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Recently, IHS Markit participated at the Women in Private
Markets Virtual Conference hosted by PEI. The panel sessions
covered similar topics to those discussed at previous conferences
we spoke at this year such as market volatility stemming from
COVID-19, improved documentation for lenders, relatively tight
spreads for illiquid investments, opportunistic deal structures,
anticipation for more distressed investments and the evolving role
of technology to support the investment lifecycle.
However, additional themes that were prevalent throughout the
conference were diversity, inclusion, and leadership of women
within private markets. We gathered with some of the conference
participants to engage in a conversation about these subjects and
exchange stories.
Some of the questions discussed were:
How diverse is your business?
Do you notice diversity and inclusion in your workplace?
Is there an emphasis on hiring a more diverse and inclusive
team?
How do you bring the real you to work?
Participants remarked that as they transitioned from a junior
role to a senior role, they experienced the most pronounced
unconscious bias. Successful organizations, that recognize this
impact at such a critical transition point, offer sponsorship and
mentorship programs to help women succeed at this juncture and not
fall victim to the unconscious bias that exists on the path to
senior leadership.
We took this concept a step further to discuss promotion from
within. The younger, millennial generation is known for often
moving between organizations, which is a behavioral shift from
older generations who associate constant movement between
organizations with disloyalty. Interestingly, from the younger
generation's point of view, they are seeking a sense of belonging
and the potential for career advancement. Junior women feel
discouraged with their potential for career advancement within an
organization where they witness the recruitment of senior women
from outside the organization for seemingly lateral moves instead
of promotion from within. Senior women benefit from recruitment
whereby as a new employee they feel chosen, valued, obtain better
pay and achieve more visible roles. All generations agreed that
through mentorship, sponsorship, the close of the gender pay gap
and a defined promotion process both employees and employers will
benefit from a home-grown pipeline of talent that is visible and
supportive women as they advance into senior roles.
Fortunately, the group agreed that women are supportive of other
women within the workforce. The older generations commented that
previously, a healthy work-life balance was unattainable in senior
roles, but vast strides have been taken for far better
parental-leave and flexible work schedules that alleviate this
concern. The mid-level and younger generations support more women
in the workforce and celebrate the fact that having both a family
and professional success is achievable, especially as their
partners help them with the mental load (Look up The
Mental Load if you are unfamiliar with it).
We also discussed how traditional gender roles are becoming more
fluid and how diversity is celebrated by bringing our whole selves
to work, now more than ever, not being ashamed about their lives
outside of work. One woman shared a story about how
~17approximately 20 years ago, after she had a child, there was a
negative connotation associated with displaying a photo of her son
on her desk, although her male colleagues had photos of their
children at their desks. She felt that her photo, coupled with her
traditional role as the primary care giver, implied that she would
not have competing priorities when it came to balancing motherhood
and work compared to her male peers, who did not have that same
stigma associated with displaying photos of their children.
Thankfully, in today's work environment, especially with everyone
working remotely, babies and even fur-babies are regularly
displayed proudly.
Through "leaning in", educating, becoming aware and voicing an
opinion, women are stepping up as leaders in both official and
unofficial capabilities. Another story was shared that highlighted
a female director that interjected in a conversation while out at a
bar with colleagues. The topic of the conversation was golf. After
looking around to see how many of her team members seemed
uninterested in the conversation, she suggested changing the
conversation to a more inclusive topic. The team did so with
ease.
We also pointed out that in a more diverse workplace, for
inclusion to occur, we need to start educating our children to be
unbiased and think outside of the stereotypes. By the time they
enter the workforce, they will then hopefully have less of an
unconscious bias. Given that these topics are important to us, it
is our responsibility, in this case as the minority, to:
Start the conversation and push for inclusion. Join internal
advocacy programs and be a voice for someone that may not feel
comfortable having one. Or just listen, learn and educate
others.
Speak up if you see direct or unconscious bias taking place.
Look at it as educational, not confrontational.
Find mentors and sponsors to both learn from and educate, at
the same time. Create that relationship where you can openly
discuss real-time issues and make suggestions how to address some
of the challenges we all face.
Interestingly, one woman pointed out that her male colleagues
are more open and vulnerable while working in a remote environment
than when working in an office together. Perhaps they feel more
comfortable not physically being in the same space as a woman?
Regardless, it is great to see that bringing the workplace home
creates a sense of openness and team bonding. People feel that
"we're in this together" culture allows colleagues to be kinder and
more empathetic to one another.
And finally, even with a globally represented group, everyone
was acutely aware that the United States just elected the first
woman vice president, which regardless of your political views is a
historic achievement. All agreed that there is evidence within
their organizations of strides in the right direction to disrupt
traditional gender biases and improve inclusion, diversity and the
trajectory for future woman leaders.
Posted 11 February 2021 by Jocelyn Lewis, Executive Director, Private Debt Strategy, Financial Services, S&P Global Market Intelligence
IHS Markit provides industry-leading data, software and technology platforms and managed services to tackle some of the most difficult challenges in financial markets. We help our customers better understand complicated markets, reduce risk, operate more efficiently and comply with financial regulation.