Winston Welcomes HRH Countess of Wessex GCVO for Program to Advance Gender Parity in the Finance Profession

Winston & Strawn’s New York office was pleased to host the 100 Women in Finance (100WF) breakfast meeting on November 13 attended by the HRH Countess of Wessex in her role as the Global Ambassador of 100WF’s Next Generation Initiative. She has served in this role since 2015 and champions increasing female representation within the finance industry.

Corporate Partners Beth Kramer and Scott Naidech welcomed the 100WF members and Winston clients who participated with the Countess in conversations on the topic of reaching gender parity in the workplace. This program, which was aimed at supporting and encouraging women in the early stages of their finance careers, focused on three key areas:

• Proactively seeking out and building productive mentoring relationships to expand careers in finance beyond current roles.
• Shaping, evolving, and maintaining a personal brand based on skills, experience, and personality.
• Improving education and application processes to encourage women to explore revenue-generating roles within the financial services industry.

 

The conversations were enriched by the insights and perspectives of senior industry practitioners – both women and men – who participated in this program. The two tables of men also discussed and shared ways they can help facilitate greater gender diversity in the finance profession from sponsoring women at their firms to encouraging them to take advantage of opportunities for visibility.

The young career women at this event expressed their appreciation, noting that the discussions at their tables were thoughtful and engaging and that it was great to be with other highly motivated women and to have HRH Countess of Wessex participate in these types of efforts. The senior industry practitioners also enjoyed connecting with the young women and making introductions for them.

Visit our Diversity & Inclusion page for more information on Winston’s programs and initiatives.