Bruin Financial & Professional Services has joined forces with a government-backed organisation, Progress Together, to tackle the socio-economic imbalance in the sector.
This partnership comes in response to the recent study commissioned by Progress Together called Shaping Our Economy, which revealed the UK financial services sector to have one of the worst socio-economic diversity rates for employees within leading roles. Moreover, the findings reveal that socioeconomic background is more likely to impact a person’s route to success in financial services than gender or ethnicity.
This worrying lack of diversity within the workforce, particularly in senior roles, means 89% of senior leaders in these sectors hailing from higher socio-economic backgrounds, with individuals from lower or intermediate socio-economic backgrounds comprise only 11% of senior employees.
The collaboration between Progress Together and Bruin will include a series of initiatives, including webinars, workshops, and training sessions designed to educate businesses about the significance of socio-economic diversity. These efforts aim to empower organisations with the tools and knowledge to implement best practices and create a workplace environment where individuals from diverse backgrounds can thrive.
Kirstin Duffy, COO at Bruin, said: “We know that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. Socio-economic diversity presents businesses with a huge opportunity to source a pool of talent with untapped potential, increase their profits, and align their corporate social responsibility goals.
We are partnering with Progress Together to help our clients understand the importance of collating data and implementing best practice to encourage diversity and maximize their profitability while they do so.”
Sophie Hulm, CEO of Progress Together, said: “We are delighted to have Bruin Financial & Professional Services has joined Progress Together as an official supporter.
“By doing so, Bruin has demonstrated its commitment to improving socio-economic diversity at senior levels in the UK financial services sector and to levelling the playing field for people from all backgrounds.”