Women's Forum for the Economy & Society

What Women's Forum for the Economy & Society does

Women's Forum for the Economy & Society (legal entity WEFCOS) is a Paris-based international platform founded in 2005 that convenes business, government, and academic leaders to advance gender equality in economic and policy decision-making. Since its 2010 acquisition by Publicis Groupe, the Forum has operated as a wholly-owned subsidiary under President Nannette Lafond-Dufour, who also serves as Chief Impact Officer of Publicis Groupe, and Managing Director Leïla Grison (appointed February 2025). The organization's flagship product is the annual Global Meeting, which in 2025 marked its 20th anniversary with 1,000 attendees, 160 speakers, and 56 sessions, complemented by 20+ regional events, a proprietary Gender Equity Barometer tracking perception-versus-reality on female leadership, and a free online community platform with an iOS mobile app.

Supporting initiatives include the Rising Talents programme for emerging female leaders, CEO Champions for executive engagement, the French Women Entrepreneurs 40 (FWE40) ranking co-founded with BNP Paribas under French Ministry of Economy patronage, WomenEntrepreneurs4Good (a pitching programme with HEC Paris, Bank of America, and Rexel), and Youth Voices. The product portfolio is unified around producing research, events, and convening that translate into policy outcomes — most recently the June 2026 G7 Manifesto on universal growth and strategic competitiveness delivered to President Macron.

The Forum's revenue model rests on three streams: corporate partnership and sponsorship programmes (40+ enterprise partners including BNP Paribas, AXA, Deloitte, Microsoft, L'Oréal, Schneider Electric, and Bureau Veritas), paid event ticket sales (€1,290 per 2-day Global Meeting pass, VAT excluded), and a free community membership tier that functions as a long-tail funnel. Geographic reach spans representatives from over 175 countries with concentrated activity in France and a forthcoming 2026 expansion into India via a Global Meeting held under the French-Indian Year of Innovation.

Name

Women's Forum for the Economy & Society

Legal name

WEFCOS

Website

https://womens-forum.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Women's Forum for the Economy & Society is a Paris-based international platform, founded in 2005 and owned by Publicis Groupe, that convenes business, government, and academic leaders through annual Global Meetings, regional events, and the proprietary Gender Equity Barometer to advance gender equality.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Events & Conferences

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (561920), Business Associations (813910), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Leadership Summits (C-Suite, Board, Strategy Offsites) (THAHAMAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK), Professional & Business Networking Communities (MPACAJAB), Professional & Association Conferences (MPAGAGAB)

Keywords

• Women leadership events
• Gender equality platform
• International business conferences
• Corporate partnership programs
• Research publications barometer

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Partner Memberships and Sponsorships: Corporate partners pay for year-long engagement programmes including speaking opportunities, strategic visibility, and premium networking experiences. The partnership page invites companies to contact the organization for sponsorship details.
2. Event Ticket Sales: The Global Meeting 2025 offered 2-day passes for €1,290 (VAT excluded), including conference access, networking meals, cocktail reception, and community access.
3. Community Membership: Free membership for the global online community providing access to inspiring live talks, impactful articles, vibrant network, and exclusive content. Mobile app available on iOS.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

The Women's Forum for the Economy & Society is an international platform that convenes business, government, and academic leaders through paid annual Global Meetings, regional events, corporate partnership programmes, and a free online community. Its core sellable offerings include ticketed flagship conferences (e.g., €1,290 two-day passes) and year-long corporate partnership/sponsorship packages that grant speaking opportunities, strategic visibility, and premium networking.

Product overview

Women's Forum for the Economy & Society is an international platform for impact that operates as a multi-initiative portfolio organization. The core offerings include the annual Global Meeting conference (bringing together over 175 countries for discussions on gender equality), the Barometer publication (measuring gender equity progress across key economic sectors), and the online Women's Forum Community platform. Supporting initiatives include Rising Talents, CEO Champions, French Women Entrepreneurs 40, WomenEntrepreneurs4Good, and Youth Voices. The organization also produces research reports, videos, and hosts regional events, all unified around advancing women's economic leadership and gender equality.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Global Meeting (Annual Flagship Conference) Ticketed annual international conference bringing together businesswomen, decision-makers, government officials, and academics from over 175 countries to discuss gender equality and women's economic leadership; 2-day pass includes conference access, networking meals, cocktail reception at Petit Palais, and online community access.
• Corporate Partnership Programme Paid year-long engagement programme for corporate partners, including speaking opportunities, strategic visibility, premium networking experiences, content co-creation, and access to the Forum's cross-sector community and international press reach. Pricing is custom enterprise engagement.
• Women's Forum Community (Online Platform) Free global online community platform providing members with inspiring live talks, articles, vibrant networking, and exclusive content focused on gender equity; accessible via website and iOS mobile application.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2025 Global Meeting: 1,000 attendees, 160 speakers, 56 sessions
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Arlequin AIminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto for Universal Growth and Strategic Competitiveness presented at the G7 summit in Évian, addressing AI's impact on women's economic participation.
• Groupe Caisse des DépôtsminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto addressing women's participation in economic transitions and AI.
• Schneider ElectricminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto addressing environmental transition as accelerator for economic equality.
• L'OréalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto addressing women's economic leadership.
• Groupe DuvalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto addressing women's economic participation.
• MantuminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2026Signatory partner of the G7 Manifesto addressing AI and women's economic participation.
• ChooseMyCompanycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 May 2026Collaborated on joint study published May 2026, surveying over 35,000 women employees in France on organizational performance and gender equity.
• HEC PariscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Partner organization for WomenEntrepreneurs4Good programme, providing jury members (Emma Cochrane, Inge Kekloh-Devif) for the startup pitching session at the 2025 Global Meeting.
• Bank of AmericacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Partner organization for WomenEntrepreneurs4Good programme, participating as jury member in the startup pitching competition.
• RexelcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Partner organization for WomenEntrepreneurs4Good programme. Nour Mejri represented Rexel as jury member.
• BNP ParibascoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Cofounder of French Women Entrepreneurs 40 initiative with Women's Forum. Laure Emmanuelle Filly participated in sessions on women entrepreneurs in France.
• Publicis GroupecoreOthers · 1 January 2010Acquired the Women's Forum in 2010. Nannette Lafond-Dufour serves as President of Women's Forum and Chief Impact Officer of Publicis Groupe. Parent company provides resources, press distribution, and organizational support.
• Bureau VeritasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization featured on the Women's Forum website with logo placement.
• AXAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization with multiple representatives participating in 2025 Global Meeting sessions on ending violence against women and domestic violence protection fund.
• DeloittecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner with speakers Emma Codd and Elizabeth Faber participating in sessions on aging/longevity and AI skills revolution.
• MicrosoftcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnology partner with speaker Shelley McKinley (Microsoft & GitHub) participating in AI and HR skills revolution panel.
• La Ville de PariscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-created the 'Footsteps of Courage' feminist tour of Paris with Women's Forum. Hélène Bidard from Ville de Paris participated in panel on ending violence against women.
• French Embassy (India)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner with Indo-French Chamber of Commerce & Industry for the 2026 Global Meeting India, part of French-Indian Year of Innovation.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• World Economic Forum: Operates the pre-eminent annual multi-stakeholder leadership summit (Davos), often compared to Women's Forum as 'Davos for women'. Shares the convening model spanning business, government, and academia at C-suite level.
• Aspen Institute: Nonprofit convening leaders through summits (e.g., Aspen Ideas Festival) and policy programs with convening, dialogue, and thought-leadership emphasis. Comparable values-based leadership convening model, though broader topical scope.
• Bloomberg Women's Summit: Media-driven executive women's summit with sponsor-supported programming. Comparable women-leadership convening, sits inside a broader financial media ecosystem rather than as a standalone mission-driven platform.

Direct peers

• Clinton Global Initiative: International convening platform for cross-sector leadership and impact commitments, with strong linkages to policy advocacy. Closely comparable to Women's Forum's pledge-style initiatives and global convening model.
• Fortune Most Powerful Women Summit: Invite-only annual summit targeting senior executive women, with parallel editorial coverage and sponsor-driven model. Directly comparable as a high-profile women-leadership event with sponsorship-based revenue.
• TEDWomen: Annual conference dedicated to women and the issues shaping the future, with global broadcast and content licensing. Comparable as a thought-leadership conference platform focused on women's advancement.
• Catalyst: Nonprofit advancing women in business through research, events, and corporate partnerships. Comparable mission (gender equity in workplaces), research publications similar to the Barometer, and corporate partnership-driven revenue.

Emerging players

• The Female Quotient: Convening platform and community driving gender parity through events, research, and corporate partnerships. Comparable business model combining convening, research, and corporate partnerships to advance gender equity.
• WomenLift Health: Global platform advancing women's leadership in health with convening events and mentorship. Comparable as a mission-driven women's-leadership platform with summit programming, though focused on a specific sector.
• Women in Tech Global Movement: Hosts global summits and a community platform to advance women in technology. Overlaps on the women-leadership convening model and online community engagement, though narrower sector focus.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/womens_forum
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/WFGlobalMeeting09
• Facebookfacebook.com/womensforum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/women's-forum-for-the-economy-and-society
• Instagraminstagram.com/womens_forum

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Women's Forum for the Economy & Society