b'Gender Parity CollaborativeMEMBER SPOTLIGHTSleadership positions to increase the pool of women qualified for such positions by 50%. Im proud to say we have achieved it, across all leadership levels. Were committed to sustaining that diversity, and to advancing racial and ethnic diversity at Genentech as well.What makes this consortium unique compared to other initiatives/investments happening in your own organization?Speaking loudly with a unified voice has the ability to drive more rapid, deep and enduring change. Also, sharing best practices across the industry, pressure testing each others An interview withthinking and creating a cross-industry publication would JONATHAN WITT provide a unique opportunity to help to raise all boats when it comes to gender diversity.Senior Vice President ofHow has your company benefited from the Collaborativediscussion forums with like-minded industry peers?Business Operations Learning what others have done, been challenged with andsucceeded in inspires us. We also believe its important to make a positive impact on society and the industry when we can, and Why was it critical for your organization to be involved in thebeing a part of the Collaborative allows us to add the process Gender Parity Collaborative? Genentech followed to achieve our gender diversity goals to the Many of Genentechs earliest gender diversity efforts werecollective wisdom of the group.shaped by HBAs inaugural EDGE Leadership study, and aWhy has it been necessary to create the Collaborativethis decade later weve seen firsthand the dramatic impact genderfirst ever industry consortium?diversity can have on patients, society and our business. TheHelping patients address health challenges will require world is rapidly changing and the medical challenges wereincreasingly innovative solutions. The Collaborative will trying to solve are getting more complex. If we are going tohelp attract the best minds to our industry, and reinforce an do now what our patients need next, we need diversity ofenvironment where everyone can bring their full potential to representation, thought and experience. bear in the interest of improving human health. We all have As the first industry consortium working to acceleratean obligation to do what is in the best interest of patients, and systemic change, what will lead the Collaborative tohaving appropriate diversity within our organizations and in our measurable positive outcomes? clinical trials is a must for that to be realized. We are working With HBAs four decades of experience and broad-basedto accelerate innovation for patients and having diversity of participation from the industry, the Collaborative is ideallythought in our organizations is imperative for that to occur.suited to compile data on the current state of gender diversityFor companies who have yet to join, what do you think and its impact, as well as best practices, emerging besttheyre missing out on?practices and lessons. A resource with those elements is aThe Collaborative is an excellent opportunity for companies to powerful tool for people interested in catalyzing meaningfulshow the world, would-be applicants and their own employees and measurable change within their respective organizations. that they are an organization where all voices are heard and Of what current company gender parity initiative are youvalued, and that fundamentally believes in gender equity. most proud? Companies who choose not to join will miss out on being part In 2007, former CEO Ian Clark drew attention to a shortfall ofof the community of leaders that are creating and sustaining a women moving into the leadership ranks at Genentech, andlegacy of gender diversity in the industry. Ultimately, companies weve made it a business priority to address that disparitycould also find themselves at a disadvantage in a world that ever since. We set a 10-year strategic imperative to identifyis increasingly showing us gender diversity. Diversity and and remove barriers to the advancement of women in seniorinclusion are critical to helping us address the complex medical issues that our patients are counting on us to solve.8 SPRING 2020'