Our latest census of women atop the Fortune 500 shows continued stagnation. Men hold a staggering 83.9% of corporate board seats, 85.1% of Executive Officer positions, and 92.5% of top earner positions. While I applaud the hundreds of companies that have achieved real results, others haven’t gotten the message that valuing talented women is not a “nice-to-do,” but a “smart-to-do.” We found that 56 companies in the Fortune 500 had zero women directors and that 136 Fortune 500 companies had zero women executive officers.

These new numbers are deeply disappointing. Some companies are still sitting on their hands. It’s time to commit to action, and the best time to jumpstart this change is now.

Here’s why.

Today’s tough economic times present an opportunity. Our latest report in our Bottom Line series tracked profits at leading companies through 2008—one year into the global recession. We found that companies with three or more women board directors in four of five years outperformed companies with zero women on their boards by on average 84% return on sales, 60% return on invested capital and 46% return on equity. Given the clear correlation, it’s no wonder that Goldman Sachs recently found that closing gender gaps would yield a 9% bump to U.S. GDP!

And it’s not just about the money. Companies with more women board directors are linked to more women corporate officers five years later, and correlated with increased corporate philanthropy. In short, it pays to have women as a key part of the leadership team.

So let’s get to work and root out sexist stereotypes that impact talent management systems. Set targets with accountability, especially around proven solutions like sponsorship. And dump the myths about women’s capabilities and ambitions—our research shows that they are wrong.

When US corporations finally take their place as leaders on gender parity and advancing women in business, the benefits will spread across the globe for women, men, families, employers, communities, and societies. Defy assumptions and lead with real action.

Enough lip service. It’s what companies do that really counts.

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Maybe it was the proximity to International Women’s Day. Or maybe it’s an issue whose time has come. But last week’s release of the 2010 Catalyst Census: Financial Post 500 Women Senior Officers and Top Earners has caused waves in the media across the country. In my five years with Catalyst, I don’t remember such strong media response to our work. The recognition of the quality and significance of Catalyst’s work is gratifying.

But neither do I recall being so frustrated by the level of understanding of the barriers that still block career advancement for many Canadian women. In almost every interview I did, I was asked questions like: “Are women not reaching the top because they ‘opt out’ to raise families?”

True, those questions aren’t answered by the Census, which is intended to be a snapshot and a check on the progress in Canada’s leading companies. Other research, such as Pipeline’s Broken Promise, provides some of the answers.

That study demonstrates that smart, educated women start their careers at lower levels and earn about $4,600 less than their male counterparts. And the gap never closes, even for women who remain single and childless. No opting out. No family before career. Just a glass ceiling and a sticky floor.

If anyone doubts that we have to keep gathering the statistics and telling the stories, a quick skim through the comments on any of the media coverage of the Census will quickly convince them. There you’ll find the folks who think that women have it made or that women gain at the expense of men. Some even declared victory, as Margaret Wente did in her Globe and Mail International Women’s Day column, where she stated “The war for women’s rights is over. And we won.”

Pointing to advances women have made is good—it’s the encouragement we all need to keep going. But we can’t ignore the lack of equity at the top. The confusion of the past week shows that we have to keep challenging pat assumptions that women have made it—or risk being lulled by complacency and a clever headline.

What better way to mark the day than by celebrating it with new friends who share Catalyst’s mission?

I am in Tel Aviv this week to launch Catalyst’s first Israel Census. Over the next several days, I will be speaking to leading business women and men, NGOs, women’s groups, and academics about the Census findings, plus highlighting a theme I discussed in Catalyzing last week: “What’s measured gets done.”

Central to the new Israel Census, plus Catalyst’s just-released 2010 Catalyst Census: Financial Post 500 Women Senior Officers and Top Earners and 2010 India Benchmarking Report, is the belief that you can’t fix what you can’t see. Precise counts of the number of women in business leadership allow us to take stock of how far we’ve come—and how far we need to go—to hit parity in the workplace.

Catalyst aims to change workplaces and lives on the global stage, so look out for more of our research in more countries in the future. In the meantime, here’s to the many wins for women this past year, and a happy International Women’s Day to all!

For the fifth year in a row, our Census of women leaders in the Fortune 500 showed that women are stuck. Women hold only 14.4% of Executive Officer positions and 15.7% of board seats in F500 companies. A whopping 12.1% of public companies have no women serving on their boards and 27.4% have no women Executive Officers. And women hold only 7.6% of top earner spots.

While disheartening, a separate Catalyst report, Mentoring: Necessary But Insufficient for Advancement, pointed to a possible reason for the disparity. Men have more senior-level mentors who are in a position to provide sponsorship, which can lead to more promotions and greater pay increases. Women, on the other hand, are “mentored to death”—getting developed but not promoted or compensated as much as men.

There’s a big difference between sponsorship and mentorship. Mentors show you the ropes and teach you about the unwritten rules of your organization, but sponsors have clout and advocate on your behalf. They look out for you behind closed doors and ensure you’re visible when opportunities are on the table. “She can do it—trust me,” one might say.

Sponsors can make all the difference to your career. So if your company has a formal sponsorship program, you should express an interest in participating, while companies that do not should consider phasing one in.

But don’t just wait around for a sponsor to find you. Sponsorship is not an entitlement—you have to “earn it” by being a top performer. Connect with senior-level people and communicate your contributions, skills, and interests. Do a great job, get noticed, and you’ll attract a sponsor.

After all, mentors can show you the ropes, but sponsors help you climb them.

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UPDATE: To find out more about why you need a sponsor—someone “on the inside”to advocate for you—check out my new op-ed in WorkingMother.com!

Our new Canadian Census reveals that women make up 47% of the labor force in Canada, but only 14% of board directors in FP500 companies. In the United States, the numbers are also low. Women comprise 47% of the U.S. labor force, but occupy just 15% of the board seats. What’s worse, these numbers have remained virtually unchanged the last few years.

You may think board directors are so high in the org-chart stratosphere that they couldn’t possibly affect you or your job path. But they do. That’s why it’s important to look for diversity when deciding where to work.

The boardroom sets the tone for the organization. The more women on a corporate board, the higher the percentage— five years later— of women in senior positions, especially senior line positions.

Companies with more women board directors, on average, financially outperform those with the fewest. In fact, the more women on board, the better the performance. And companies with three or more women on their boards, on average, perform even better! Chances are that these more successful companies afford women greater opportunity for advancement and development.

So when you are looking for a job, first check that annual report. Skip the pretty pictures, and head for the board listing. If it doesn’t include at least one woman— and preferably three or more—your odds of developing a satisfying career and rising to leadership have just taken a serious hit.

Choose an organization that invests in women. Vote with your feet.