An initiative from Royal Bank of Canada is among those receiving the 2010 Catalyst Award, the annual award that honors exceptional initiatives from companies that support and advance women in business.

RBC joins Campbell Soup Co., Deloitte LLP, and Telstra Corporation Ltd. as award recipients this year, Catalyst said Thursday.

New York City-based Catalyst said that RBC’s initiative, Client First Transformation, embeds diversity and inclusion principles into its approach with employees, clients, and communities, “reframing the company’s business strategy to be more client-focused and revitalizing its corporate culture.”

The result is that women are making notable gains at RBC. Women in executive roles (executive vice presidents, senior vice presidents, and vice presidents) increased from 35% to 39% from 2005 to 2009, and women’s representation as corporate officers (senior vice president level and above) has grown from 27% to more than 30% during that same time period.

Women in the high-potential talent pool increased from 31% to 43%, with 21% being visible minority women.

Catalyst’s president and CEO, Ilene Lang, said that the various initiatives it recognizes, “… impact the lives of employees, families, and communities by transforming organizations, and serve as models that inspire and encourage others to embrace inclusive workplaces that benefit women, men, and business.”

Catalyst Award-winning initiatives are evaluated in a year-long process against a set of criteria including: business rationale, senior leadership support, accountability, communication, replicability, originality, and measurable results.

The winning firms will present in-depth discussions on their initiatives at the 2010 Catalyst Awards Conference at The Waldorf-Astoria in New York on March 24.

IE