A Missing Voice in Financial Services
By: Constance Sommer
In a recent article by Constance Sommer, the lack of women in the financial services industry is evaluated. This featured guest blog post highlights the biased systems in place that have kept women out of the financial system leading to disproportionate numbers of men dominating the field.
“If you’re a woman, the American financial system was not created for you. It was formed by men. It is run largely by men. And it is designed to complement a man’s life.
Consider this:
- Only 14% of financial advisors are women, according to a 2017 survey by Cerulli Associates.
- In 2018, there were more men named James than female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies.
- Finance as a profession drives rewards to those who work long and inflexible hours – making it a difficult or even impossible career choice for many women juggling home and child care.
- Many women take extended breaks from work to care for children or other family members, but IRAs, 401(k)s and other savings vehicles penalize participants for withdrawing large sums before retirement.
“When it comes to finance, it’s still mostly a man’s world out there,” said Lauren Bringle Jackson, a content marketing manager for Self Financial Inc., a fintech startup in Austin, Texas. “There are more barriers in our way in general. We make less on average, we’re more likely to have to take time off to care for children or other loved ones, we live longer yet have less saved for retirement so we’re more likely to outlive our savings – the list goes on.”
Read the full article here.
