, presenting a compelling vision and acting as role models – all drivers of financial performance. 2 http : / / www. mckinsey. com / business - functions / organization / our - insights / why - diversity - matters. https : / / hbr. org / 2012 / 03 / a - study - in - leadership - women - do. bis central bankers ’ speeches research on board membership has also shown that female directors enhance board independence, partly because women bring different perspectives and networks to the table, and partly because they are more likely to ask difficult questions. 3 there is also evidence of a point of critical mass – when there are at least 3 out of 10 women on the board. 4 and it ’ s well established that diversity encourages debate, leading to more creative thinking, and that heterogeneous teams are more successful at solving complex tasks, particularly when people have a shared goal. 5 almost all decisions in finance are taken under uncertainty. even if there is a range of known plausible outcomes, distributions of these outcomes are unknown. this makes it especially important that decision makers are exposed to a range of views, with open debate that includes perspectives that challenge prevailing wisdom. moreover, when there are judgment - based responsibilities – such as assessing appropriate values and conduct – diversity is crucial. the value of diversity permeates organisations. sustained emphasis on diversity in hiring and development programs promotes improved values throughout an institution and acts as a catalyst to sustained behavioural change. in its first report on diversity and inclusion published in november, the bba highlighted progress in the banking sector, driven in part by the davies review and important industry initiatives like the 30 % club. 6 encouragingly, the proportion of ftse 100 female board directors has risen from 12 % in 2007 to 26 % in october 2015. the bba rightly stressed, however, that more needs to be done to raise the number of female senior managers, and, more generally, tackle the reputation of the industry for “ pinstripes and braces ”. that is why jayne - anne gadhia ’ s report, brimming with practical recommendations, is potentially so valuable. to be clear, the report ’ s recommendations are voluntary, they are not regulatory requirements. it is for institutions themselves to determine how best to take forward the findings. in this regard, i would like to commend the leadership of those here today who are committing to implement the steps recommended. the principles, values and recommendations of the report are familiar

mark carney : opening remarks to the “ empowering productivity : harnessing the talents of women in financial services ” report launch opening remarks by mr mark carney, governor of the bank of england and chairman of the financial stability board, at the gadhia review launch, bank of england, london, 22 march 2016. * * * good morning and welcome to the bank of england. it ’ s a pleasure for us to host the launch of the “ empowering productivity : harnessing the talents of women in financial services ” report. a series of transformations are sweeping financial services. first, since the crisis, a comprehensive series of reforms have strengthened the resilience of banks. capital requirements are now seven times the old standards for most banks. for global systemically important banks ( g - sibs ), they are more than ten times higher. for uk banks, liquid asset holdings have tripled. trading assets are down by a third and inter - bank exposures have shrunk by two thirds. second, the aftermath of the crisis exposed serious deficiencies in the conduct of many market participants. now, the tide of ethical drift is being reversed and trust in our institutions is beginning to be rebuilt as a result of the conclusion of the fair and effective markets review, the launch of the banking standards board and the ficc markets standards board, as well as the start of the senior managers regime, and the embedding of new compensation regimes that better align rewards with risks taken. third, the disruptive possibilities of the fintech revolution are beginning to touch the core of the financial sector. now it is time for a similar transformation of the diversity of one of the most important sectors of the uk economy. in many respects, jayne - anne gadhia ’ s report is long overdue. for too long the representation of women in middle and senior tiers of management has lagged that in other leading sectors. for too long, results have fallen short of good intentions. and for too long the financial sector has suffered the economic consequences of this inequality while society has borne the broader costs. greater diversity – in all its forms, cognitive, gender, background, ethnicity, religion – can help transform the financial sector. research has shown that companies with a significant proportion of women in senior management positions perform better in part because of some leadership behaviours that women exhibit more consistently than their male colleagues. 1 in particular, women are found to excel at people development, participative decision making