American States Water Company Recognized For Gender-Diverse Leadership

SAN DIMAS, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

American States Water Company AWR today announced that The 2020 Women on Boards organization, a national campaign targeting gender diversity at the corporate leadership level, recognized American States Water Company with its "CEO Champion" award for having three or more women directors on its corporate board. The award was presented at the organization's National Conversation on Board Diversity event on November 17 in Los Angeles.

"American States Water Company recognizes the importance of having a skilled, diverse leadership team and workforce," said Robert J. Sprowls, President and CEO of American States Water Company. "We are honored by this award and applaud the 2020 Women on Boards organization for the great work it is doing to raise awareness of gender equality issues in the workplace."

2020 Women on Boards is a non-profit grassroots campaign committed to increasing the percentage of women who serve on company boards to 20 percent or greater by the year 2020. It educates corporate stakeholders on the importance of board diversity and celebrates corporations that are leading the way to bring qualified women executives onto their boards.

"It's important for companies to provide opportunity and reward employees for the exceptional work they do, while promoting a diverse culture that embraces all genders, races and backgrounds," said Sprowls. "American States Water Company values our diverse team and encourages diversity at all levels of the organization."

In 2015, American States Water Company was recognized among the State of California's top 4 organizations for female representation at the leadership level in a study titled "UC Davis Study of California Women Business Leaders: A Census of Women Directors and Highest-Paid Executives." Its utility subsidiary, Golden State Water Company, was also named the Black Business Association's "Utility Company of the Year" in 2014 for providing equal opportunities for diverse suppliers including women, minority and disabled-veteran business enterprises.

About American States Water Company

American States Water Company is the parent of Golden State Water Company and American States Utility Services, Inc. Through its utility subsidiary, Golden State Water Company, AWR provides water service to approximately 261,000 customers located throughout 10 counties in Northern, Coastal and Southern California. The company also distributes electricity to approximately 24,000 customers in the City of Big Bear and surrounding areas in San Bernardino County, California. Through its contracted services subsidiary, American States Utility Services, Inc., AWR provides operations, maintenance and construction management services for water and wastewater systems located on military bases throughout the country under 50-year privatization contracts with the U.S. government.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20161117006349/en/