Finance Monthly March 2020 Edition

actionable solutions. This is where The Pay Index is seeing change happen: Leaders must own gender diversity In its Women in Finance Charter, the government recommends appointingaseniorexecutivetoown responsibility and accountability for gender diversity and inclusion. Organisations can go a step further by setting and publishing internal targets for senior management. This can be benchmarked in your annual report. Align your gender diversity lead with your HR leadership team and recruitment partners - internal or external. Investing in bespoke initiatives designed to develop, grow and promote women within your organisation should be part of this. We’re seeing gender diversity enhancing employer brands, the outcome being improved recruitment and retention. Keep in mind, this needs to be grounded in an authentic commitment to change, rather than assigning this to a box-ticking exercise. Make sure role models are visible - everywhere Finance is a sector still steeped in traditions of old boys’ clubs, golf days and while it’s being curtailed, trading floor “bants”. The barriers to entry are harder for women as there still aren’t the numbers there to support them. Businesses need to ensure women have access to positive role models and mentors right across the organisation, supporting, encouraging and nurturing employees from the outset. We recommend that mentoring and promotion is zoned in on from middle management levels, with clear career roadmaps, training and professional development pathways set out for female leaders. Open up your talent pool with flexibility Opening up flexible working opportunities in finance is essential. For one thing, it means you can access a wider talent pool. Statistics show that 70% of UK employees say that flexible working makes a job more attractive and 30% would opt for flexible working over a pay rise. Four day weeks, working from home and co-sharing roles are all options here. Retention, rather than recruitment, is a key challenge for finance. We need to understand the challenges facing female talent at each stage of the career lifecycle to address this. To date, graduate schemes tend to be split 50/50 between the genders, but these numbers decline as employees becomemore senior. Women reach a level of seniority at the same time as their personal and family commitments increase. But the lack of flexibility makes returning to work - at the same level or in a newly promoted position– incredibly challenging, which is why we need genuinely flexible strategies in place to enable this. Atom Bank is a brilliant case study of a bank creating authentic flexible working programmes and setting itself apart as an attractive family-friendly employer. Powering retention with flexible working By creating more flexible opportunities, businesses can significantly improve their retention rates. The CIPD found that 75% of employers say that flexible working has affected retention positively. Exploring Return to Work programmes isanotheropportunity for future-focused employers, welcoming team members back after an extended career break. Returners build on the skills and experiences previously gained in “Closing the pay gap requires proactive goal-setting and problem- solving to shift entrenched cultural, societal and attitudinal norms within finance, to harness any kind of meaningful change.” BANKING & FINANCIAL SERVICES - GENDER PAY GAP 20 www.finance-monthly.com