There is no doubt that great strides have been made in recent years to increase gender diversity in the workplace. However, much more needs to be done in the financial services arena. The Government’s Women in Finance Charter, first launched in 2016, is one notable attempt to build a more balanced and fair industry. The Charter reflects the Government’s aspiration to see gender balance at all levels across financial services firms and particularly in senior jobs.
Gender balance in the workplace is good for business – it is good for customers, for profitability and workplace culture, and is increasingly attractive for investors. More than 330 firms employing 800,000 staff across the financial services sector have signed up and nearly half of those surveyed have met or exceeded targets for increasing female representation in senior management. They range from global banks to credit unions, the largest insurance companies to the smallest fintech start-ups – with headquarters in the UK, USA, Europe and Asia.
It is good progress but much more needs to be done and this is no more apparent than in the financial advice industry. Although financial advice is an industry open to everyone, the numbers of women working as advisers make very grim reading. Industry estimates suggest currently that just 11% of advisers are women.
