At FIA’s flagship conference in Boca in March, 61 attendees responded to the survey – of which 25 were men. Here are some of the notable takeaways from this survey:
- 24 said that lack of diversity had a major negative impact on the industry,
- 32 said it had some negative impact, and only three said it had no negative impact
How FIA can help address this issue? (people could select more than one option).
- Education initiatives for rising diverse talent (30)
- Provide a forum for dialogue on the issue (22)
- Networking events highlighting diverse representatives from the industry (22)
- Specific panels addressing the diversity issue (20)
- Setting a target for minimum number of diverse individuals on panels (13)
- Events honoring rising diverse representatives from the industry (11)
How should FIA engage with other industry organizations to increase the dialogue of diversity?
- Respondents suggested FIA reach out to diversity and inclusion groups within member firms to share and understand best practice across the industry and consider coordinated initiatives. FIA should also keep the issues of diversity and inclusion on the agenda for discussion and highlight areas where it is lacking, building up relevant data to support this work.
- FIA should also use this initiative to help bring younger participants to the industry, possibly even through an internship program (eg FIA Boost).
Which female industry leaders (from within or outside the industry) would you most like to hear speak at an FIA event?
Lauren Rauch, CTC Trading; Stacey Cunningham, NYSE; Keisha Bell, head of D&I at DTCC; Nancy Pelosi; Hester Peirce; Martin Slowey and Trisha Lawson, BAML; Cynthia Zeltwanger; Adena Friedman; Michelle Obama; Marianne Lake, JPM CFO; Head of IBM; Abigail Johnson, Fidelity; Christine Lagarde, IMF; Maxine Waters
