--- title: "Pathways to Leadership Success: Working Towards Gender Balance" description: "Pathways to Leadership Success: Working Towards Gender Balance More than half of the doctorate degrees awarded in biomedical studies go to women and women make up 50% of the talent pool in the biomedical workforce. Yet, we don’t have to look hard to see that women are underrepresented in leadership positions, in virtually all sectors, but certainly in biotechnology and technology. Why is this, and what can we do to change it?" image: https://info.westorg.org/hubfs/WEST20logo20brief.jpg --- [![Home](https://info.westorg.org/hubfs/West%20August2017/Img/west%202016.jpg)](https://gwnew.memberclicks.net/home) # WEST Wisdom Blog ## Pathways to Leadership Success: Working Towards Gender Balance Posted by [WEST Board Member](https://info.westorg.org/blog/author/west-board-member) on Nov 7, 2016 9:30:00 AM - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) More than half of the doctorate degrees awarded in biomedical studies go to women and women make up 50% of the talent pool in the biomedical workforce. Yet, we don’t have to look hard to see that women are underrepresented in leadership positions, in virtually all sectors, but certainly in biotechnology and technology. Why is this, and what can we do to change it? On November 14, 2016, we will be taking this issue head-on in a discussion co-sponsored by WEST, Xconomy and Biogen. (More information and registration information can be found [here](http://www.westorg.org/2016-11-14-panel).) We have invited an esteemed group of men and women in leadership positions across a diverse sector of science and technology to candidly address the institutional bias that exists, and brainstorm about steps we can all take to even the playing field. Our panelists include: Sangeeta Bhatia, Professor, MIT; Bruce Booth, Partner, Atlas Venture; George Scangos, CEO, Biogen; and Sophie Vandebroek, CTO, Xerox. The discussion will be moderated by Bob Buderi, CEO, Xconomy and Jo Viney, SVP, Biogen. We will challenge the panel, and the audience, to openly address questions such as: - How do we increase the pipeline of girls and women in STEM, by motivating them to pursue STEM education, particularly the “hard” sciences such as physics and engineering? - How do we ensure the retention of more women in STEM and support their career development? - What would it take to get your company and/or clients to be 50/50 men and women across levels?  - What does it take in your business for a person to reach the top? What are the critical factors for advancement? - What can each of us do to identify and reduce hidden bias so that progress can be made? We also look forward to hearing questions and suggestions from the audience. Many of us have experienced hidden bias, and certainly many of us have found ways to overcome it. By having an open and honest discussion, we can work together to bring better gender balance to leadership positions in STEM. Please join us for this important discussion:  **Pathways to Leadership Success: Working Towards Gender Balance** **Date and Time: **November 14, 2016, 6:00 - 8:45 PM **Location:****
 **Biogen, Bio 8, Auditorium. Enter through Building 9 at 300 Binney Street, Cambridge, MA 02142   Written by Mariana Nacht Topics: [Events](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/events), [Leadership](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/leadership), [Gender Balance](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/gender-balance), [Tech](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/tech), [Science](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/science), [Success](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/success), [Network](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/network) ### Subscribe to Email Updates ### Recent Posts ### Posts by Topic - [Career (159)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/career) - [Women in STEM (152)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/women-in-stem) - [Women (150)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/women) - [Community (138)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/community) - [Upcoming Events (129)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/upcoming-events) - [Events (123)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/events) - [Networking (106)](https://info.westorg.org/blog/topic/networking) - 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