Finsia releases gender diversity principles

The Financial Services Institute of Australia (Finsia) has released draft principles against which companies can report on and measure gender diversity.

Finsia stated that the draft principles, which are open to consultation, aimed to address the lack of meaningful publicly reported data on gender composition and the gender gap within the financial services sector, particularly at senior executive level.

The proposed six draft principles are that companies should report on the proportion of senior executive positions held by women, as well as report on their recruitment practices, career progression and development practices, pay equity, flexible work arrangements and parental leave, and on their ability to demonstrate a workplace culture supportive of gender diversity.

The principles were presented at a lunch in Sydney by guest speaker Kate O’Reilly, who is managing director of specialised female recruitment consultancy, Optimiss Consulting.

O’Reilly noted that there was a striking contrast between the numbers of women entering the financial services industry and those reaching senior levels.

“It’s an attractive industry for women, but when you look at the senior levels I don’t need to tell you the obvious,” she said, referring to statistics that showed that while there were even numbers of women and men entering the industry, there was only 31 per cent female representation at management level, 4 per cent among chief executives and 18 per cent at governance level.

O’Reilly said people could argue that it was a pipeline issue, but the figures did not add up. Referring to a Finsia study conducted in 2008, she said there were significant structural impediments to female careers as women were overlooked when it came to promotions, were underpaid in comparison to men, and were often underutilised.

O’Reilly sat on a panel discussion alongside BT Financial Group chief executive, Brad Cooper, BankWest retail chief executive Vittoria Shortt and Woolworths chairman, James Strong.

Strong said unless there was real conviction at the most senior level, gender diversity was just something that was done rather than believed in. He felt that there would never be enough women on boards until more women held senior executive roles.

All the panellists were against mandated quotas, except O’Reilly who felt that they forced the issue and gave women opportunities. Cooper noted that there were four female general managers at BT, who were there because they were considered the best for the job.

“And I would hate anyone to think any differently,” he said, adding that quotas were not the best way to achieve gender diversity.