Despite Progress, Women of Color Struggle to Climb the Corporate Ladder

Indianapolis, IN (PRWEB) July 12, 2007 -- More than five million women of color hold managerial and professional positions in the workforce. Yet, women of color account for only 1.7 percent of corporate officers (those board-elected or appointed) and top earners (the five highest-paid employees within a company) in the Fortune 500 companies, according to Catalyst, a leading research and advisory organization that works with businesses on behalf of professional women.

"Functionally, it's not difficult to see why women of color have made little progress at the corporate board level. Women, especially women of color, hold considerably fewer line positions than other groups in corporate America. Because of this, women of color sometimes lack the necessary credentials to sit on boards," says Jessica Faye Carter, J.D., MBA, author of the newly released book Double Outsiders, a guide for women of color who want to succeed in corporate America.

Despite the success of some minority women such as Andrea Jung, chief executive officer of Avon, and Indra K. Nooyi, Chairwoman and chief executive officer of PepsiCo, the vast majority of women of color still find the climb up the corporate ladder to be a frustrating and fruitless endeavor.

In her new book, Carter explains how a number of factors are to blame for the absence of women in top-tier positions in the workforce, including a lack of visibility in their industries and across organizations, along with marginalization and stereotyping. Carter combats these barriers with strategies to help women of color advance their careers and reach the upper echelons of corporate America. Her advice to women of color includes the following tips:

• Junior or midlevel women of color who are interested in board service may consider serving on the board of a nonprofit organization. This will allow them to help out on an arts or community organization, make further use of their professional expertise, and gain valuable experience with board service.
• Many nonprofit board training programs exist for midlevel and junior women of color. Organizations such as the United Way offer comprehensive training and sometimes provide board service opportunities to graduates of the program.
• Before joining any board, a woman should check with her company to be sure her board service does not present any conflicts of interest or other difficulties.

Double Outsiders is available at all major bookstores and from the publisher (www.jist.com or 1.800.648.JIST). To speak with the author, contact Natalie Ostrom.

JIST, America's Career Publisher, is a division of EMC/Paradigm Publishing and is the leading publisher of job search, career, occupational information, life skills and character education books, workbooks, assessments, videos and software.

Press Contact: Natalie Ostrom
Company Name: JIST Publishing
Email: Email Us Here: http://www.prweb.com/emailmember.php?prid=538736
Phone: 877-454-7877
Website: www.jist.com

More Information: http://www.prweb.com//releases/2007/7/prweb538736.htm

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