Application Process for the 2018 Boardroom Ready Program begins late December

BOSTON, Dec. 13, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Women In Bio (WIB) an organization of professionals committed to promoting careers, leadership, and entrepreneurship of women in the life sciences, today announced its first annual Boardroom Ready Program reception and retreat. To celebrate the 2016/2017 Boardroom Ready alumni, Thompson Hine New York hosted an invitation-only reception the evening prior to the retreat. This was a fantastic opportunity for Boardroom Ready alumni to network with prominent biopharmaceutical executives and directors, board recruiters and other industry influencers.

Hosted  the following day by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Affiliates, the retreat opened with a robust case study discussion led by Karen Brenner, Professor and Executive Director Law and Business, NYU and Helen Scott, Professor of Law; Co-Director, Leadership Program on Law and Business, NYU. The comprehensive case study focused on CEO compensation and related board decisions made by a major pharmaceutical company over an extended period.  The retreat also included a working lunch with seven top board recruiters to explain board search strategies and offer guidance on the recruitment process. In addition, Boardroom Ready candidates participated in a fireside chat with experienced board directors including Ron Cohen, President & CEO of Acorda Therapeutics; Annalisa Jenkins, M.B.B.S., F.R.C.P., CEO of Dimension Therapeutics; Nancy May, President & CEO of The BoardBench Companies; and Michael Rice, President and Founding Partner of LifeSci Advisors – the founding sponsor of the Boardroom Ready Program since its inception.

The packed daylong retreat ended with an interactive panel of experts discussing the board’s role in corporate crisis management. Panelists were D’Anne Hurd, SEC financial expert and Corporate Governance Advisor, Tonia Pankopf, Managing Partner, Pareto Advisors, and Davia Temin, President and CEO, Temin & Company.

“Heading into our third year of program success, Women In Bio and its Boardroom Ready partners are incredibly proud of our progress towards equal gender representation on boards and in the C-suite,” said Dawn Hocevar, WIB President. “In addition to Boardroom Ready, our Executive arm of Women In Bio (EWIB) will be offering more expansive programming for all female executives, designed to promote leadership and advancement in the life science industry, while also providing senior members and Boardroom Ready alumni with opportunities to connect with industry leaders and mentors.”

The Boardroom Ready Program is an exclusive yearly program made possible by our generous sponsors: LifeSci Advisors, Biogen, Theravance Biopharma, Acorda Therapeutics, Thompson Hine, and Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP. Since its inception in 2016, Executive Women In Bio and Boardroom Ready have had nearly a dozen Board placements of its candidates. Several of these placements were made through LifeSci Advisors’ Board Placement Initiative, a program the company created to place more women on corporate boards of directors.

“The Boardroom Ready Program, inspired by Biogen’s former Raising the Bar program, has enjoyed incredible success to date,” said Boardroom Ready Committee Chair, Carolyn Brougham.  “We are thrilled that so many of our Boardroom Ready candidates have been selected to contribute to corporate boards around the world.  EWIB is delighted to offer unique executive educational programs, as well as its exclusive Boardroom Ready Program, to enable WIB members to reach their maximum potential throughout every stage of their career.” 

The 2018 program will again be hosted by George Washington University in Washington D.C. on September 12 –14 and October 24 – 26, 2018.   The Boardroom Ready Program will be accepting applications beginning late December.

About The Boardroom Ready Program
The Boardroom Ready Program is a cohesive program designed to elevate, promote, and place highly qualified women to corporate boards.  Intensive board competency building curriculum at George Washington University, held annually to refine each candidate’s understanding of the duties, responsibilities, and commitments related to serving on both public and private boards, is only the beginning. Boardroom Ready candidates also work with a professional resume writer to craft a board-tailored Curriculum Vitæ and biography.  In addition, each candidate is partnered with an experienced board mentor to help navigate the path to board service.  Throughout the program and following completion, WIB, LifeSci Advisors and other sponsors work to facilitate matching program graduates with companies seeking new board members.  

If you are aware of available board positions, interested in sponsoring this important program, and/or interested in becoming a mentor to one of the class participants please email [email protected].

For more information about the Boardroom Ready Program and how to get involved, please visit http://www.womeninbio.org/executives/board-ready.

Women In Bio (WIB) is an organization of professionals committed to promoting careers, leadership, and entrepreneurship of women in the life sciences. Each local chapter hosts numerous events throughout the year, that vary from networking events to career development, to professional education, to executive level-focused events. In addition to events, WIB hosts a mentorship program which offers women the chance to mentor or be mentored, an Executive Women in Bio program designed to foster the senior executive leadership of women (including Boardroom Ready), a Young Women In Bio program, which offers events and encouragement to middle-school aged girls, webinars, and the support of a large national organization with 13 chapters and growing. As a volunteer organization, WIB offers leadership opportunities at every stage of your career, and a chance to expand your network in a supportive and professional environment. For more information, visit www.womeninbio.org.

Contact: Stacie D. Byars, National Marketing Director, Women In Bio
Mobile: (206) 660-2588
E-mail: [email protected]