Gender diversity at the highest levels of the global financial services industry is well below where it needs to be, and has hardly improved over the past couple of years, according to a new report from global consulting firm Oliver Wyman.
The firm reports that, on a global basis, only 20% of the boards of financial services firms, and 16% of executive committees, are comprised of women. There has been only a “slight improvement” in gender balance since its previous examination of the issue in 2014, the firm says.
Moreover, Oliver Wyman says that, at current rates of progress, it will take more than 30 years (until 2048) until the industry’s executive committees reach 30% female representation (which is the level at which research suggests a minority’s voice comes to be heard).
Canada ranked better than the global average, with 25% female representation on executive committees; but this is still below the global leaders, Norway and Sweden, at 33% and 32%, respectively.
“The industry is far from where it should be on gender balance. We hope that this second report will advance the discussion further – delving deeper into it, raising awareness and supporting much needed change in the industry,” said Ted Moynihan, U.K.-based managing partner of financial services at Oliver Wyman.
“The low representation of women on executive committees, in particular, is a problem. An organization’s key business and strategic decisions are made by its executive committee and they are also highly visible, both internally and externally, making them effective as role models and sponsors – and essential for driving business success,” he added.
Additionally, the report notes that female executives in financial services are nearly 30% more likely to leave their employer than their peers in other industries. “The data and responses suggest that many women face a mid-career conflict and a less attractive ‘career trade-off’ than men — with insufficient flexible working hours and support for family responsibilities, persistent views of shortcomings regarding promotion and equal pay, and unconscious bias,” the firm says.
The report is based on an analysis of 381 financial services organizations in 32 countries, a survey of 850 financial services professionals around the world, and interviews of more than 100 senior female and male leaders.
“Diversity must be seen as a commercial imperative rather than just as part of corporate social responsibility or fairness in the workplace,” said Astrid Jaekel, partner at Oliver Wyman in Zurich. “Gender balance provides access to the full talent pool, better decision making by bringing together different perspectives, improved services to customers by better representing them, and a stronger economy. Organizations need to advance women by offering bolder structural solutions to the mid-career conflict outlined in this report, creating the right working arrangements and fostering more profound cultural change.”
See also: Women in Financial Services
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