May 18, 2004

By Terry Timm Moos, News@Cisco

Over 550 senior level executives are taking part in the Third Annual Cisco Women's Leadership Conference in Monterey, California on Tuesday, May 18, 2004 - and slightly more than half of the attendees at this year's event are men.

Surprising? Not really, because this high level of interest from both women and men reflects the growing importance of diversity at Cisco. Cisco Systems has taken a lead role in developing diversity strategies throughout its entire organization, in a large part because of the significant benefits a diverse, balanced workforce brings to the business.

According to Kate DCamp, senior vice president of Human Resources at Cisco, gender diversity strategies simply make good business sense. "A workforce of inclusion brings a tremendous wealth of ideas, innovation, and drive to the organization - which allows you to be well positioned to anticipate important market changes, be more responsive to customer needs, and build a solid foundation for future needs."

Innovation and creativity in leadership

The one-day conference provides the company's senior leaders with opportunities for peer-to-peer networking, knowledge-sharing and leadership development. This year's conference theme, Women Making a Difference at Cisco, highlights the innovation and creativity of women at the company, and the value that is added today - and going forward. The conference reinforces Cisco's commitment to fully realize a culture of inclusion, and to leverage the talents and contributions of its senior-level women.

The goals for this year's event include:

• Gaining perspective and insight from successful leaders
• Learning the status, goals and plans for the Women's Initiative
• Generating innovative ideas to accelerate a culture of inclusion at Cisco
• Network with other Cisco leaders

The sessions promise to generate lively interaction with a panel discussion among John Chambers, Cisco Systems' CEO, and other senior business function leaders. Larry Carter, senior vice president, Office of the President and member of the Cisco Board of Directors, will also offer his perspective on the value of diversity. In addition to several distinguished speakers from Cisco Systems, the company is pleased to have two special guest speakers share their experiences in other technology organizations. Both Lorrie Norrington, executive vice president, Office of the CEO for Intuit, and Myrtle Potter, president of Commercial Operations at Genentech, will each offer a unique outlook on leadership success and building a career with impact in today's environment.

Competitive advantage through career development

Cisco believes the unique needs, qualities and talents of women can be showcased to provide an ever greater competitive advantage for the company. "A balanced workforce strategy starts with finding talented candidates, and making sure managers have a diverse slate from which to choose," said Ms. DCamp. "Then, building from that point, it's about nurturing and developing this talent to the full potential."

Building a pipeline of talent is a key goal. "Women need to see the opportunities that are in technology-related fields," Ms. DCamp added. "We want to attract and keep good people, because that's what makes us competitive and successful.

"Last year, we challenged our senior staff to work toward four goals to capitalize on the talents of women: create a more balanced workforce, promote career development, build a pipeline of women in technology, and reinforce the Cisco reputation of being a great place to work," explained Sue Bostrom, senior vice president, Internet Business Solutions Group and Worldwide Government Affairs at Cisco. "At this year's session, we will assess our progress and discuss new initiatives, and determine our next steps to keep the momentum going," she continued.

Ms. Bostrom has been instrumental in the creation of Cisco's Women's Initiative and the 14 Women's Networks, which are key in helping to drive change through their efforts in career development, building the pipeline for women in technology, and the recognition of Cisco as a great place to work. "Through our largest network organizations in San Jose, Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, and Herndon, Virginia, we are seeing the impact of actively developing, and building a community of talented women at Cisco," said Ms. Bostrom. The outreach events sponsored by the networks help brand Cisco as a great place to work. "It is especially effective for young women who are contemplating where they are going in their careers to learn about a company that really cares about their growth and success - and values their contributions."

Terry Timm Moos is a freelance journalist located in Seattle, WA.