37 Finance Monthly. Bank i ng & F i nanc i a l Se r v i ce s same study found that these programmes also dramatically improved promotion and retention rates for minorities and women – 15% to 38% as compared to nonmentored employees. First steps on the road I’d encourage women to come forward to mentor other women within a finance function or wider organisation and to reach out to their employers to support the facilitation of this. This could be done on an informal basis with the opportunity for regular checkins between mentor and mentee, a review of progress, and an open discussion of progress and achievement. Simply by engaging with other women in the business in this way, we can take on the status of role model. Monthly check-ins on progress across the entire initiative from both mentors and mentees could also be put in place. Benchmarking goals could be established, alongside regular check-ins to ensure they’re on track. A reverse mentoring relationship may even naturally evolve from these processes, enabling the mentor to also benefit from the knowledge and understanding of the mentee, which can help build leadership qualities. Whatever the precise approach taken, an honest and genuine mentoring relationship will add tremendous value for women working in any finance or financial technology role. It is important for women to take the initiative and kick-start a mentoring process within their own business but both mentor and mentee should be confident in the knowledge that they are not alone in this endeavour. Building a wider network The retention of women also relies on networking. Across the industry, we are increasingly seeing groups and associations forming to promote the interests of women in finance, from the UK’s Women in Banking & Finance right through to the Financial Women’s Association, a New York-based network of female professionals from various sectors of the financial world. With the awareness that this kind of support is behind them, I am confident that more women working in finance will be encouraged into leadership roles. Informal networking can be just as invaluable. Building a close group of women that can rely on one another is invaluable. With that, together with mentoring, both formal and informal, the numbers of those having long successful careers in this industry should increase, businesses would benefit from a gender-equal finance function, and we would see a significant increase in the retention of women in finance roles. 50% of the workforce in financial companies globally. Women represent 26% women on the board of directors With an average of 18% of women on the executive team 28% of women in senior management. and Equileap’s Gender Equality Report & Ranking Report 2021
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