At Marriott International’s corporate offices, Fridays from late May through September are “quiet,” with no meetings or conference calls to hold up the weekend.

Friendships were formed and work connections made at two major women’s leadership conferences held by this hospitality services company in 2011. Peer support lifts many female employees into the senior ranks, and they currently occupy nearly double the number of jobs there that they did a decade ago. (At present, women are 33% of the company’s corporate executives and 42% of its regional vice presidents.) Recent events have included a reception for female managers in Houston, which examined how hard it is for women to balance their personal and professional lives, and a Chicago meeting for more than 100 female leaders, which explored ways to shatter the glass ceiling. Employees with kids trade tips in online groups for single parents, new moms and those raising children with special needs.

President & CEO Arne M. Sorenson

Chief HR Officer & Senior Diversity Executive David Rodriguez

Women managers/execs 53%

Women hires in 2011 56%

Average weeks of fully paid maternity leave offered 0

Offers paid paternity leave? No

Offers paid adoption leave? No

Women in affinity groups in 2011 Not tracked

Offers backup child care? Yes

Employees working flexibly 100%