Women in Financial Services
by Alicia Buckley, Associate Consultant MadlinHanna Consulting
There’s been a lot of chatter in the news recently about how women are disadvantaged in the mighty world of ‘alpha-male’ financial services. A worrying statistic revealed a 52% disparity between bonuses for women and their higher-earning, male counterparts. This culminated in MPs calling for reform in the City.
Flexibility
It was noted that an industry overhaul of the approach to flexible working could be key in removing a major stumbling block for women in the workplace. Time and time again, it’s evident that women are penalised for taking the time out to have a family. A fresh, grown-up approach to flexible working could no doubt encourage returning mothers and ensure that employers do not miss out on the top talent by using presenteeism as a condition for success. We need a grown-up approach to flexible working across all industries. In this uber-connected society that we live, there’s no reason why not being physically present in the office should impact someone’s productivity.
The PR industry
Interestingly, PR is not untouched by gender imbalance, despite being a predominantly female industry (67%). It’s been noted that no women were named in the top 10 for financial and corporate communications agencies in the 2020 PowerBook. It highlights the disparity of gender representation at the top-level despite women making up the majority of the workforce. Why are they not present at the senior levels?
Culture
There is also the toxic culture of masculinity at work. Only recently, firms were urged to crack down on office football chat to stop women feeling excluded from chit chat. There’s no shortage of horror stories when it comes to women feeling shut-out and kept away from the casual conversations that can end up in progression opportunities. Creating a positive, inclusive working environment goes a long way to redressing the gender imbalance.
Recruitment
In the recruitment world, PwC have made the interesting move to ban all-male shortlists for their processes. In a clearly well-meaning effort to redress the gender imbalance, it could also hinder well-deserving potential employees of either gender. It could encourage positive discrimination which negates the point of equality. By rooting out unconscious bias that obstructs women’s careers, we can ensure that the right talent is reaching the top spots.
We really want to support the progression of women in financial services but across the PR industry so please get in touch to discuss your options.
MadlinHanna Consulting is a recruitment consultancy specialising in corporate affairs, covering public affairs, corporate communications and financial PR. Contact us on 020 8088 4102 for more information or a confidential conversation.