Diversity and inclusion are extremely important in business. Diversity improves the scope of your business, and it also increases employee satisfaction. This all contributes to making your company more attractive to potential candidates, and more business.
The finance sector has had a problem with lack of representation in the past. In recent years, the number of women in financial services in the UK has grown, with Catalyst declaring that in 2019, women made up 43% of the workforce. However, this may not be the full picture. It is important to look at the type of roles that women occupy within the industry. When we look closer at the type of roles women hold within this industry, there are significantly less women who reach leadership, CEO or board positions.
When we look women in higher ranking jobs within the financial sector, there are imbalances. In the UK’s FTSE (Financial Times Stock Exchange) 100 companies, while women make up nearly half of the workforce, only 15% of finance directors are women (https://www.stemwomen.co.uk/blog/2021/03/women-in-financial-services-the-case-for-gender-diversity). In addition, according to Catalyst, women occupied just 12% of CFO roles in 2018 globally.
It is also important to recognise that gender diversity in UK financial services has improved and there has been a growing commitment from companies to address the imbalance in this industry. The launch of the Women in Finance Charterkickstarted most change that we have seen to date, which was created in 2016.
Since the commencement of the movement, there ‘are now over 330 firms of all shapes and sizes across financial services signed up to the commitments of the Charter’ (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/women-in-finance-charter#history), committing to improving their diversity.
In March 2021, a review by the New Financial – Forum and Think Tank revealed that over 70% of signatories had met their targets had implemented recommendations. The work towards to meet future diversity targets is moving rapidly, with 60% of the signatories revisiting company values and setting a target to have at least 33% of female representation in senior management.
At Finitas, we are advocates for gender diversity within financial services. Our Director, Stuart Macarthur, insists that ‘it is critical for the Recruitment industry to do more to impact gender imbalance within the Financial Services sector'. And as such, our Parent Company Precision Resource Group, have joined the ENEI(Employer Network for Equality Inclusion).
In this notion, to achieve an equal gender balance in financial services, companies must do more to hire female talent and promote career paths to leadership roles. Studies and research shows that a diverse workforce performs better and increases customer satisfaction. As the financial sector represents a range of culture diversity, it makes sense for the industry to reflect our society.
If you would like to discuss any of the above, or if you would like any information on how to improve diversity within your workforce, please do get in touch today: info@finitas.co.uk