“You’ve got to help those you lead find their passion,” explains Catherine Brune, a regional president for this financial services and insurance company. That’s the idea behind its popular Leaders as Teachers series, a set of talks by top talent that helps up-andcoming employees enhance their business acumen; it attracts about 4,000 attendees annually and is a big hit online. Another program, Leading Women Executives, finds attendees devising action plans for their careers and honing their leadership abilities; one recent graduate, Maribel Gerstner, is now president and chief operating officer of the company’s financial services division.

Chairman, President & CEO: Thomas Wilson

Executive VP, HR: Jim DeVries

% of senior managers who are women: 27%

% of corporate executives who are women: 33%

% of promotions to manager, senior manager and corporate executive positions that went to women: 16%

% of the top 10% of the company’s earners who are women: 35%

% of corporate executives with profit-and-loss responsibility who are women: 33%

% of the executives running divisions with revenues of more than a billion dollars who are women: 31%

% of executives who report directly to the CEO who are women: 33%

% of the members of the board of directors who are women: 27%

% of female workforce participating in mentoring: <1%

Women who work at the home office of this financial services and insurance company can pursue MBA degrees while maintaining a full-time schedule, thanks to an on-site program offered by the Lake Forest Graduate School of Management. If they’re worried about the cost, employees can apply for up to $5,250 in aid annually to offset tuition and book costs and cover fees. “Working and attending classes while being a parent has its challenges,” reflects marketing associate and mom of one Yvonne Brannon, who is African American. “Receiving that reimbursement has significantly reduced my stress.” Female employees who live outside Northbrook can use the aid to enroll in degree programs through the online University of Phoenix.

Chairman & CEO Thomas Wilson
Assistant VP & Chief Diversity Officer Michael Escobar

At Allstate Insurance, multicultural women represent…
21% Multicultural Women
7% of corporate executives
39% of senior managers
7% of the top earners
25% of the company hires
8% of the company promotions
27% of the company losses
Not tracked participants in mentoring programs
Not tracked participants in affinity groups

Women make up a third of all officers, board members and management team members at Allstate.

Asking for help When Brune had her son, Clifton, she was working as a sales vice president at Allstate, a job that required a lot of travel. She asked Allstate if she could be relocated to a more steady position. She was, and began running an Allstate data center.

Mentor Many of Brune’s colleagues have singled her out as a go-to office mentor. She is often sought out for advice on how to balance a challenging career and home life.

83% of Allstate workers used its employee-assistance program last year to find information on health, budgeting, debt management and other topics.

Women make up a third of all officers, board members and management team members at this financial services and insurance company. To keep their busy lives in balance, they rely on flextime (as 94% of employees did last year) and use an on-site child-care center at headquarters. If parents prefer a day care closer to home, they can register with any of a variety of centers that provide tuition discounts. Moms who want to take job-related courses can apply for tuition aid of up to $5,250 annually or enroll in the Executive MBA program at HQ. The introduction of the Leaders as Teachers series last year allowed top managers and executives to share their insights on success, while the recent launch of the Women's Leadership Network gave corporate female executives a forum of their own. Mentoring is available through ten employee networks.

President & CEO Thomas Wilson

SVP, HR Jim DeVries

Women managers, senior managers and corporate execs 43%

Women among top earners 40%

Women on board of directors 27%

Women corporate executive hires in 2009 0%

Women participating in management or leadership training in the past year* Not tracked  

Women participating in formalized executive succession planning last year* 100%

Women promoted last year who utilized a formal flexible work arrangement Not tracked  

Do formal compensation policies reward managers who help women advance? No

*Percentages reflect number of women participants versus company’s total female workforce.

Saving money’s a breeze for Allstate women, thanks to on-site budgeting and financial management workshops.

Success breeds success at this financial services and insurance giant, which has just introduced Momentum, its new mentoring program that specifically targets multicultural professionals. Inspired by the popular one-year mentoring programs already offered through the company’s employee networks, the new initiative asks multicultural employees to identify what they perceive as their strengths, weaknesses and areas of interest, then pairs them with a mentor who fits the bill. Should they wish to further build skill sets, mentees may sign up for the Talent Acceleration program, which grants them three new eight-month assignments, with coaching. “It increased my internal and external professional networks and allowed me to mentor and develop others,” says employee support manager LaShawn Patterson, who is African-American. If employees want more regular exposure to company leaders, they can join the African-American and Asian-American employee networks, which host seminars on how to succeed at work. The Professional Latino Network organizes a leadership series and hosts business-card swaps through Casa Central, a Chicago nonprofit that unites 25 bilingual and cultural social-service programs.

Multicultural Women 21%
President & CEO Thomas Wilson
VP & Chief Diversity Officer Anise Wiley-Little

At Allstate, multicultural women represent…
5% of corporate executives
8% of senior managers
10% of the top earners
26% of the company hires
26% of the company losses

28% of all employees hired at Allstate last year were women of color.

This insurance giant relies on a diverse workforce that understands the needs of its multicultural clientele, for whom it is the second biggest provider of auto coverage in the United States. In 2008, Allstate demonstrated its commitment to female employees of color by launching a new mentoring program designed to help them climb the corporate ladder. In addition, four multicultural employee networks give women a place in which to discuss their career challenges and successes and gather advice from colleagues. Such initiatives seem to be working: Within the past year alone, the number of female employees and executives of color here has already risen by 5%. Going forward, the company hopes to foster more mentoring relationships among members of the next generation and is providing funding for the University of Buffalo’s Allstate Minority and Women Emerging Entrepreneurs Program.

Multicultural Women: 21%

Multicultural Women Managers/Execs: 11%

Chief Diversity Officer: Anise Wiley-Little

Hires who are multicultural women: 28%

Hires who are multicultural men: 16%

Multicultural women managers/execs: 11%

Multicultural men managers/execs: 9%

Top 20% of earners who are multicultural women: 7%

Top 20% of earners who are multicultural men: 11%

Multicultural women on board of directors: 0%

Offers formal compensation program to reward managers who specifically help multicultural women advance: NO

Rates managers on the number of multicultural women employees advancing: NO

Uses outside recruiter to focus on finding multicultural women candidates: YES

Offers support groups specifically for multicultural women: YES

Offers mentoring programs specifically geared toward multicultural women early in their careers: NO

Offers sponsorship program specifically geared toward multicultural women early in their careers: NO