NewsonWomen reports 353 Women Appointed to Board of Directors in 2012, a 20% Increase. Women Engineers a Big Resource for Companies.

22 women were appointed to corporate Boards of Directors in December, giving us a total for 2012 of 353, a 20% increase. Major trends during the year which show how much progress we are making:

Women Engineers were a big resource for companies. Highlights included Marissa Mayer (computer science) - pictured, CEO of Yahoo appointed to Yahoo Board and Wal-Mart Board; Ursula Burns, (mechanical engineer), CEO of Xerox appointed to Exxon Mobil Board; Linda Hudson, (systems engineering) CEO of BAE Systems appointed to Bank of America Board; Kristina Johnson, (electrical engineering), former U.S. UnderSercretary of Energy appointed to Cisco Board; Grace Lieblein, (industrial engineer), General Motors Brazil President appointed to Honeywell; Kimberly Snyder, (computer science), CEO and a Member of Panavision Board of Directors; Uma Chowdry, (engineering science), former SVP and Chief Science and Technology Officer at E.I. du Pont de Nemours appointed to the Baxter International Board; Amy Chang, (electrical engineering) pictured right, Global Head of Product for Ads Measurement and Reporting at Google appointed to the Informatica Corp Board: Diane B. Greene, (mechanical engineering) CEO of VMware appointed to the Google Board.

Women were appointed to CEO jobs and added as a member of their company's Board. Examples include Marillyn Hewson at Lockheed Martin; LuAnn Via at women's retailer Christopher & Banks Corp; Kimberly Snyder at Panavision;  Andrea Ayers at Convergys Corp; Margaret Laub at Intelligent InSites; Marissa Mayer at Yahoo; and Peyton R. Patterson at BNC Financial Group.

Tech companies appointed more women to their Boards. Examples - Facebook, Zynga, Adobe Sysytems, Netflix, Scripps Network Interactive, Qualcomm, and Google.

Ginni Rometty gets a category all her own for being named Chairman of the Board of IBM, added to her titles of CEO and President of the company!

Other important issues discussed on NewsonWomen this year included 5 Ways to Reach the Corporate Boardroom.

All of this shows that we are making progress even if the macro number of 16% of Fortune 500 companies directors being women does not reflect it. To change that number we need more than lists of candidates. Lists have been around for awhile and haven't provided a solution. The solution we need is "commitment"! Fortune 500 companies need to commit to making their next Director appointment a woman! That would move the needle and impact the 16%. 500 new women directors, for the women who buy their products, support their services and work at their companies! That is what is needed. That would make a Happy New Year!