Although it has been 15 years since Heather-Anne Irwin launched an organization tasked with promoting the entry and advancement of women in capital markets, there has been little progress in the number of women advancing in the industry. However, she refuses to be discouraged.
\u201cI\u2019m an optimist,\u201d says Irwin, 50, an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto\u2019s Rotman School of Management. She is also the founding president of Toronto-based Women in Capital Markets<\/b> and still an active leader in the association. \u201cOne of the most significant things that Women in Capital Markets has done is to help keep this issue relevant. We have more than 850 members, so it\u2019s still obviously very relevant.\u201d
Irwin\u2019s unwavering commitment to the WCM\u2019s cause is a reason she recently received the WCM Visionary Award. The inaugural award was created in honour of the non-profit organization\u2019s 15th anniversary to recognize an individual for her outstanding lifetime achievements and contributions to the association.
Martha Fell, CEO of WCM, says the association\u2019s board of directors saw Irwin as the obvious choice for the award: \u201cHer level of commitment \u2014 particularly as she\u2019s moved slightly outside of the industry \u2014 and her level of involvement has just been tremendous. She\u2019s as passionate today as she was 15 years ago.\u201d
Irwin developed a passion for the WCM\u2019s cause early on in her career, during which she experienced first-hand the challenges associated with being a woman in the financial services industry. Her 17-year stint in capital markets included more than two years as assistant vice president with Toronto-based Citibank Canada; seven years with Toronto-based BMO Nesbitt Burns Inc. (formerly Burns Fry Ltd.), at which she held several senior positions; and six years at Toronto-based TD Securities Inc. as director and vice president of equity capital markets.
Irwin helped establish WCM while she was a vice president at Burns Fry \u2014 and one of just two management-level women in the firm\u2019s investment-banking department. She co-chaired a committee that sought to determine whether there were barriers facing women in the industry, and what actions could be taken to dismantle those barriers. Says Irwin: \u201cThe issue of a lack of women on the professional side of the securities business was becoming more evident.\u201d
This was a business issue for firms, which realized they might be missing out on valuable talent by failing to attract and retain female candidates, Irwin adds: \u201cThe industry needs to have the best and the brightest. [If it doesn\u2019t], then the industry won\u2019t do as well.\u201d
UNWRITTEN RULES <\/b>
One key issue, the committee determined, was that women had few female colleagues to relate to and learn from in their quest to advance in the industry. \u201cIt\u2019s hard when there\u2019s so few of you,\u201d Irwin says. \u201cThere\u2019s no one to look up to, for you to model yourself after. There are a lot of unwritten rules that are a lot harder to figure out.\u201d@page_break@Thus the committee recommended creating an association that would bring together women in the industry. After finding considerable appetite for it, Irwin and several senior-level women at other firms formed a steering committee that established WCM. Irwin chaired the committee and became president when WCM launched in June 1995, holding the position for three years.
WCM originally had a membership base of about 200, which has more than quadrupled since. WCM activities include regular networking and professional-development events, as well as a mentorship program and the Heather L. Main Memorial Scholarship Fund, which helps female graduate students build skills and experience for a career in capital markets.
Irwin continues to co-chair the mentorship program; she also sits on the management committee of the scholarship fund.
Irwin\u2019s efforts to promote the success of women in the industry extend beyond WCM. At Rotman, at which she teaches MBA-level finance courses, Irwin actively encourages students to pursue careers in finance: \u201cI think I can have more influence \u2026 encouraging more women to get into the business [by] being an adjunct professor than I could [with] my role in finance directly. I get to them before decisions are made.\u201d
But with women comprising only 15%-20% of the students in these finance classes, the pool of candidates is already very limited. This is probably one reason the proportion of women in high-level capital markets positions hasn\u2019t improved in recent years.
WCM had commissioned studies between 2000 and 2008 that found that during that period, the proportion of women holding \u201cline positions\u201d \u2014 those involving profits and losses, revenue generation or direct client responsibility \u2014 had remained the same, at 17%. Experience in these positions is considered important for advancement into the highest levels in the industry.
Irwin says that some factors deterring women from entering the industry are its reputation for being male-dominated, highly demanding and offering little work\/life flexibility. But while some of these perceptions are justified, she says, others are false or exaggerated: \u201cFewer women apply because of the profile, the reputation, that the industry has. Certain people are saying, \u2018The lifestyle is not something that we want\u2019.\u201d
Irwin says the industry must make greater efforts to attract and retain women: \u201cI don\u2019t think you can say, \u2018It will happen naturally; just give it time.\u2019 There needs to be more emphasis on it. There are systematic changes that would be more helpful for women.\u201d
For instance, she believes firms should provide more support for individuals who take parental leave by establishing structured programs to reintegrate them into the workplace afterward. In addition, Irwin says, criteria for promotion must be clear, transparent and well disseminated: \u201cThe more these are based on merit and open, objective criteria, the more women will move ahead.\u201d
To retain women, Irwin says, firms should ensure that all promising young recruits have active career mentors.
Outside of teaching and the WCM, Irwin is also executive director at the Canadian Securities Institute Research Foundation<\/b>, which encourages and supports research that will benefit Canadian capital markets.
Irwin has three children, ages 17, 15 and 12. She enjoys running and participating in skiing and other sports with her family.\t IE<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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