■ President ' s View
Continued From Page 6
According to a paper published by the Peterson Institute for International Economics , the presence of more female leaders in top positions of corporate management correlates with increased profitability of these companies .
In addition , a study from consultant McKinsey and Co . in partnership with the Women ’ s Forum for the Economy and Society noted that companies with a higher percentage of women in top management have better financial performance .
A Credit Suisse report showed “ companies with 25 percent female participation had an annualized return of 22.8 percent over five years , while those with over one-third of women in management had a 25.6 percent annual return — which compares to an 11.7 percent return for the average company ” during the study period .
But the same report says that we have a long way to go for women to take their rightful place in the C-suite by pointing out that “ in the largest 100 London-listed companies , the total number of female chief executives is the same as the number of bosses named Peter — six .”
The Commerce and Industry Association of New Jersey is recognizing the important role that women play in business success by including many top leaders on its board of directors , including officers such as Vice Chair Audrey Murphy , Executive Vice President / Chief Legal Officer , Hackensack Meridian Health ; Treasurer Kathleen Alexander , CPA , Partner , Sax , LLP ; and Executive Committee Members At-Large including East Orange General Hospital President and CEO Paige Dworak ; and AECOM Vice President , Managing Principal Kim Vierheilig .
Other female board members include Valley Health System Vice President , Planning & Marketing Research , Gail Callandrillo ; SobelCo Principal & Chief Growth Strategist Sally Glick ; Bayshore Family of Companies President and CEO Valerie Montecalvo ; Ridgewood Moving Services President Cindy Myer ; Corethia V . E . Oates , VP , Portfolio Manager , Morgan Stanley ; Terrie O ’ Connor Realtors President / Broker Terrie O ’ Connor ; and Creamer Environmental , Inc . Executive Vice President Tracy Straka ( a past chairman of CIANJ ).
Many thanks to the amazing women who participated in these awards , to the women leaders who help guide CIANJ as members of our board and to all the sponsors that made this new awards program possible .
We will honor the award-winners at a celebration breakfast on August 18 , 2021 , at the Glen Ridge Country Club in Glen Ridge , New Jersey .
BUSINESS & LIFESTYLE
Your Return to the Office : What to Wear in the New Normal
By Wendy Tait , CIANJ ’ s EVP , Sommelier , Business Development and Strategic Initiatives
If you are like so many other employees in New Jersey , there is a good chance you will be heading back to the office for work . Gone are the days when you can Zoom in a formal top while wearing sweatpants or jeans . The whole “ you ” will be reporting to the office , visible for all of your colleagues to see .
But that may not be an easy transition . Have you tried on your clothes only to find yourself in an uh-oh moment when you realize that your shirt no longer buttons or those favorite pants or suit no longer fits ? Are you staring into your closet wondering who that person was that used to wear those clothes into an office that hasn ’ t existed for well over a year ?
The question needs to be asked — does a pre- COVID wardrobe work in a post-COVID work culture ? Can you wear casual attire during the work day ?
There is definitely a new normal and , in an effort to help you figure out a dress-up plan for success , we have recruited an image expert and Wharton School of Business alumni to speak at an upcoming CIANJ event .
Sharon Kornstein , AICI , CIP , founder and president of ImageDesign LLC , will offer her perspective on Thursday , September 9 , 2021 . She will take you through current trends as well as provide tips on how to update what was once your staple closet , so that you can feel your best when returning to the office .
ImageDesign LLC Founder and President Sharon Kornstein , AICI , CIP
30 COMMERCE www . commercemagnj . com