Governance expert earns award from International Alliance for Women for his contributions to enhance global prosperity and spur greater Board diversity
Ludo Van der Heyden, professor of technology and the Mubadala Chair in Corporate Governance & Strategy at INSEAD, has been named a recipient of the “TIAW World of Difference 100 Award” for 2013. The honour is conferred annually to up to 100 recipients around the world by The International Alliance of Women (TIAW), a global nonprofit based in Washington, D.C., whose programmes and resources are dedicated to the economic empowerment of women. Professor Van der Heyden was among those honoured at a gala dinner on March 27, where he was distinguished as a “champion of women’s economic empowerment.” The event was part of the TIAW Global Forum held March 26-28 in Washington, D.C. Established in 2008, the award recognises the achievements of women and men whose work promotes a more equitable world by supporting the advancement women in the economy.
In his work, Van der Heyden has been a vocal proponent for women as they seek greater Board representation. As Academic Director of INSEAD’s Corporate Governance Initiative—which provides leading-edge teaching and research to strengthen better practises for Board directors—Van der Heyden has spurred gender diversity, including a recent survey of Board members and governance experts to ascertain the attitudes of directors about women in governance roles.
Citing statistics that indicate only about 16% of Fortune 500 Board directors are female, Van der Heyden has said of the disparity: “This is foremost a democratic and societal issue about redressing what is a bias against women as they move closer to the top of the corporate ladder. Most people by now agree that this bias is unacceptable and that it ought to move away. And the best place to make that happen is really at the top, namely at the board. Doing so will trigger greater diversity in senior ranks.” Yet, he says, too many male directors still tend to favour a “natural evolution” toward more diversity, rather than a concerted effort to increase women in governance positions. “This ‘natural way’ seems not to have improved matters for many hundreds of years,” explains the INSEAD professor. “So it is understandable and great that the issue finally gets tackled—this time hopefully decisively.”
Van der Heyden said that he was honoured to be nominated for the TIAW award and emphasized that the award was to be shared with all those who participated in this INSEAD effort: First, the expert panel, including INSEAD Professors Annet Aris and Herminia Ibarra; INSEAD Board member, founder and MD of Independent Capital Management Mirjam Staub-Bisang; INSEAD Certified Directors of the International Directors Programme (IDP), Non-Executive-Directors Alexandra Schaapveld and Rosa Villalobos. Second, with all INSEAD alumni and International Directors Programme participants (IDP: http://executive-education.insead.edu/international_directors) for their insights on the question from different European perspectives. The award is an acknowledgement that INSEAD thought leadership continues to bridge the gap between business theory and practice in important ways so as to contribute to greater value creation, opportunities and diversity.
In his effort to promote Board gender diversity, Professor Van der Heyden is also engaged in the European Business Schools’ Global Board Ready Women (GBRW) initiative providing the EU, search firms, and Boards with an international list of women qualified to sit on a Board as well as a high-level platform for discussion for its members.
In addition to his efforts to increase Board diversity, Professor Van der Heyden has been a pioneering force for “fair process leadership,” also known as procedural justice, a model of management and governance that embraces broader stakeholder engagement and more transparent and unbiased outcomes. His contribution has been to further operationalise fair process, a concept already identified and studied by INSEAD professors Kim and Mauborgne. The goal of fair process is to enhance trust and commitment within an organisation and ultimately performance. He is currently analysing and compiling for publication data he has generated with companies that document the value of fair process, as operationalised by him.
Van der Heyden has played an integral and diverse role in advancing INSEAD’s mission since joining the school’s faculty in 1988. In addition to serving as the school’s Co-Dean (1990-1995), he has been active as a teacher in the MBA, Executive Education and PhD programmes. Professor Van der Heyden is currently the Academic Director of INSEAD’s Governance Initiative and Co-Director of the International Directors Programme. Widely published, Van der Heyden’s expertise includes leadership governance, family business, process management and team dynamics. Professor Van der Heyden earned a PhD in Administrative Science from Yale University and an Engineering Degree in Applied Mathematics from Université Catholique de Louvain.
To learn more about The International Alliance for Women and its World of Difference Award, visit www.tiaw.org.
To download the Corporate Governance Initiative Report, visit http://www.insead.edu/facultyresearch/centres/governance_initiative/icgiwomenonBoards.cfm
