In March 2013 at an Investment Company Institute conference in Palm Desert, Calif., seven women from around the country invited female friends and colleagues to meet for lunch and decided to form a networking group called Women in Asset Management.
The group now consists of 30 women. They come from places like ALPS, Hennessy Funds, Heartland Funds, BNY Mellon, Huntington, Cohen and other service providers, audit firms, law firms and mutual fund companies.
In an industry still dominated by men, the goal of this networking group is to expand relationships with other women in leadership roles in the mutual fund industry.
"Across the asset management industry, the number of women in leadership positions is significantly less than men," Lisa Mougin, director of sales and client relationship management at ALPS and one of the founding group members, tells me during a phone call. "Although I don't think it's any more misrepresented than the broad financial industry and in corporate America," she adds.
When it comes to representation in industry publications, women's voices are often hard to find. "There are very few women spotlighted in industry publications ... we definitely feel outnumbered at times, but when you look and pay attention there are lots of great women out there in the industry."
Where are the women in asset management? Money Management Executive is making an initiative to find and highlight them. Our call for entries is now open - help us find female asset managers making substantial impacts on their organizations and the fund industry. Winners of our inaugural Women in Asset Management Awards will be selected by Money Management Executive's editorial advisory panel and announced on May 19. In-depth profiles of these asset management game changers will appear in the print issue and on www.mmexecutive.com.
The submission deadline is April 25, so don't miss your chance to nominate women making strides in the industry. To nominate, go to svy.mk/1hwXcDK
Talk to us: feedback-mme@sourcemedia.com
