The private equity industry has never been known as a hospitable place for women. Some have given the industry the dubious distinction of "having some of the thickest glass ceilings in all of finance." This makes the Carlyle Group's recent record of hiring and promoting women all the more remarkable.

Six of the firm's 90 partners are women, while five of its 43 nonpartner managing directors are women, notes the New York Times. Over all, about 44 percent of Carlyle Group's 949 employees worldwide are women. It's hard to compare this to other firms, but the percentages appear high on all scores.

The women at the top are not complaining. The standard bearer at Carlyle for several years running has been Karen Bechtel, who joined the firm in 2005 from Morgan Stanley. She is regularly trotted out in media reports on the "women in private equity." She's had a banner year with healthcare deals.

But Bechtel is not alone. The Times highlights Sandra Horbach, Janine Feng, Linda Pace, Lori Sabet and Maki Mitsui as powerhouses.

The real key is what these women at the top do with their power and stature. We can only hope they make it a point to institutionalize the gains and usher in new attitude.

Fortunately, it seems that recruiting and promoting women are priorities at the firm. "About 20 percent of Carlyle's candidates for principal or managing director this year are women; that is down from 24 percent in 2009 and 32 percent in 2005, though higher than in 2004, when no women candidates were under consideration," according to the Times.

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