11th WOMEN DIRECTORS CONFERENCE
Transformation through the Power of Finance:
Increasing Female Representation on Boards
Wednesday, February 12
15.00-19.00
The Marmara Taksim
Participants
This conference, open to representatives from the business sector, non-governmental organizations, academia, and the media, is free of charge.
Due to limited capacity, we encourage you to complete the registration form at your earliest convenience. Once the capacity is reached, additional applications will be placed on a waiting list.
Simultaneous Turkish-English interpretation services will be available throughout the conference.
Speakers
E. Naci Başerdem
The Marmara Group CEO
Selen Zorlu Melik
Zorlu Holding Board Member
Melsa Ararat
30 Percent
Club Türkiye,
Chair
Hanneke Smits
30% Club
Global
Chair
Elisabetta Falcetti
EBRD Managing Director, Turkiye and the Caucasus
Ata Can Bertay
Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum (SU CGF) Director
Ebru Dildar Edin
30 Percent Club Türkiye, Board Member
Zeynep Cantimur Kavaklı
Deputy Head of Legal Affairs Department, Capital Markets Board of Türkiye
Dr. Cansel Nuray Aksoy
Garanti BBVA, Executive Vice President
Sinem Edige
Garanti BBVA, Executive Vice President
Yağız Oral
Turkish Institutional Investment Managers’ Association (TKYD) Chair
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Serkan Kaygalak
Anadolu Hayat Emeklilik, CEO (TBC)
Cemile Avşar
Yüzde 30 Kulübü Türkiye Project Coordinator
Master of Ceremony
Dr. Ahu Özyurt
Journalist / Lecturer
Program
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 12
15:00
Registration & Welcome
15:30
Opening Speech
15:50
Keynote Speech
16:05
''Women on Board in Turkey Report- 2024'' Presentation
16:20
“Women Empowered Board Awards” Ceremony
16:40
Panel: ''The Transformative Role of the Financial Sector in Gender Equality and Women's Participation in Company Management''
17:40
Reception & Cocktail
Main
Sponsors
Partial
Sponsors
The 30 Percent Club Turkiye
The 30% Club campaign, originally founded by Dame Helena Morrissey in the UK in 2010, has grown into a global initiative promoting diversity in business leadership. In 2016, efforts to establish the Turkey Chapter were initiated by founding members Melsa Ararat, Murat Yeşildere, Tayfun Bayazıt, Ahmet Dördüncü, Humphrey Hutton, Murat Özyeğin, Sani Şener, and Ömer Yüngül. The Chapter was officially launched at Borsa İstanbul in 2017 and has been hosted and coordinated by the Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum since its inception.
The 30% Club Türkiye is a voluntary organization of senior corporate professionals dedicated to improving business through diversity. With 86 members as of today, the Chapter includes board chairs, CEOs, and senior executives committed to driving change. The Club works globally across more than 20 countries, and individuals and organizations are encouraged to support its mission.
The 30% Club Türkiye focuses on achieving tangible progress by:
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Encouraging and supporting board chairs and CEOs to increase female representation on boards and in senior management.
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Providing resources and information to businesses striving to improve diversity at all organizational levels.
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Leveraging public and social media to advocate for change.
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Conducting and promoting research to guide governments and institutions toward impactful actions.
The Board of Directors of the 30% Club Türkiye has set the following targets for 2025:
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Achieving 30% female participation on the boards of BIST companies.
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Ensuring 30% female participation in top executive teams.
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Eliminating all-male boards among BIST-100 companies.
Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum
The Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum (CGF) was established on March 1, 2003, as a joint initiative of the Turkish Industrialists and Businessmen’s Association (TÜSİAD) and Sabancı University. Hosted by Sabancı Business School, it is an interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral initiative focused on fostering better corporate behavior and practices that impact socio-economic welfare.
The Forum’s mission is to enhance the corporate governance framework and practices. To achieve this, CGF undertakes and commissions scientific research, fosters dialogue between academicians and practitioners, and actively engages in policy and practice development initiatives.
Currently, the CGF hosts several notable initiatives, including 30% Club Türkiye, the Independent Women Directors Project, Business Against Domestic Violence, and CDP Türkiye.
Independent Women Directors Project
The Sabancı University Corporate Governance Forum (CGF), in strategic partnership with Egon Zehnder International (EZI) Türkiye, launched the Independent Women Directors (IWD) project in 2012. The IWD Project aims to promote gender diversity in corporate governance by encouraging companies to consider female candidates for independent board director positions.
To support this objective, the project maintains a database of qualified women candidates. Each application is carefully evaluated against criteria established by the Forum and EZI Türkiye. As of October 2023, the IWD database includes 330 board-qualified women.
Click to see the Website