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| Catalyst (leadership conference) | |
|---|---|
| Name | Catalyst |
| Type | Nonprofit |
| Founded | 1962 |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Area served | Global |
Catalyst (leadership conference) Catalyst is an annual leadership conference and research nonprofit focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion in corporate leadership and organizational culture. The organization convenes executives, human resources leaders, scholars, and policymakers to address leadership development, workplace inclusion, and talent pipelines across industries. Catalyst's programming combines keynote addresses, panel discussions, workshops, and research dissemination to influence practice among corporations, nonprofits, and institutions.
Catalyst was established in the early 1960s and developed alongside movements and institutions such as Civil Rights Movement, United Nations, National Organization for Women, American Bar Association, and Fortune 500 corporate leadership shifts. Over decades Catalyst engaged with figures and entities including The White House, U.S. Congress, Harvard Business School, Columbia University, Stanford Graduate School of Business, and McKinsey & Company on studies of representation and workplace policy. The conference evolved in response to societal changes reflected in events like Women's Liberation Movement, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Equal Pay Act of 1963, and rulings by the Supreme Court of the United States. Catalyst’s history intersects with advocacy by organizations such as American Association of University Women, International Labour Organization, World Economic Forum, and Business Roundtable.
Catalyst's stated mission aligns with leadership development emphasized by institutions like Center for Creative Leadership, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Ford Foundation, Rockefeller Foundation, and Open Society Foundations. Core themes mirror research agendas of McKinsey Global Institute, Boston Consulting Group, and Deloitte on topics including workforce diversity, board representation, talent pipelines, and leadership equity. Catalyst frames discussions in relation to social movements and policy frameworks symbolized by Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, Sustainable Development Goals, #MeToo movement, and Affordable Care Act debates, while engaging with corporate practices notable at Goldman Sachs, IBM, Procter & Gamble, and General Electric.
The annual conference brings together speakers and attendees comparable to gatherings at World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, Davos, SXSW, TED Conference, and Clinton Global Initiative. Programs include workshops akin to executive education at INSEAD, London Business School, Kellogg School of Management, and Wharton School, and sector-specific tracks paralleling forums hosted by LinkedIn, Google, Microsoft, and Facebook. Catalyst also runs research programs and leadership labs collaborating with United Nations Global Compact, International Monetary Fund, OECD, and European Commission on data-driven interventions for inclusive leadership.
Speakers and participants at Catalyst gatherings have included executives and public figures associated with Indra Nooyi, Sheryl Sandberg, Tim Cook, Mary Barra, Satya Nadella, Ursula von der Leyen, Michelle Obama, Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama, Angela Merkel, Condoleezza Rice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Christine Lagarde, Brené Brown, Malala Yousafzai, Oprah Winfrey, Arianna Huffington, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Nelson Mandela-era advocates, and leaders from Black Lives Matter, Human Rights Campaign, and Amnesty International. Corporate participants draw from boards and executive teams at JPMorgan Chase, Citi, Bank of America, Amazon (company), Walmart, Tesla, Inc., Salesforce, and Accenture.
Catalyst’s research and convenings have been cited in policy discussions at U.S. Department of Labor, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, European Parliament, and forums such as World Bank convenings and G20 meetings. Studies produced by or disseminated at Catalyst have influenced board diversity initiatives at firms like Nasdaq and prompted benchmarking used by S&P Global, Bloomberg, and Glassdoor. Criticism has come from scholars and commentators affiliated with Thomas Sowell, Cambridge University, London School of Economics, American Enterprise Institute, and Hoover Institution who argue about efficacy, measurement, and unintended consequences of diversity strategies. Debates often reference regulatory and legal cases such as decisions by the Supreme Court of the United States and positions taken by U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Catalyst operates as a nonprofit organization with governance structures common to entities like Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Council on Foreign Relations, and Brookings Institution, featuring a board of directors, executive leadership, and regional staff. Funding sources parallel those of major nonprofits and conference organizers, including corporate sponsorships from companies such as Microsoft, Apple Inc., and Johnson & Johnson, grants from philanthropic foundations like Gates Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation, and revenue from membership and event fees. Financial oversight and audit practices align with standards used by Internal Revenue Service filing entities and nonprofit accreditation processes in New York State.
Catalyst partners with academic, corporate, and international bodies similar to partnerships between Harvard Kennedy School, Yale School of Management, Princeton University, McKinsey & Company, PwC, Ernst & Young, United Nations Women, ILO, and OECD on research and programs. Related initiatives include corporate mentorship programs, executive coaching networks like International Coaching Federation, and leadership pipelines modeled after initiatives at Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women, EY Ripples, and JP Morgan Chase AdvancingCities. Collaborative projects often intersect with corporate social responsibility campaigns led by Cisco Systems, SAP SE, and Unilever.
Category:Leadership conferences