PLANADVISER - January/February 2020 - 44

voices
Melissa Cowan
Men as Advocates
Calling all males to help women succeed in the retirement industry
GIVEN the increase in women joining the workforce, and
today's focus on diversity and inclusion, it's more important
than ever that we in the retirement industry work together
to foster employing women in our firms. Women in Pensions
Network (WiPN) recently launched " Men as Advocates " to
give men the opportunity to get more involved in our mission:
to help women succeed at all levels of the industry.
While we've had great support from men at the corporate
and regional sponsorship levels, several of them had
reached out, asking what more they could do. The WiPN
board gave much thought to why hiring women, along with
others in an effort to foster diversity, was important and
what advocacy should mean.
Historically, the conversations have been about what
women need to do to succeed when men are making the decisions
about hiring, pay and promotions. But that dynamic
is changing, and today it is equally important for men to
understand how to better engage with their female clients,
colleagues and employees. Considering that our industry has
a well-known gender gap, a commitment to attracting and
retaining more women can benefit us all.
In fact, numerous studies point to increased profitability
when companies have a more diverse staff. This is especially
relevant for financial advisers, as there is typically at least one
female per household deciding whom to consult about their
retirement plan. As the saying goes, know your customer.
One of the biggest challenges we all face is unconscious
bias, where we make assumptions or decisions that unintentionally
result in favoritism or a less inclusive culture. In
terms of our industry, male advisers need to take opportunities
to work with and support women in the field; doing
this can help them advocate for women and overcome the
gender-gap biases that preserve the status quo. Here are
several ways that men can be an advocate.
1) Support and encourage women on your team to
become involved in industry or firm groups focused on
women or diversity. WiPN and like networks facilitate women
gaining access to professional development and mentoring;
through these organizations, a woman may meet women in
a similar role. Especially if she's the only woman on your
team, having a network of women to discuss her work, challenges
and successes with can be very meaningful.
2) Attend events focused on women or diversity. Men
have several reasons to attend such events. Hearing about
women's struggles in the workplace can create understanding
and help them become more effective leaders in
their jobs. Additionally, most of the events focus on career
advancement and professional development-topics equally
of value to men. Men who can't attend an event should take
time to read studies or papers on women in the workplace
such as the " Women in Financial Services 2020 " report from
Oliver Wyman and " Women in the Workplace 2019 " from
McKinsey & Co. and LeanIn.org.
3) Be open to mentoring or sponsoring, and know the
difference. Mentoring can be formal or informal but should
help the mentee with specific goals. It can be short term,
focusing on one area, or a longer-term arrangement. In the
past, both men and women typically looked to senior men
for mentorship. As more women advance in their careers,
men could consider having a woman mentor. While we typically
think of younger employees in terms of mentees, more
tenured employees may also gain from mentoring.
Being a sponsor means advocating for and helping
someone advance in their career. Because, as a man, you may
take part in promotion decisions and discussions, it's critical
to advocate for talented women in your organization.
4) Recruit more women. I've heard from advisers that
they want to add women to their team but they're struggling
to find candidates. I would challenge them to think
about how they're recruiting and what bias they may have
in terms of what makes a good candidate. They should keep
in mind that women tend to feel they need to meet most
of a job's requirements, to even apply, whereas men may
feel qualified just by meeting a few. Also, understanding
job requirements that may appeal to women can help with
recruiting-see my point about attending events focused
on women, above.
There are so many benefits to inclusivity and diversity-not
just from adding women but other minorities,
too-including a happier workforce, varied perspectives
on how to achieve goals, and increased sales and profitability.
Think about the Monday morning staff meeting:
Does the opening conversation appeal to everyone-or just
a few male senior executives? Take time to learn about the
backgrounds of your staff. Ask yourself: Does your team
look like the clients you serve? Sometimes change can be
hard, but if we partner together to change our industry, we
will all benefit.
Melissa Cowan is head of service for retirement plan solutions at
Morgan Stanley. She is past president of the Women in Pensions Network
and currently serves on its board.
44 | planadviser.com January-February 2020
http://www.LeanIn.org http://www.planadviser.com
PLANADVISER - January/February 2020

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