Women in finance need role models to thrive, to help bridge the advice gap and to inspire future leaders in our evolving profession.
As we celebrate International Women’s Day this weekend, we’re grateful to Linda Johnstone (pictured) , Head of Investment Proposition at Novia Global, for sharing her own personal story. In her latest blog for IFA Magazine, Linda makes it really clear why we need to be able to see it to be it – when it comes to developing our careers – regardless of gender.
It was forecast two decades ago that 60% of UK wealth would be in women’s hands by 2025[1]. This prediction has never been seriously challenged, yet our industry seems to have done precious little to prepare for its realisation.
For example, recent figures revealed only one in six financial advisers are female[2]. Research has also exposed the overwhelming likelihood of a widow firing her late husband’s adviser within a year of his death[3].
The message from statistics such as these is as depressing as it is clear: women are still neglected in the sphere of finance. Despite an epochal transfer in wealth, there remains a huge advice gap to fill if their needs are to be properly catered for.
So how might we tackle this issue once and for all? In my opinion, one of the most powerful solutions is to have role models who can inspire a new generation of women to enter our profession – and to thrive in it.
By way of illustration, allow me to wind back a few years – I won’t say how many! – to the start of my own career. The story begins with my triumphant return home to the Isle of Man, politics degree in hand, after three years on the mainland.
As the first member of my immediate family to attend university, I was pretty proud of myself. I felt like an adult at last and was keen to throw myself into the world of work. The only problem was that I still had no particular job in mind.
I met with a local recruitment agency and was asked: “So what do you actually want to do?” I hesitantly replied: “I’m not sure, but I would like to help people in some way.”
With that fated response, my career in financial services effectively commenced. The recruiter took me literally and arranged an interview for a position on the investment help desk at Royal Skandia.
I was full of nerves when I arrived for my first interview, anxious about the tough questions that might await. As it turned out, the main concerns were whether I had used a fax machine before (no) and whether my handwriting was legible (some graduates’ tendency to type everything was frowned upon).
I duly set about my new tasks with no thoughts whatsoever about gender bias, the extent to which the industry was male-dominated and so on. I was young, enthusiastic, desperate to learn and just delighted to be there.
Looking back now, I realise Royal Skandia was something of a trailblazer at the time. Both the Head of Investments and the Managing Director were women – and I soon realised I wanted to be like them.
They were true leaders. They were visionary, strong and kind. I remember various interactions with them, watching how they handled themselves in meetings, how they led and – perhaps most importantly – how they treated everyone equally and fairly.
Unfortunately, it proved something of a false dawn. I would love to say I have never faced sexism during my career, but the reality is that I have encountered it in various forms over the years – classic misogyny, subtle digs, outlandish comments wrapped in “humour”, even out-and-out harassment.
How did I cope? The solid foundations laid by those early role models helped enormously. It was embedded in my thinking from the outset that gender has no bearing on your capabilities and that what you do – as opposed to what you are – is what matters.
So my reaction was always to tune out the noise. It was far from easy, but I tried to reflect on those two inspirational leaders and ignore the misguided views and outdated philosophies of others. I just kept telling myself I would succeed.
The danger in discussing these issues, even today, is that we drift into “man-bashing” territory. It is therefore vital to stress that seeing men as “the enemy” is both unfair and counterproductive.
There are many men in our industry who do all they can to assist their female colleagues. Men are not uniquely responsible for this situation. Ultimately, the difficulties stem from a lack of diversity across multiple dimensions.
Especially at boardroom level, the make-up of many organisations is still heavily skewed in terms of gender, age, race and other factors. The threat of groupthink will persist until these imbalances are finally addressed – that is, until we consistently promote diversity of thought.
In essence, we need to give everybody a voice – and we need to ensure all those voices are really heard. This should go a long way towards making our industry one that understands and respects each and every one of its stakeholders.
I feel this is what I was lucky enough to witness during my formative years in the financial arena. As we mark International Women’s Day, I thank the two people responsible for showing me what is possible.
I also thank the many young women entering our industry today who firmly insist on equality. Through their individual and collective strength, they keep alive the truth that ability and hard work count for much more than gender.
As a mother, I am excited to think my two daughters will one day discover a professional environment blighted by far less sexism and blessed with far more positive role models than I once found. This can genuinely happen, I am sure, if we all continue to work towards a brighter future.
Linda Johnstone is Novia Global’s Head of Investment Proposition.
[1] Guardian: “Women ‘will own 60% of UK’s wealth within two decades”, April 22 2005 – https://www.theguardian.com/business/2005/apr/22/money.genderissues.
[2] See, for example, FT Adviser: “FCA data shows just 16% of advisers are women”, July 13 2022 – https://www.ftadviser.com/your-industry/2022/07/13/fca-data-shows-just-16-of-advisers-are-women/.
[3] See, for example, CNBC: “The loss of a spouse or partner creates a huge financial risk. Here are tips to protect your money”, April 27 2022 – https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/27/op-ed-recent-widows-need-guidance-with-money-issues.html.
