Fidelity Investments Is Investing in Women in More Ways Than One: The Importance of Women in Finance
Fidelity Investments aims to make financial expertise broadly accessible and effective in helping people live the lives they want. Fidelity knows that hiring and retaining women at all stages of their careers is essential in achieving this mission and providing all of their customers with the best possible experience.
President of Personal Investing at Fidelity Investments, Kathy Murphy, explained it like this: "We need to stare down and change the traditional Wall Street stereotypes of what the financial services industry stands for. For example, our mission at Fidelity is to help improve the financial futures of millions of hard-working Americans who turn to us for help with their savings and investments, so they can build a better future for themselves and their families. These men and women — of different ethnicities and ages — all need our help, and the significant demographic changes underway underscore the importance of diverse and inclusive perspectives."
A key asset in serving our evolving population successfully is to have a workforce that reflects and understands the needs and challenges of all demographics.
"In my view, women have been underserved by financial services for decades," Murphy says. "I don't think it was intentional, but finance has been an industry largely run by men for the last 70 to 100 years. If you don't have diversity of thought, you'll do it in a way that's natural to you."
In order to foster this diversity of thought, Fidelity has enacted programs such as RESUME to help make their workforce more inclusive. RESUME helps job seekers who have taken a career break to find a job and reacclimate to working in financial services. This program is open to anyone who has taken a career break, but it is especially helpful for working mothers who left the workforce to take care of children.
"Our traditional recruiting process is not making it easy for [women] to come back, so we need a program like this that embraces their career gap and provides a customized program to help them reactivate those skills and experience and then their careers accelerate faster," Fidelity Recruiting Director Rachel Book said.
While Murphy and her team are working diligently to both make an impact on diversity in business and maximize women's potential in the workplace, they are not the only ones who understand how important it is—especially in the financial services industry.
A recent US News article, How Women Are Creating Success in Financial Services, explains that, "as the gatekeeper to wealth, the financial industry is in a unique position to improve diversity by supporting women inside the industry and investing in women-owned businesses outside of it." When you support a woman entrepreneur, it creates a ripple effect: not only is the woman positively impacted, but so is her family, her community, and the local economy.
By supporting women who work at Fidelity, Fidelity is helping to elevate women's careers and economic opportunities by setting a standard in the financial services industry.
Fidelity does this in part through their Women's Leadership Group (WLG), which embodies the spirit of "women supporting women." It covers all aspects of navigating the workplace. The group houses various committees around specific initiatives such as career advancement, allyship, and internal and external engagement. WLG members can get involved in at least two opportunities each month, ranging from coffee dates that foster connections to TED-style talks and hearing from guest speakers.
WLG also focuses on how women can add unique value to Fidelity and support the company's business and marketing objectives — which in turn gives more women the opportunity to rise to leadership positions.
All of these initiatives allow Fidelity to better serve their customers and make the company a great place for women to work. For Kathy Murphy, a leader in financial services herself, it's all about paying it forward and getting more women in leadership roles: "My leadership path in financial services would not have happened without the active support of bosses who saw potential in me and gave me opportunities to grow, develop, and challenge myself to reach my full potential. That's why I'm so passionate about development and mentorship programs and the opportunity we have to elevate and improve the whole industry."
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If you're eager to join a company that prioritizes women's career growth and potential, and will give you the opportunity to help customers live the lives they want, check out Fidelity's open roles here.
