Sachin Bhatia, Head of UK Core Institutional & Consultants at Invesco and reboot. ambassador, said: “The Financial Services Race to Equality Index Scorecard is an innovative tool that will allow us to track and measure the industry’s progress on D&I. Quantifiable data is key. I believe there is general consensus across our industry that we can collectively be doing more in terms of D&I, and while we have seen numerous commendable initiatives launched to start addressing this, we need to maintain the momentum and do more. I feel we should aim to create a vibrant sector where women and ethnic-minority professionals can bring their unique viewpoints and experiences to businesses, allocating capital, making investment decisions and helping to promote diverse talent that mirrors the communities and companies they invest in.”
Hannah Grove, reboot. ambassador commented: “As an industry we need to move from acknowledging the problem to implementing sustainable solutions that get us closer to where we as businesses and broader societies need to be from a representation and inclusion standpoint. I hope that this index enables us to measure more tangible progress. Achieving equality is about better – better decisions, better performance, better teams and better outcomes for all stakeholders.”
Lindsey Stewart, Head of Stakeholder Engagement at the Financial Reporting Council and reboot. ambassador said: “There’s much to be celebrated in the progress that the financial services industry has made in becoming more accessible to people to people from a wider pool of ethnic, racial and cultural backgrounds. However, it’s clear from the Index there’s still a way to go in adding a culture of inclusion to the diversity we already see in financial services firms. The reboot. Call to Action provides a great starting point for forward-thinking leaders who aim to build that inclusive culture in the knowledge that doing this benefits the entire organisation, not just employees from under-represented backgrounds.”
Maddi Forrester, Head of Global Consultant Relations, MFS Investment Management and a member of the MFS Diversity Council, said: “The FS Race to Equality Index serves as a tangible benchmark for the fund management industry. Thanks to which we can now better understand where we are starting from and strive to create a more diverse and inclusive workplace. A diverse mix of voices ultimately leads to better decisions and outcomes, which is key to the growth of every company. We are at a watershed moment that I believe will lead to meaningful progress.”
Next steps for financial services businesses
The Index clearly reveals that significant improvements are needed to build a workplace culture that fosters a true sense of inclusion and ensures there are no barriers to opportunity for ethnic minorities. To help organisations on their journey towards a more equal workplace, reboot. has developed the following five-point-plan for the financial services industry.
Call to Action: reboot. Five-Point Plan for Financial Services Organisations:
- Listen to [all] your employees: Only a quarter firms consult with ethnic minority employees on how to tackle D&I issues. With a clear lack of diversity at senior levels across the industry, this means decisions are often made by those with limited experience of the challenges minority groups face.
- Update and evolve training programmes: Both provision and take up of diversity and inclusion training for employees at all levels remains low. Companies need to invest more in upskilling and educating employees at every stage of their careers.
- Develop role models through senior business sponsors: ethnic minority respondents said visible senior role models with a similar identity or background within their organisations would help support their own job progression. Also, leaders need to be senior sponsors who will take responsibility for nurturing and growing future role models.
- Set the tone at the top; lead from the front: Many employees do not believe their companies are fully committed to improving diversity and creating inclusive cultures. Senior leadership need to better articulate the benefits and importance of a diverse workforce to their broader staff base, while providing authentic support to ethnic minority employees.
- Educate and empower HR teams and review recruitment practices: A lack of diversity within internal HR teams may be limiting progress on hiring from non-traditional sources, while many employees do not have faith these departments will adequately and appropriately tackle discrimination. Leaders need to give HR teams the suitable training, authority and budgets to be able to search for, hire and support employees from diverse backgrounds.
