Work with tertiary education to help diversity
More bridges need to be built between tertiary education and the finance industry to help more diversity in senior management, according to National Australia Bank (NAB).
The bank said these bridge programs would equip aspiring female leaders with tools they would need to reach their full potential.
NAB's program mentor and senior consultant for risk, Lynn Donohue, said the programs allowed young women to find out their strengths, and who to talk to about specific areas that are important to them.
NAB and Macquarie University are currently in the fourth year of their Women's Mentoring Program that aims to address the imbalance of female participation in senior management in financial services.
"I think change happens because programs like this help it happen and you have an understanding from the highest level that diversity matters," Donohue said.
"And because you have that understanding that diversity matters and that it helps improve services to customers and improvements to shareholders, it matters and it drives discussions.
"Awareness in these things itself has been a huge improvement over the last 10 years."
Donohue noted that unconscious bias and a lack of diversity could be issues within the banking industry.
"These barriers need to be clearly identified and systematically broken down. Women need to learn the value of seeking out connections and actively seeking strategic opportunities," she said.
"Right now, banks are extremely supportive of smart, ambitious women so there is more opportunity than ever before. It's an exciting time for women in banking and finance."
Macquarie Applied Finance Centre director, Anne Cooper, said: "Increasing the number of women in senior roles in the banking and finance sector goes beyond just gender diversity, it is also imperative from a competitive perspective".
"Research has shown that companies with a higher number of women in senior and board positions tend to have stronger financial performance and a more stable workforce," she said.
"It also goes beyond just having the numbers. It's also about creating a workplace culture where everyone feels confident, valued and able to contribute."
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