By Scarlett Sieber

I will never forget the time I sat in a room with acclaimed actress Viola Davis, who was on stage in front of thousands. I was attending a women’s conference and she was our keynote. I was taken aback by her poise, confidence and ability to clearly articulate one of the biggest reasons why there are not more women breaking boundaries, “If you can’t see it, then you can’t be it.” Few words have resonated more.

This same sentiment holds true when applied to gender diversity in banking. If you visit the executive leadership page of most banks in the U.S., the profiles look similar and the numbers of women are few and far between. Why is it that there are so few women leaders when we represent 50 percent of the workforce at the professional level?

Oliver Wyman’s “2016 Women in Financial Services Report” found that the number of women in finance actually increased from 1960 to 1983, but then, progress stalled and female representation has been on a downward trend since 2000. As illustrated in figure 1 below, taken from Mercer’s analysis on the importance of gender diversity in financial services, with each move up the ladder, women representation continues to decrease.

The statistics are even worse for women of color, who represent 20 percent of employees at the entry level and virtually disappear from representation at higher levels as researched by McKinsey.

While the statistics may look bleak now, there is certainly a lot to be positive about. As the banking landscape continues to change and there is a shift towards digital with a greater focus on customer experience, the opportunities for women have increased significantly. So how does one leverage these new opportunities? Let’s start at the beginning.

Looking for a new role

When looking for a new role be as clear as you can with yourself about what drives you, what your strengths are and what you want your typical day to look like. It is important to do your research, not only around the role but around the company and the culture. Do you see a long-term path for success? Does the organization have examples of women or people of color (POC) who have moved up the ladder into leadership?

A common discussion I have among my female friends is around matching the job description. Many women don’t feel comfortable applying for a job if they don’t match most, if not all, of the job description, whereas men apply for roles if they have half or less of the requirements.

Be bold! The right boss/leadership teams are looking at talent differently and often focus on potential, not just experience. I have not met 100 percent of the requirements in any of my corporate roles and in at least one, I didn’t meet half the requirements.

You got the offer, now time to negotiate

The first piece of general advice I give to any woman I meet is to get comfortable with being uncomfortable. This certainly applies to negotiating. There are few things more terrifying than negotiating your self worth.

I can’t tell you how many conversations I have had with women who will not negotiate on an offer because they are afraid of coming off as too aggressive or of losing the offer. I am not aware of one case where someone’s offer was pulled because they asked for something different. In most cases, the worst they will say is no.

From conversations with leaders inside and outside of human resources, many organizations actually expect you to negotiate. In fact, I know of cases where HR told candidates to request a higher base. The right leaders will respect that you value yourself and your skillset enough to ask for what you are worth.

For those in sales and business development roles, you are already proving your abilities and the organization should feel confident you will do the same on their behalf once you join. It certainly helps to have examples of salaries for similar positions within and outside the organization as a bar to set expectations.

People often think that negotiation is just about money when, in reality, you can negotiate for many other things. What do you feel strongly about? You can often negotiate your title, the number of resources allocated to you, vacation time, work from home days, etc.

You secured the job, now have an impact

One of the most powerful things each of us possesses is our network. Networking is crucial to success and advancement in your career. Get involved with the many initiatives that your organization offers. Start with whatever feels most comfortable for you. Often, diversity initiatives are a good place to start.

Bloomberg’s Gender Equality Index found that 85 percent of financial services index members currently have a chief diversity officer, so there are bound to be opportunities. If most of your company events are after work or at inconvenient times, find a way to change the setting. Can you suggest early morning breakfasts instead? What about lunch-and-learns where different parts of the organization discuss their roles and impact? You can also make the lunches non-work related and have themes (TV series lunches, sports, music) to get a group of people passionate about a topic to come together. The goal is to allow people to let their guards down and enable an opportunity for people to connect on a deeper level.

The larger the organization, the more important the role of the external network. If you can establish a relationship or provide value to people outside of your organization, there is a good chance that information will get back to different parts of your organization and you will start to find that people within your organization who don’t know you personally have positive things to say about you.

With large organizations, it is easy to get siloed. If this is the case, be proactive and ask your boss if you can sit in on a manager meeting or on a meeting with other line of business leaders to get a more holistic view of the organization and learn how all the pieces of the puzzle come together.

Also, reach out directly to a well-respected leader or one who inspires you and ask if you can take him/her to coffee. You can mention that you would like to understand the role of their team at a

deeper level. As a person who always has a “give first” mentality, I look for ways to ensure the other side leaves with something of value. Maybe within your role you are closer to the customer and can provide some insight

that the leader may not be aware of, or you are part of internal processes and you can shed light onto some of the major roadblocks with suggestions on best ways to move forward.

Time for promotion

One of the best tactics I have seen for career advancement is going above expectations. Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty and take on something outside of your role and responsibilities. Be cautious, though, and don’t take on more than you can handle. It is OK to say no if you are at capacity. Oftentimes, though, women take on more work and don’t get the appropriate amount of credit for their contribution.

If you agree to take on additional work, make sure you think about what you hope to get out of the new responsibility. Is it exposure to senior leadership (being in “that” meeting where big things happen)? Is it internal recognition? Do you want a title change commensurate with your new responsibilities? Do you want a promotion or salary increase?

As mentioned earlier, networking is key to advancement in your career and part of that is singing your own praises. Men tend to be better at making others aware of their value, whereas women typically shy away from self promotion. If done in a tactical way, this can be powerful.

One example of showing your value/effort is attending an industry conference and then sending a short, easily digestible summary of topics highlighting the impact on your company’s business or your competitors’ businesses as well as mentioning any key meetings you had. You can share your insights with your boss or more broadly to senior leadership if the content is relevant. You are now gaining visibility at the highest levels and providing something to the team.

Before going into a conversation with your boss or HR about a promotion, you should know your market worth. In fact, this is something you should always be aware of even if you aren’t actively seeking a promotion. You can have open conversations with your peers at your company (and more broadly) to determine appropriate salary ranges and titles.

If a recruiter reaches out, you can mention you aren’t in the market but you are happy to share the position and recommend candidates (further providing value for the ecosystem) but to ensure you are thinking about the right people you would like to know the salary range for the role. If speaking with peers or recruiters seems like too much, you can always use tools like Glassdoor, which allows people to share their salaries anonymously.

Women helping women

While taking advantage of the corporate programs your organization offers is great, real progress happens when we help each other. We are all on this journey together. The more we advocate for each other, the further we will go.

When you are in a meeting, make a conscious effort to build up another woman or POC in front of your boss or members of leadership. If you are in an environment that is conducive to women being successful and promoted, actively champion within your network to bring in more women. Be an advocate and showcase why that woman is the right person for the role or for the company.

As the banking landscape continues to evolve, the opportunities within the space need people who think differently. Do your part in bringing awareness that this is not a one-size-fits-all industry. There are many paths to success, some of which we haven’t even imagined yet. What will you do to change the ratio?

Scarlett Sieber is speaking on career development at TBA’s 2nd annual Women in Banking Conference, March 7-8 in San Antonio. She has served as vice president at USAA, where she led the newly created business development initiative; was chief innovation officer at Opus Bank; and senior vice president of Global Business Development at BBVA.