Diversity in financial services: A business imperative
As we celebrate International Women’s Day, it’s crucial to recognise the role diversity plays in driving innovation, improving decision-making, and creating opportunities across financial services.
In our latest FTT Chats interview, we spoke with Lucille Flamand, Chief Strategic Development Officer at Bibby Financial Services, about the tangible benefits of diversity and how to break down barriers for women in the industry.
Lucile starts by sharing some incredible statistics around the importance of including women in business, highlighting how diversity is an economic necessity, not just a moral one. Despite their best efforts, Lucile goes on to say that many businesses fall short when it comes to utilising the power of their diverse workforce. As Lucille put it, “Diversity needs to go hand-in-hand with a culture that really enables different voices to be heard.” It’s not enough to bring people into the room; businesses must foster an environment where diverse perspectives are valued, respected, and encouraged to thrive.
For women considering a career in financial services, Lucille closes with an empowering message: “Don’t be afraid of doing something where you don’t have a role model… you can become the role model.” Many women self-select out of roles they would excel in simply because they don’t have the same set of skills and attributes as those currently in the job. But by stepping forward, they can prove a different way of working and redefine the narrative for future generations.
Watch the full interview below to learn more about diversity – why it is important, how it can be measured and what it can do for your business – as well as some fantastic advice for those looking to work within the finance industry.
Inspired by Lucile’s words and want to #AccelerateAction for a more diverse financial sector? We want to hear from you! We have relaunched our International Women’s Day initiative from last year to encourage our community to help us find diverse speakers and contributors across our events and content. Submit your recommendations using the form below.
Hear more from Lucile at the next edition of the leading event focussed on innovation in lending on 19 March (in London) – FTT Lending. Lucille and her fellow panellists will be exploring – Closing the Gap: Solutions for Gender Equality in Business Lending.
Lucile will also be joining us at our upcoming payments events on 13th May in London. Find out more by visiting the FTT Payments website.
