Board Diversity Ventas
Challenge
Elevating the diversity of the Ventas Board of Directors.
Actions
At Ventas, our Board of Directors is the one of the keys to our success; an engaged group of individuals who provide clear-minded, experienced judgment, hold our Company and management to high standards, and think strategically in creating long-term value for our stakeholders.
Diversity within the board is also critical to bring together varied perspectives and complementary experiences, and has been shown to have a demonstrable impact on business performance.[1]
Ventas has long placed a priority on gender diversity at the Board level, and has maintained at least two female Board members since 2001, including Chairman and CEO Debra A. Cafaro.
Board diversity growth is typically slow due to the low turnover of board seats, but it is often compounded by narrow recruiting practices that disqualify excellent candidates from the outset of the search process.
To that end, Ventas has looked to refresh and renew its most recent Board roles via a broadened specification of selection criteria in order to allow for the consideration of a more diverse slate of candidates, including:
- Leadership experience in roles outside of the public company C-Suite;
- Subject matter expertise in areas outside of our core industries of real estate and healthcare, such as in public policy and capital markets;
- A heavier emphasis on applicable skillsets; and
- Individuals without prior Board experience.
Traditional diversity metrics such as age, gender and ethnicity remain a consideration but are not a qualifier for Board roles.
[1] https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/organization/our-insights/delivering-through-diversity
Outcomes
Ventas added two new female independent members to its Board, both of whom would be serving on their first public company board: Melody Barnes, a government relations and public policy expert in 2014; and Roxanne Martino, a highly-experienced leader in investments and capital markets in 2016. The current nine member Ventas Board is one-third female.
“If you are truly committed to diversifying your Board, you will be successful.”
Debra A. Cafaro, Chairman and CEO
Contact
Louise Adhikari, Vice President Corporate Communications
Quote
Creating an environment where employees can be themselves and reach their maximum potential is a long-term commitment to our future. Both research and experience clearly demonstrate that groups having diverse perspectives produce better results and make better decisions. Our Company is stronger and more effective for all stakeholders when we intentionally develop and recruit a diverse workforce at all levels of the organization.