Published : 7 years ago, on 05/10/2017

Brickendon, the transformational management consultancy, has pledged that half of its senior management will be female by the end of 2019, cementing the firm’s vision that women have an important part to play in the future of the financial services industry.

Revealing the firm’s pledges following its signing of the Women in Finance Charter back in July, CEO Christopher Burke said: “We are proud and delighted to align ourselves with this initiative and to publicly state our commitment to a diverse and inclusive environment for all our employees.

“I have said on many occasions that we are in no doubt that failing to take advantage of the skills of highly-qualified women constitutes a waste of talent and a loss of economic growth potential.”

Brickendon has also pledged that it will have at least one female non-executive director on its board by the end of 2019 at the latest, and to support and mentor at least one woman to strive higher and take on a more senior position. The firm will publish its progress against the targets annually.

The London and New York-based firm, which is seeking to increase the number of women in all roles and at all levels of the organisation, joined more than 140 financial institutions in signing the charter earlier this year, showing their commitment to building a balanced and fair industry. It is widely acknowledged that a diverse workforce is more productive and successful, and Brickendon has found that providing a flexible working culture for its people increases productivity, well-being, and aids with the attraction and retention of talent across the board.

Last year, a study of more than 21,000 public companies in 91 countries, found that a firm with 30 per cent female leadership could expect to add up to six percentage points to its net margin when compared with a similar business with no female leaders.[1]

Burke has already spoken out on many occasions about the need to dismantle the ‘dusk-‘til-dawn’ culture prevalent within the financial services space, and to provide employees with the technology and supportive culture needed to work more flexibly.

[1] The Peterson Institute and EY