Do Women-Only Business Events Really Work for Women?

Have women-only conferences and workshops failed in their goal to advance the careers of the women who attend by leaving the guys out? Given the snail’s pace progress of women on gender pay equity and advancement to senior levels, it’s a provocative question being raised by more and more people, and one that I wrestled with in my recent article in business section of the New York Times, Sisterhood Is Not Enough: Why Workplace Equality Needs Men, Too.

In a nutshell, the problem isn’t women-only events – which I support wholeheartedly – it’s corporate America’s over reliance on them to fix deep and systematic problems where the train really goes off the tracks.

What do you think? I’d be interested in your comments, and if you know of a company that’s really moving the needle on the advancement of women in a serious way, let me know.