International Women’s Day 2025 #Accelerate Action
To kick off our International Women’s Day 2025 FTT Chats series, we had the pleasure of speaking with Jessica Richards, Head of Performance and Business Management, Payments, at NatWest. Our conversation centered around her two great passions: diversity and the financial services industry.
She shared her views on the importance of diversity in the workplace, and the financial services industry in particular, as it should reflect the society it serves – from large government entities to vulnerable individuals.
‘Diversity is what makes us human‘ and beyond the categories we use to identify, diversity is ‘about how we think, feel, and experience the world.‘ Jessica goes on to say that ‘a truly diverse workforce is one where colleagues can bring their whole selves to work without fear of judgment‘ – and this is part of the reason that diversity allows creativity to flourish.
Jessica’s call to action is clear: diversity makes us stronger, and we must prioritize it in every aspect of our professional lives. She urges future leaders to keep diversity at the top of the agenda, ensuring that financial services remain a sector that reflects and serves the diverse society we live in.
When it comes to practical advice for women exploring or just starting off in their careers in financial services, as Jessica says, Just Do It. Listen to the full interview below for her top tips.
Inspired by Jessica’s words, we invite you to take action. We launched our referral programme last year and our community has since responded with some fantastic recommendations.
We are once again calling on our community of speakers, attendees and partners to put forward a woman in your network who should be considered as a content contributor or speaker at our events. Let’s work together to break barriers, challenge biases, and accelerate the pace of change
Watch our latest video with Jessica Richards and submit your recommendations today. The time for action is now.
And if you share a passion with Jessica for all things payments, please join us at the next edition of FTT Payments in London on 13 May.
