The Big Picture:    December 2010 reported 24 new women director announcements according to press releases tracked by NewsOnWomen.com for companies in 13 states.

December finally showed some pickup since April 2010 reported 27 women director announcements, although this December was lower than every comparable month except 2005. The trendline (in green, to the right), shows a slightly positive pattern, primarily thanks to December's data.

The History:   This brings our total for the year 2010 to 221 women named to boards, significantly lower than annual totals for each of the prior years since we began tracking in 2005.

Nevertheless, December was better than expected, producing a level trendline for the year overall. The chart below shows the monthly actual announcements (in blue) and the 12 month trendline (in red).

The Quiet Revolution: The number of women directors increases when more women move into the executive ranks, as CEOs and President of business corporations. The chart below shows we have a long term positive trend, as reported by NewsOnWomen.com, reaching 42 women named as President, CEOs or Chairs for the year 2010. The supply of women in leadership is being tapped at the corporate level, where women are building the calibre of expertise that will be valuable in a board role in a few years.

An interesting contrast with women directors is that women Presidents/CEOs were named dominantly to NYSE and private firms, as shown below.

What States?    Companies in 13 states announced new women director appointments in December. California and Massachusetts each added 4 new women directors; New York and Ohio firms added 3 each, Texas added 2 and eight states added 1 woman director each.

For the year to date, California added 43 women directors (17.8%), New York added 20, while Massachusetts added 19 women directors. Florida also is in double digits with 11 women directors. Illinois, Ohio and Texas had 10 for the year, while Pennsylvania had 9. Colorado and Michigan had 8 women directors each. Altogether, 35 of the states and the District of Columbia had companies that added at least 1 woman director, while 16 states did not.

What Exchanges?    Women directors for the year were appointed to boards dominantly at NYSE- and NASDAQ-registered companies. NYSE companies recorded 87 (39.4%), while NASDAQ companies had 62 for the year (28.1%). Private firms named 50 women directors (22.6%) while OTC and PINK listed companies named just a handful of new woman director each for 2010 (12 and 5 women directors).

Fortune 500 firms added 8 of the month's 24 women directors, representing 17.8% of all publicly announced women directors added to corporate boards for the year. Fortune 500 nominees include Judy Lewent to Motorola Solutions Inc., Laura K. Ipsen to Monsanto Company, Margaret F. Moran to Occidental Petroleum, Ellen Kullman to United Technologies, Susan Desmond-Hellman to Procter & Gamble, Alison Davis to City National Corp., Dr. Kristina M. Johnson to Boston Scientific Corporation and Vicki Sutil to Plains All American Pipeline LP.

Another interesting trend is that these companies are technology, energy, and major global manufacturing firms -- not simply consumer discretionary or personal hygiene companies traditionally presumed to be the logical choice for women.