Men and Women: You Need To Join This Conversation janetcsalazar Join Michael Drexler, Senior Director and Head of Investor Industries, World Economic Forum; Lucy Chan, Vice President Financial Services Industry, IBM; Katherine D. Brandt, Partner Thompson Hine LLP and other speakers at this groundbreaking Conversation that is changing the language of leadership at the top! If research presents a strong case for gender diversity, why is it still lagging on Wall Street and in the finance industry? Men, in increasing numbers, are realizing that companies with gender diverse boards and corporate suites deliver higher returns than those lacking diversity. If research presents a strong case for gender diversity, why is it still lagging on Wall Street and in the finance industry? Although women make up half of the employees in the finance industry, studies indicate that women occupy a mere 23% percent of leadership positions. Consider this study: According to the 2013 McKinsey Global Survey of 1,421 global executives on gender diversity: “A significant cultural factor affecting women‘s ability to reach top management is the engagement and support of men…” While about three-quarters of men believe that teams with significant numbers of women perform more successfully: Fewer men recognize the challenges women face. Only 19 percent strongly agree that reaching top management is harder for women. Men are much more likely to reject the idea that the climb is steeper for women. Men are less likely than women to see value in diversity initiatives and more likely to believe that too many measures supporting women are unfair to men. While nearly all male and female executives express some level of agreement that women can lead as effectively as men do, male respondents are not as strongly convinced.” (Source: 2013 McKinsey Global Survey of 1,421 Global Executives on Gender Diversity) Women bring diverse perspectives to the table: their leadership styles can drive more innovation and collaboration and they often take a different approach to risk. It’s not that women or men are “better” but that diverse groups – where both men and women are at the table – make better decisions than non-diverse groups. It is very important to note that the projected global income of women is $18 trillion by 2018. By the year 2028, 75% of worldwide discretionary spending is expected to be controlled by women (Source: Boston Consulting Group). Monique Sparla
Posted on: Sun, 02 Nov 2014 23:58:20 +0000