Top Companies for Women at the Top

The National Association for Female Executives released its list of the top 50 companies in the U.S. for female executives in the March issue of NAFE's magazine. The Top Ten companies for 2010 are Abbot, Aetna, American Express, Fleishman-Hillard, General Mills, IBM, Johnson & Johnson, Marriott International, Office Depot and Wellpoint.

One of the largest women's professional associations and the largest women business owners' organization in the U.S., NAFE is a part of Working Mother Media, a subsidiary of Bonnier Corporation.

The survey looks at companies based on a range of criteria, including whether the company has moved women into top executive positions and whether they have significant clout to make decisions that affect the company's future and bottom line. Likewise, they look for a corporate culture that identifies, promotes and nurtures successful women, with programs and policies that help women develop their talents and move into positions of power, looking for evidence that women are in the pipeline to upper management.

The list is an annual benchmark for U.S. corporations. Data from this year shows that the number of women responsible for running operations at the 50 top companies is 26 percent, compared to 11 percent at Fortune 500 companies. Companies qualifying for the NAFE top 50 must have at least two women on the board and track gender in profit-and-loss responsible positions.