Recruiter says women part of the reason for low numbers of female advisers

Women are partly to blame for the shortage of female financial advisers, a top recruiter said yesterday. More often than men, women self-select out of senior leadership roles because they seek a work-life balance that they don't believe they can get if they take or strive for certain promotions, Cecile Munoz, founder U.S. Executive Search & Consulting, said at the InvestmentNews/Investment Program Association Women's Forum in New York. "Many women don't even ask whether their employer would allow them to do what they are seeking," she said, adding that women aren't as vocal as men about how they will take time off, when they will telecommute and how they will create a more meaningful balance. Women in the financial services field typically find, in their 30s and 40s, that they have to make a decision about their lives; essentially, whether they will choose to have children. "They don't believe they will be able to deliver on what will be asked of them if they choose to have children," Ms. Munoz said. "They are already thinking they won't do a great job because they will be pulled at both ends." About 8% of client-facing advisers are women, according to the most recent Cerulli Associates Inc. data. Women also are less likely than men to promote themselves for advanced positions because they think their work is going to speak for them, she said. The financial services industry also uses a male-centric vocabulary that is unappealing to women. Young women aren't even considering entering the financial services industry because they think Wall Street and the industry as a whole is aggressive and only about profit, Ms. Munoz said. "Messaging is one of the key problems we need to solve," she said. Mentoring is a proven way to encourage women to advance in the financial services industry, she said.