Westpac is very proud of the commitment we have made in supporting and growing women in leadership. This is highlighted not only in having Gail Kelly as Group CEO but also in the number of young female graduates we appoint to the bank every year across NZ and Australia. In 2008, Westpac was once again recognised as an Employer of Choice for women in Australia for the 12th year running. Not only are we proactive in developing our own women leaders through strong development programs and family policies, we are also proactive in supporting women in business. Westpac have developed significant customer events for senior women clients and proudly support female led industries through our involvement in Fashion Week and events such as Red Collection and Frocktails.

Minter Ellison Rudd Watts is one of New Zealand's leading, full-service law firms with our history dating back over 130 years. Delivering value through technically excellent solutions and innovative advice for our clients is at the heart of what we do. We are a local and trusted advisor with offices in Auckland and Wellington as well as being part of the Minter Ellison Legal Group, which is amongst the largest in the world. We are proud to be a New Zealand Law Firm with a global outlook. For further information about our people, practice areas and major projects.

As an organisation Vodafone is committed to creating an inclusive working environment where we not only accept and respect but genuinely celebrate the uniqueness that each person who works at Vodafone has to offer. We aspire to being a place where there are no barriers to people being their possibility – whatever that may be. A key element of this is working with our future female leaders to build a strong talent pipeline which reflects our customer base, and leverages a range of thinking and emotional working styles. We see a natural alignment with what Global Women is aspiring to achieve and are proud to be involved as one of the founding sponsors of Global Women.

At Deloitte, we are known for providing audit, tax, consulting, and financial advisory services to public and private clients spanning multiple industries. As a globally connected network of member firms in 140 countries, we bring world-class capabilities but we never lose sight of the fact that our clients are local. Our goal is to help our clients succeed no matter how large or small their business or the size of the challenges they face. We are a unified team that fosters integrity, outstanding value and innovation in everything we do. For our clients, the Deloitte experience is unlike any other, one that goes beyond traditional perceptions to set a new standard of excellence.

As a global organisation, it could be so easy to ride on the coat tails of your parent company and hope that the corporate culture lands in your respective country. At Microsoft New Zealand, we are proud of our global brand, products and solutions, and corporate culture, however we are conscious that a local employee experience is important to us.   Being part of Global Women is part of our investment in the development of our local leadership community. Partnering with Global Women is a another step in our commitment to playing a proactive role in advancing the economic and social goals of New Zealand. Visit www.microsoft.com/nz for more information.

With almost 400,000 employees serving clients in 170 countries, there is no typical IBMer. IBMers of all backgrounds bring talent, dedication and focus to their work, and rely on IBM to provide a workplace that fosters opportunity for every employee to contribute at the highest possible level. We have a long history of commitment to diversity and have consistently taken the lead on diversity policies, long before it was required by law. Our diversity strategy today is focused on six key areas that are critical to successfully navigating the work environments of the future: cultural diversity, people with disability, gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender, generational diversity, work-life integration -- and, of course, advancement of women. Beyond race, gender, sexual orientation, age or disability, though, IBM's principles of diversity and inclusion aim to broaden the definition and objectives of diversity to create a culture that fosters diversity of thought and relationships among colleagues and clients. Our attention to diversity isn't just a nicety -- it's how we do business.

Vector is delighted to be a founding corporate partner of Global Women. Vector Chief Executive, Simon Mackenzie said he believed it was important for organisations such as Vector which operate in a male dominated industry to provide opportunities for their female leaders to interact with female leaders who have extensive leadership experience from diverse backgrounds. “Global Women provides an opportunity for our female leaders to network and interact with a group of very senior New Zealand business women who have very diverse backgrounds,” he said.