About Us
Back in 2002, Betty Quadracci was incensed with an article in Milwaukee magazine - this was the magazine Betty owned and published - that asked "where are all the women leaders?" The answer was, sadly - there wasn't many. With few exceptions, Milwaukee's corporate world was a white man's world. We help up a figurative mirror to the male leaders in our community and showed them the paltry numbers in our very first research report. Clearly, change was needed.
Who better to advocate for change than Betty. She called on CEOs to advance more women leaders. She built awareness and visibility for women. She used what she learned through her own success to mentor many of our early members. Betty, phone call by phone call, meeting by meeting, laid the groundwork for where we are today. Our mission hasn't changed, but the opportunities for women certainly have. And we have Betty to thank for telling us to, "be bold".
Leadership
Lori Syverson
President/CEO
Milwaukee Women inc
Kristin Dufek
Chair
President, EUA
Karen Hung
Vice Chair
CEO & Founder, Silver Rock Consulting
Sandra Cunningham
Secretary
Director (retired) Versiti, Inc.
Leslie Plamann
Treasurer
Partner, EY
Janette Braverman
External Engagement Co-Chair
Founder & CEO
Leaders Leaving Legacies, LLC
April Dunn
External Engagement Co-Chair
Former Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, Fortune 200
Julie Glynn
Member Engagement Co-Chair
Executive Vice President, Chief Retail Officer
WaterStone Bank
Cecelia Gore
Member-at-Large
Executive Director
Milwaukee Brewers Community Foundation
Nancy Hernandez
Member-at-Large
President
MMAC, Hispanic Collaborative
Kimberly Kane
Communications & Research Co-Chair
President and CEO
Kane Communications Group
Emily Phillips
Communications & Research Co-Chair
Director & Financial Advisor
Phillips Ristau Group – Baird
Kimberly Stoll
Immediate Past Chair
Vice President - Sales and Marketing
Badger Meter
2023 Research Report released on October 25, 2023
Since 2004, MWi has published an annual research report on the percentage of women serving on the boards of directors of the 50 largest Wisconsin public companies. Our 2023 research report, “Driving Forward:Our work is not done” shows the percentage of women on the boards of Wisconsin’s top 50 public companies increased slightly to 27.3%
Mary Ellen Stanek Award
Mary Ellen Stanek, Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer, Baird Advisors, Robert W. Baird & Co. and MWi emeritus member consistently shows a tireless commitment to diversity as a key to building strong corporations and a more vital Milwaukee region.
In 2014, in recognition of her work and appreciation for the time and energy she has given in service to the Greater Milwaukee Committee (GMC) and Milwaukee Women inc (MWi), the organizations joined forces to create the Mary Ellen Stanek Award for Diversity in Corporate Governance.
The Mary Ellen Stanek Award for Diversity in Corporate Governance is given annually in to an individual or entity demonstrating a commitment to promoting diversity in their corporate structure resulting in increased gender diversity in leadership and on corporate boards in the Milwaukee Region.
2023 Mary Ellen Stanek Award Recipients
The Greater Milwaukee Committee (GMC) in conjunction with Milwaukee Women inc (MWi), awarded the 10th annual Mary Ellen Stanek Award for Diversity in Corporate Governance to Joan Prince, CEO, Executive Strategies and Vice Chancellor Emerita, The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM), and Marquette University on March 14th at the GMC’s Membership Meeting.
Joan Prince was recognized for her tireless work supporting inclusion of all students, faculty, and staff in driving UWM’s dual access and research missions. In February, she was appointed by Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers to the University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents. As a founding member of MilwaukeeWomen inc., Prince has mentored females from an early age. She knows first-hand the feeling of being the only female and person of color in a board room, but that has only fueled her passion for advancing diversity.
Marquette University was recognized for its commitment to increasing diversity among staff, faculty, and leadership positions throughout the institution. The university board have taken a proactive approach to accelerating the diversity of both the board of trustees and leadership council. Eight board members are women, nine board members are people of color, and nearly 50% of the leadership council are women. Today, one in five full-time faculty are individuals of color, and one-third of assistant professors are faculty of color; 48.2% of faculty are women, the highest percentage in 10 years. Additionally, 44% of tenured/tenure-track faculty are women, the highest in Marquette’s history. Marquette’s culture of diversity has also provided opportunities for inclusion across campus with efforts like the Urban Scholars Program, the Student Success Initiative, and the institution’s status as an Emerging Hispanic-Serving Institution.