• Scale News

Advancing Women in Quant? How can we make the change?

It should come as no surprise that there are few women in quant. According to efc, “… in a sample of 600 quants in London, only 43 were women.” That’s a staggeringly low percentile. But this problem goes beyond the UK to every developed country on earth. How can we advance women in quant? What change is needed? Let’s explore.

Market themselves to female graduates

It’s arguable that not enough is being done to encourage women into STEM and then attract female STEM graduates into quant roles while they’re in education. But there are options open to forward-thinking financial institutions. By sponsoring scholarships, bursaries, job fairs and ancillary programmes; financial firms can identify and woo top talent from within the school system. Making those early connections can ensure a consistent pipeline of fresh talent too.

Develop professionals from other fields

For the many women who are already part of the professional workforce, they may not be aware of the transferable skills that would allow them to achieve in the world of quantitative finance. By creating a programme to generate awareness, identify, coach and cross-train professionals working in related sectors; companies can increase the pool of candidates. This could take the form of online courses, events, conferences, webinars or micro-internships.

Promote women into leadership roles

It’s not enough to attract more candidates. They need to enjoy the culture once they’re placed. By ensuring female representation within company leadership, you’re providing a voice and advocacy for issues that concern women in quant. You’re also showing that there is an opportunity for growth to the highest levels within your firm too. Diversity within your leadership team will also help promote an inclusive culture where everyone feels they belong.

If you’re looking to attract more women into your quant roles, let’s talk about how we can help. We’re experts at making the right connections between sought-after professionals and our clients in specialist sectors including, Quantitative Finance, Technology & Risk.