In addition to research activities, Catalyst has launched targeted initiatives to increase the number of women in leadership positions.
Married and a mother, Schwartz worked as the vice president of production until they sold the business for a small profit three-and-a-half years later.
She authored numerous articles, was interviewed by the media and co-authored her first book, How to Go to Work When Your Husband Is Against It, Your Children Aren't Old Enough, and There's Nothing You Can Do Anyhow, along with her Catalyst colleagues Margaret H. Schifter and Susan S.
The Times article quoted prominent feminists who called the idea of two career paths "horrifying" and "damaging to women's advancement."
'"[2][9] In 1992, Schwartz published the book, Breaking with Tradition: Women and Work, The New Facts of Life,[10] a response and expansion of the "mommy track" idea.
[10] Ten years after the original article was published, Schwartz's son Tony revisited the debate and offered up some insights from the controversy.
[2] Shortly thereafter, her final book was published, The Armchair Activist: Simple Yet Powerful Ways to Fight the Radical Right,[11] co-authored with Suzanne K. Levine.
Prior to joining Catalyst, she worked in the public sector for the governments of Nova Scotia and Ontario and as a consultant for PricewaterhouseCoopers and Grant Thornton.
Catalyst is governed by a board of directors that includes 36 companies from a variety of industries including: oil and gas, consumer products, retail, restaurants, accounting, consulting, business services, financial services, technology, travel, aerospace and defense, engineering, law, pharmaceuticals, health, and telecommunications.
More recent expansions brought Catalyst to South and Central America where they partner with MAREA Consulting to work with women and others in the region.
Over 60 years of history are documented in the archive, covering topics such as their seminars and conferences, early initiatives, the Catalyst Awards, and decades of gender-based research.
Catalyst asks participants to publicly declare their support, take a pledge of organizational and personal commitments, and report their company's progress each year against established diversity metrics.
Company initiatives are evaluated on seven criteria: strategy and rationale, senior leadership activities, accountability and transparency, communication, employee engagement, innovation, and measurable results.
The 2018 awards dinner had more than 2,000 attendees, including executives from global corporations, professional firms, governments, NGOs, and educational institutions.