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The financial services industry is facing a workforce exodus as existing employees age and retire. To replenish its ranks, the industry must recognize the importance of racial, gender and ethnic diversity and embrace recruitment strategies that target underrepresented groups.
Doing so will be crucial not only to sustaining the industry but also to providing quality service to diverse clients, particularly as more and more people seek financial advice during the pandemic.
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A report by the Center for Financial Planning explores practical and meaningful steps organizations can take to foster diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I). The report, "Diversity in Action: How to Sustain the Financial Planning Profession," incorporates lessons learned from several financial services firms that have implemented successful DE&I programs.
Begin at the top
Diversity cannot be a surface-level goal, cautions the report. In order to be successful, meaningful steps must be taken, with buy-in at all levels.
"Real change begins at the top. It is very important to have a strategic approach to your diversity, equity and inclusion programs," said D.A. Abrams, CAE, managing director of the CFP Board Center for Financial Planning.
"First, you must determine how this effort best supports your firm's mission and values which will ensure the sustainability and long-term success of your DE&I efforts. Second, executives and senior leaders must be totally committed to diversifying their workforce. They must invest in education and accountability as well as in sufficient resources to ensure success for all."
The report suggests some steps that are important to consider:
Examine goals. Start by understanding the firm's DE&I goals, why they are important and how they will strengthen the firm's mission and values, said the report.
Commit to a vision. Create a mission statement and vision around DE&I, including measurable goals, and commit the vision to writing to help solidify it as a sustainable goal.
Establish a baseline. Gather both quantitative and qualitative data that establishes a baseline upon which the firm can build toward its diversity goals.
Viewing quantitative data in conjunction with qualitative data can help firms root out biases and assumptions that emerge when relying solely on quantitative data.
Define success and track metrics. Define what diversity success looks like for the firm, whether that is demographic composition of staff or inclusion competencies that all employees are accountable for, and track those metrics to ensure the firm remains focused on achieving its diversity goals.
Engage with employees on an ongoing basis to learn what strategies are working as well as to create buy-in, transparency and trust at all levels.
Create a supportive system. Build an infrastructure that formalizes and supports diversity and inclusion.
This can include appointing a DE&I officer that advocates for diversity change; including diversity as a meaningful part of the firm's budget with funds earmarked for implementing diversity best practices, improving training and building partnerships; and creating councils, task forces and employee resource groups (ERGs) focused on diversity and inclusion.
Focus on messaging that attracts diverse talent. Firms can also take concrete action to attract diverse talent, including focusing on marketing messages that telegraph the firm's diversity values.
How a company presents itself online can influence candidates' and clients' perceptions about who the firm is, who it serves, what it offers and what it values, said the report.
Evaluate which visual images and messages the website uses and what story those tell about the company.
Pay attention to your social media story. Social media is another outward story about the firm. Amplifying messages of diversity and inclusion in the firm's workplace, such as highlighting women's networking events or annual diversity celebrations, sends a signal to potential employees about the company's commitment to a diverse and inclusive workplace.
Examine your job descriptions. Job descriptions should be written with inclusive language and in a way that attracts a wide audience of qualified candidates.
Machine learning tools can help firms write inclusive job descriptions, and diverse teams made up of both men and women, different ages and varied races and cultural backgrounds, can also be established to recruit and interview candidates.
Reach out. Beyond posting jobs, firms can make concerted efforts to reach into the diverse communities they are hoping to recruit.
This can include networking with affinity groups such as financial services organizations, MBA associations, professional organizations and undergraduate organizations that work with specific racial and ethnic groups. In addition, colleges and universities are a rich resource for identifying and recruiting diverse talent.
Kristen Beckman is a freelance writer based in Colorado. She previously was a writer and editor for ALM's Retirement Advisor magazine and LifeHealthPro online channel. She also was a reporter for Business Insurance magazine covering workers compensation topics. Kristen graduated from the University of Missouri with a degree in journalism.
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