Hampton-Alexander Review - women on FTSE boards

Mark.Freed / 15 Nov 2017

I was honoured to be invited to the launch of the second Hampton-Alexander Review earlier this month, an inspiring and encouraging event.  The Hampton-Alexander Review is an independent review body which builds on the excellent work of the Davies Review to increase the number of women on FTSE boards...

If your recruitment partner tells you they can only find qualified male candidates, they’re wrong

Mark.Freed / 11 Oct 2017

Mark Freed E2W CEO says "If your recruitment partner tells you they can only find qualified male candidates, they’re probably wrong."  Meeting gender targets that enable businesses to collect the gender dividend depend on them being able to recruit more women. If you are...

Gender Diversity - “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used to create them.”

Mark.Freed / 05 Oct 2017

This week E2W CEO, Mark Freed, does the maths to show what banks will need to do to meet their gender diversity commitments and makes some practical suggestions about what needs to change in the recruitment process. “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting...

Keeping ‘mum’ or going ‘public’?

Mark.Freed / 02 Oct 2017

Here at E2W, we face problems and opportunities on a daily basis - big and small - that's the nature of business.  I worry most about hidden problems and missed opportunities, those that no one recognises.  These represent risks to the business or a failure to...

Women’s Experiences in the Recruitment Process - Survey Report Sept 2017

Mark.Freed / 16 Sep 2017

In a world where financial institutions are signing the Women in Finance Charter and those same institutions are making commitments such as a 50/50 male/female workforce by 2020, can you believe that almost a third of women applying for positions in financial services feel disadvantaged because of their gender? We asked...

How do you answer the question about the business case for gender diversity in Financial Services?

Mark.Freed / 15 Sep 2017

A woman’s touch Generally, we think of mining as being a male dominated industry: mining conjures up images of black faced men and boys, blinking in the sunlight as they come above ground after a very hard day’s labour.  In this industry women have...

The E2W Recruitment Survey

Mark.Freed / 08 Sep 2017

In a world where financial institutions are signing the Women in Finance Charter, making commitments such as a 50/50 male/female workforce by 2020 & reporting their gender pay gap data, can you believe that almost a third of women applying for positions in financial services feel disadvantaged because of their gender? ...

Looking at the world through the gender diversity lens

Mark.Freed / 06 Sep 2017

Last month I saw the following post on LinkedIn: “Just declined a law firm panel event invitation – 5-person panel – all male. Please chaps – if you’re asked to speak on a panel ask where the women are! These kinds of opportunities are important for...

Do you recruit the ‘best person for the job’  or the ‘best person for the team’?

Mark.Freed / 05 Sep 2017

All the evidence points to the fact that diverse teams perform better.  Diverse teams help organisations attract a diverse client base; diverse teams accelerate innovation; diverse teams boost morale and staff retention.  Why, then, are we still recruiting for the ‘best person for the job’ and...

Inappropriate Interview Questions

Mark.Freed / 03 Aug 2017

This week, a female politician reached the highest rank of her political party, a promotion to be celebrated – she is only the second woman to hold the role. Just seven hours into her position she was asked whether it would be acceptable for her to take maternity leave should...

Targets & Time - How valuable are they in achieving gender parity?

Mark.Freed / 29 Jun 2017

Previously, we’ve discussed the value of gender targets in the move towards gender-balanced workforces, and despaired that at the current pace of progress it will take over a century until gender parity is established at all levels across financial services.  Targets have been valuable in making...

Gender Targets and Reporting:  Do they make a difference?

Mark.Freed / 17 May 2017

In April, the merits of gender quotas versus those of gender targets were discussed. While the benefits of quotas can be questioned, governments have introduced meaningful legislation and support for gender equality in financial services.   Currently, European countries lead the way in increasing female representation across all levels in...