Research conducted throughout the world shows gender balance in top positions contributes to improved competitiveness and better business performance.

Research shows that women at that mid level tend to get promoted based on performance, and men tend to get promoted based on potential.

There's no doubt about it that my participation in sports allowed me to compete in the business world in a very gender-neutral way.

We all know business financial performance improves when more women are in senior levels of management and leadership.

Not only do the majority of senior women executives have sports in their background, they recognize that the behaviors and techniques learned through sports are critical to motivating teams and improving performance in a corporate environment.

What is clear is that business leaders must commit to champion change - to be transparent about their goals for change, to align their incentives systems to drive the change, and to make sure their work environments are flexible in a way that allows men and women who choose to work to be able to achieve all of their potential.