IR Bulletin – Breaking the glass ceiling for women and for IR

The Davies Report’s target of 25% women on FTSE 100 Boards has recently been met. While this headline achievement is encouraging it masks a less attractive statistic: The 2015 Report revealed that only 8.6 percent of executive directorships are held by women in FTSE 100 companies. If successes to date are to be maintained, let alone further advanced, then the female pipeline must be a number one priority. Far too many women in senior roles are still hitting a glass ceiling on their way to the top of the organisation. Interestingly, this is not only true for women, but also for many IR professionals.

At Fidelio, we foster a special relationship with the IR profession and we have, therefore, taken a closer look at the pipeline of IR leaders, both male and female, on their way to the top table. We have been at the leading edge in highlighting that, especially within IR, glass ceilings are hit on a regular basis: the inaccessible top table is not only an issue of gender. The value of diversity is recognised, but diversity is not defined simply in terms of gender. It is also about expertise and experience.

A keen advocate

Through Development and Search Fidelio works with the Board to ensure that the company has the skills in place to drive value for shareholders and stakeholders. While Boards are increasingly focused on understanding shareholder expectations, the contribution IR can make here is not always well understood. We are a keen advocate of the value that IR contributes but, so far, we have seen too few IR professionals make the transition to the most senior ranks of the company. One of the reasons for this is structural; IR as a career is perceived as too narrow.

The Davies Review calls upon companies to actively build the pipeline of senior female executives: we argue that IR also needs to strengthen its professional executive pipeline. At Fidelio we are actively engaging with companies on an international basis to build a pipeline of senior female executives – tomorrow’s CEOs and Chairmen. We are thereby playing our part in raising awareness of, and helping solve this problem.

Accordingly, we have launched our bespoke Development Programme, “A Seat at the Table”, which supports Senior Female Executives in gaining a seat at the top of an organisation. Our inaugural Programme is to be set in the leadership-rich heritage of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, co-hosted by former NATO General Sir Richard Shirreff.

Leading with the front foot

We’ve attracted strong interest and support but regrettably our very diverse group of attendees, with backgrounds in banking, private equity, manufacturing, including senior communications professionals, includes no representative of the IR profession. Our overall impression was that, especially among IR directors, there is a tendency to hesitate in putting oneself forward in order to steer one’s career in the right direction. This is one example of the glass ceiling in IR that Fidelio aims to shatter.

We have mapped out a plan of action and believe that the industry and IR professionals must act collectively and individually to demonstrate that an IR Director has much to add to the top table – be it on the Executive Committee or one the main Board. IR industry bodies such as NIRI and the IR Society can help create a pathway for their members by increasing the standing of the profession but most importantly of all, individual IR Directors must take their own careers in hand. They must ensure that they both add value in what is a critical role for the company but also that the value is understood and appreciated. Crucially in this respect, IR Directors must continue to grow and develop as business leaders and be recognised as such.

Over the next 18 months we look forward to working further on this important topic and helping IR executives make further advances. We will do this through Search and Development. For example we will certainly support initiatives that the UK IR Society is considering and we will continue to deliver our “A Seat at the Table” Programme. Through this combination our goal is to build a pipeline of male and female IR executives that succeed to the top the table and at the top table. IR can become a go-to career stepping stone for future CFOs, CEOs and Chairmen.

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