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of their senior trading roles were filled by women – with no firms at all able to demonstrate more than 50 % of women in senior roles . Demonstrably , not much has changed over the last 12 months .
As a respondent in this most recent survey stated , “ diversity at the senior leadership level continues to be a challenge across the industry ,” while another added “ the issue is still of pipeline and getting more women at senior and top positions ”.
One surveyed market participant focused in on the specific attitudes of firms which prohibits real representation : “ For every female they progress , they would also add in a few more senior males ”.
This comment is partly backed up by The TRADE ’ s findings wherein only 37.5 % of respondents confirmed that they had perceived the number of women in senior management trading roles increase in the last five years .
A key section of The TRADE ’ s D & I Survey tapped into this notion of how firms perceive themselves and rate their own approach to the area .
When asked where they would rate their own organisations in terms of gender diversity , 74 % of respondents said average , while just over half believed their firms to be below average .
In addition , when asked where they would rate their firm in terms of ethnic / cultural diversity , 48 % of those surveyed confirmed that they believed it to be below industry average , while just 8 % believe themselves to be above .
As Valérie Noël , head of trading at Syz Group , explained in The TRADE ’ s International Women ’ s
Day webinar , the world of trading is one of tough expectations and non-stop hours , making it even harder for women to succeed in the space , though not impossible - “ If you can ’ t get in through the door , use the window ,” she enthused .
The future outlook Taking a general view in terms of practical steps which the industry could take in the advancement of D & I initiatives , one surveyed market onlooker suggested that “ there needs to be more done by small / medium sized firms to look outwards to contribute to the development of the next generation in schools and universities which will in turn make the industry look more attractive to [ women , ethnically diverse individuals and LGBT +]”.
In a similar vein , another respondent highlighted that in terms of social mobility , there is still a way to go : “ More apprenticeship opportunities for school leavers will increase gender and socioeconomic diversity .”
Elsewhere , the TRADE ’ s D & I Survey asked market experts how they would rate their own firms in terms of declared aims for gender , ethnic , and cultural diversity .
When it came to gender-focused aims and how respondents would rate their firm in terms of its own declared aims for gender diversity , 50 % of those with aims in place confirmed that they were on track , while 44 % confirmed they were behind .
In addition , when asked about their organisation ’ s declared aims for ethnic and cultural diversity , 65 % and 24 % responded they were on track and behind schedule respectively .
Whether looking inwards as a firm to your own processes or advocating for cross-industry changes to D & I approaches , what remains clear is a want – some may say a need – to truly take pragmatic steps in the pursuit of progress .
These findings offer key insights to enable both market participants and onlookers to gauge and better-understand progress being made across the industry , as well as delving into what the market should be fixing on as they seek to extract real value .
As research continues to increasingly prove the value of D & I processes , the market is demonstrably gearing up to take initiatives more seriously and truly benefit from the opportunity diversity holds , however , the execution – at least for now – evidently remains elusive .
52 // TheTRADE // Q1 2024