Not only is Ursula Burns the first black woman who will lead a Fortune 500 company, but this recent succession announcement by Xerox Corporation is also historic in that it is the first time a woman will succeed another woman (Anne Mulcahy) as CEO of a major multinational.  I for one am not entirely surprised that this news comes from Xerox.  Xerox was among the earliest of companies to embrace the notion of affinity networks as a means of encouraging diverse ideas and energies in the workplace.  The Xerox Women’s Alliance is 25 years old this year and both Mulcahy and Burns had the benefits of accessing this incredible internal resource as well as that of other affinity groups at Xerox as they sought to develop their careers and grow their leadership prowess.  A recent Business Week article on Burns’ ascension suggests that the track record of Xerox’s commitment to affinity groups may be a big reason why one-third of their executive ranks are women and more than twenty percent are minorities.  Research we’ve conducted here at Babson confirms the benefits of women’s corporate networks and points to the strategic asset they can be for companies who choose to use them wisely.  My fear in this time of corporate cutbacks is that companies will all too easily view their support of networks as a “nice to do” that can go by the wayside when budgets need trimming.  Instead, our research shows, and the Xerox story illustrates, that investing in affinity groups is an essential tool in the war for developing and retaining the very best leadership talent.  There is tremendous strategic value for talent management and professional development in women’s networks.   Companies who invest in leveraging these affinity groups will no doubt have a competitive advantage!

Submitted by: Nan Langowitz