Private equity has long been dominated by men, while women have been under-represented in key positions. Growing awareness of the value of diversity in finance, however, has shifted the focus towards attracting and keeping more female talent.
PE funds are under increasing pressure from their investors to diversify their teams. In our experience, international universities and Anglo-American pension funds in particular are actively pushing for greater gender diversity in the companies they finance. There’s talk in the market of threats to cut funding if companies make no progress on diversity.
While finance and management consulting have generally made progress, private equity has been slower to adapt. Several factors make it harder for PE firms to attract women. Firms with a strong male majority tend to struggle to appeal to women for deal team or operations roles. On top of that, there’s often little experience with flexible working, sabbaticals and parental leave at leadership level.
Many women hesitate to work in an industry notorious for its demanding workload and lifestyle. Long hours, frequent travel and a high-pressure environment can take a heavy toll on private life, making the industry less attractive to women who want a healthy work-life balance. In the next posts on this topic, we’ll look at the strategies PE firms are using to attract women, and the particular challenges they face in doing so.
