Maplewood-based 3M Co. is one of three companies chosen to receive the 2017 Catalyst Award for its "I'm in. Accelerating Women's Leadership" program.
The program is part of 3M's overall diversity and inclusion strategy and measures 3M's progress in how well it helps women advance through the ranks of 3M worldwide.
"Business leaders have the power and a greater responsibility than ever before to make room for all employees to succeed," said Catalyst Chief Executive Deborah Gillis. "3M is to be commended for leading the change."
Catalyst — one of the most prominent groups in the country working to advance women in business — also is honoring BMO Financial Group and Rockwell Automation at a March 8 event in New York City.
3M CEO Inge Thulin called the award "a big deal," and said diversity is a "competitive weapon" for the maker of Scotch tape, cellphone optical films and 5,000 other products.
"It spurs creativity and new ideas, while helping us better serve our customers around the world," Thulin said. "From appointing women to top leadership positions to our newly expanded parental leave benefits, we are creating an even more diverse and inclusive culture where all our people can succeed. Equally important, we will build on our progress and do even more into the future, including doubling 3M's pipeline of diverse leaders by 2025."
To get there, 3M — which employs 89,000 people in 70 countries — created 84 women's leadership chapters and a formal leadership-development program that emphasizes continuous learning, stretch projects and opportunities for women to take on different roles that will help them build new skills and advance.
3M officials declined to give specific numbers of women in management roles, but noted that on a worldwide basis, 3M has achieved the following results in five years:
• Women holding internal 3M "director-level" posts rose from 18.2 percent to 23 percent.
• Women at the vice president level or above, rose from 16.7 percent to 24.2 percent.
• Women in technical and lab manager roles, rose from 19.1 percent to 23. 9 percent.
• Female manufacturing facility managers rose from 11.4 percent to 17.4 percent.
• Women leading 3M subsidiaries around the world, rose from 2.4 percent to 22.7 percent.
• Female representation on 3M's executive team who report directly to the chief executive, from 12.5 percent to 20 percent.
Catalyst, founded 55 years ago, works to advance women through research and support.
It has recognized 79 organizations with the Catalyst Award since 1987, and also publishes an annual census of women in management and on corporate boards of Fortune 500 companies.
Dee DePass • 612-673-7725
