The launch of the programme has coincided with a CFA UK survey. The association surveyed 135 of its members on how to improve diversity issues in the investment profession.

CFA Society of the UK (CFA UK), the association for investment professionals, has launched a gender diversity partner programme that aims to improve representation of genders across the investment profession, one that has traditionally been dominated by men.

The programme’s founding partners are Allianz Global Investors, Fidelity International, PIMCO, Royal London Asset Management and Vanguard, and these firms will support investment organisations in how they devlop and deliver gender diversity strategies, CFA UK said in a statement.

Individuals from firms across the investment profession will join a gender diversity partner council convened by CFA UK. Council members will be instructed to close the gap between what C-suite managers say about the issue and actual delivery on the ground. 

Wealth management firms such as UBS, Royal Bank of Canada (see an example here) and others have noted how women, who make up more than half of the world's population and are increasingly holders of financial assets, are still a minority in the financial sector workplace, particularly at the more senior levels. (See an example here from the venture capital sector.) The issue around a pay gap in countries such as the UK remains a hot potato politically. 

The launch of the programme is accompanied by a new member survey from the CFA UK membership which assessed where progress is most urgently needed to improve diversity. CFA UK surveyed 135 of its members in October 2017.

The majority of respondents (76 per cent) agreed that returning to the workplace after a career break was the area where progress was needed in the investment profession, followed by work life balance (69 per cent) and greater representation at board and top executive level (67 per cent).

Respondents were largely in agreement that improving gender diversity in the investment profession is the responsibility of all investment professionals. Around 67 per cent hold this to be true, with only 18 per cent agreeing that it is the responsibility of senior executives alone.

“The investment profession is committed to diversity,” said Will Goodhart, chief executive at CFA UK. “Our intent is to help the profession identify how best to execute on that commitment. There is little doubt about the value and importance of diversity, but there is a need to help firms learn from each other’s experiences. Working with our partners and with other diversity initiatives, we hope to accelerate the implementation of effective processes and policies."

The financial services industry has been trying to improve the equality issues within the sector over the past decade. However there are still clear differences between men and women. In September, this publication reported a study from the Chartered Management Institute, a professional body for management and leadership, which found that the gender gap in the UK's finance sector is “much higher” than across all other business areas, with the average difference being 33.9 per cent.