• Promote role models. If we practice greater cultural awareness across the wealth management profession and make a genuine effort to hire young women as associates and promote them faster, we can produce more role models for the next generation of girls.
As a female registered investment advisor and practice owner, I believe our industry does so much to enhance the financial lives of individuals, families and communities. I know women have what it takes to play an important role in what we do if more of us are hired, and promoted, within wealth management firms. The reasons behind the lack of female representation in our profession are varied, but if all of us in positions of leadership and influence make an effort to recruit, mentor and promote women at our firms, we can make a meaningful impact not only on behalf of gender equality and inclusion but also in the lives of our clients.
Meghan Railey, CFP, is co-founder and CFO of Optas Capital. A staunch advocate for female advancement, Railey is a member of both the Board of Directors and Finance Committee at ICA Cristo Rey Academy, an all-girls college preparatory work-study high school for underserved young women in San Francisco. Through her volunteer work with the Peninsula College Fund, she also serves as a mentor to a young woman who is the first member of her family to attend college.