These senior leaders are acting as champions of action and advocacy to help the industry accelerate its efforts around boosting diversity and inclusion here in Australia, leveraging their individual and collective leadership positions to influence change. They are collaborating with our Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee to share their ideas and insights into new strategies and initiatives that can build on the significant change that is already underway across the sector.
Meeting and Panel Pledges
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To date, the Champions of Change have pledged to call out meetings and
panels with no women and only join panels that are not all-male to help
increase the participation and opportunities for women in our industry.
The Australian Investment Council has also pledged to have no all-male
panels at its events. Many high-profile conferences, events and meetings
lack gender balance, despite there often being no shortage of qualified
women to contribute. The impact of imbalances such as these has
consequences for women in leadership, gender equality, organisations and
our community.
When speakers or contributors are predominately male, audiences may be
provided a narrow perspective on the issues being canvassed. This lack of
diversity limits the quality and range of a conversation, and the potential
outcomes or actions that might arise from it.
When visible role models are generally male, the absence of women in
leadership also becomes normalised. People have limited access to
knowledgeable women leaders they can learn from and fewer women choose to
speak.
Be a part of the change and
sign up to the pledges.
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Commitment to Flexible Working Practices
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COVID-19 has forced a mass and rapid adoption of remote working
practices and we are now facing a critical moment in history with the
unique opportunity to re-shape our work practices for decades to come.
This powerful change could help reverse the gender imbalance within the
private capital industry as flexible working is a key enabler for a
more diverse and inclusive firm.
Insights drawn from the Australian Investment Council’s Champions of
Change leaders interviewed for
this three-part article series
clearly indicate their willingness to adopt new flexible working
practices that they say are here to stay. The Champions of Change discuss how working from home does not come
without its challenges but they believe that they can be mitigated
through effective management and the benefits for staff and the
business are worth it.
Flexible working is here to stay in their firms and they are
encouraging the whole private capital industry to adopt the same
approach to flexible working.
With flexible working being a key enabler for a more diverse and
inclusive firm, this change could help propel the Australian Investment
Council's work in building an inclusive and thriving culture.
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Remember that the Australian Investment Council has a range of case
studies, tools and other resources to help you bring about change within
your own firm on our
diversity webpage.
To find out more about how the Australian Investment Council can help
support your firm’s diversity and inclusion efforts, please get in touch
with us via email. And,
stay tuned
for more developments as we continue to work with our ten Champions of
Change to support the long-term growth of private capital investment in
Australia.