three more companies added women directors of color, bringing the total to 19. Of these 19, two have two women of color serving on their boards. The 17 other companies each have one woman director of color.

X Two of the 75 new directors added to Minnesota’s 100 largest publicly held companies in 2015 were women of color. They now hold 2.7 percent of the 780 total available board seats, an increase of 0.4 percentage points from 2014.

X Twenty-one women of color hold board seats. This represents 17.4 percent of the total board seats held by women directors in Minnesota’s 100 largest publicly held companies, an increase of 1.9 percentage points.

X Eighty-one Minnesota companies do not have any women of color serving on their boards. X BY THE NUMBERS

Companies Where Women Directors Made Gains

Fifteen Minnesota Census companies had three or more women directors, achieving the critical mass that research suggests is essential to impact corporate governance. Three of these companies—marked with an asterisk—moved from three to four women directors in 2015. X Allete Inc. .............................................................................. www X Ameriprise Financial Inc. ............................................... www X Christopher & Banks Corp. ......................................... wwww X C.H. Robinson Worldwide Inc. ..................................... www X Ecolab Inc.* ........................................................................ wwww X General Mills Inc. ......................................................... wwwww X Hormel Foods Corp.* ..................................................... wwww X Medtronic Plc* ................................................................. wwww X MTS Systems Corp. ........................................................... www X Otter Tail Corp. ................................................................... www X Patterson Cos. Inc. ............................................................ www X Select Comfort Corp. ........................................................ www X Target Corp. ......................................................................... www X U.S. Bancorp ........................................................................ www X Xcel Energy Inc. ................................................................. www Fourteen Minnesota Census companies added women directors in 2015. Nine of those—marked with an asterisk— had a net increase of one woman director. X 3M Co.* ...................................................................................... ww X Buffalo Wild Wings Inc.* ................................................... ww X Capella Education Co.* ....................................................... ww X Datalink Corp. ........................................................................... w X Donaldson Co. Inc. .................................................................. w X Ecolab Inc.* ........................................................................ wwww X Electromed Inc.* .................................................................... ww X HMN Financial Corp. ........................................................... ww X Hormel Foods Corp.* ..................................................... wwww X Medtronic Plc* ................................................................. wwww X Mocon Inc.* ................................................................................. w X Nortech Systems Inc.* ........................................................... w X Pentair ........................................................................................ ww X U.S. Bancorp. ....................................................................... www

Losing Ground

Two Minnesota Census companies had a net decrease of one woman director in 2015: Avalon Oil & Gas Inc. and Imation Corp. These companies now have no women directors.

Strides In the Executive Suite

But no movement on zero-zero list.

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riteria for the inclusion in the “executive officer” category vary by company. To be consistent, the Minnesota Census identifies only those individuals formally designated as Section 16b executive officers in SEC filings.

X Women hold 19.4 percent of the available executive officer positions in Minnesota’s 100 largest publicly held companies. This is a significant increase of 1.6 percentage points from last year’s Census and reflects a net increase of 12 women executive officers.

X Thirty-two of the top 100 public companies have multiple women executive officers, 34 have just one woman executive officer and 34 have none. Companies Where Women Executive Officers Made Gains

Sixteen Minnesota Census companies had a net increase in women executive officers in 2015, an increase of six companies from 2014.

X All sixteen had a net increase of one woman executive officer.

X Five companies moved from zero to one woman executive officer in 2015.

X Five companies (marked with an asterisk) moved from two to three women executive officers, achieving critical mass on their senior leadership teams.

X Best Buy Co. Inc. (3)* X Bio-Techne Corp. (1) X Canterbury Park Holding Corp. (1) X Capella Education Co. (1) X Datalink (2) X Donaldson Co. Inc. (3)* X H.B. Fuller Co. (4) X Mocon Inc. (1) X Regis Corp. (2) X Select Comfort Corp. (5) X SurModics Inc. (1) X Target Corp. (5) X TCF Financial Corp. (3)* X Tennant Co. (2) X Toro Co. (3)* X U.S. Bancorp (3)*

Fewer Women Executives

Seven Minnesota Census companies had a net decrease in women executive officers in 2015, five fewer companies than 2014. Valspar Corp. now has no women executive officers.

X Evine Live, Inc. (-2) X MTS Systems Corp. (-1) X Nortech Systems Inc. (-1) X Patterson Cos. Inc. (-1) X St. Jude Medical Inc. (-1) X Valspar Corp. (-1) X Vascular Solutions Inc. (-1)