We have all noticed a renewed sense of purpose and community in our work and lives over the past couple of months. This has been embedded in the way the Alliance works pre-COVID 19 of course and we’re happy to report that our 2019 Membership Value and Satisfaction Survey showed not only continued very high satisfaction and net promoter scores, but also equally gratifyingly, that half our members are now in the ‘advanced’ stage of their women’s market program. This not only means that they have successfully scaled their women-centered strategies, but also that they are on their way to becoming champions of the female economy by supporting others, advocating for change, and being recognized for their impact. The survey goes beyond member progress, showing the impact of the Alliance: a full two-thirds of members report advancing at least one stage in program development since joining the Alliance.
With our highest response rate (77 percent of members) to-date, we note with pride that 88 percent of our members are willing to contribute their expertise to support other Alliance members – a clear demonstration that our theory of change is working.
Building on this sense of purpose and willingness to contribute, we have moved our monthly ‘Ask the Expert’ session to weekly sessions and in June we heard from AXA, Bank al Etihad and Banregio, how business unusual is settling in. The acceleration of digital is being complemented with the emergence of new customer and employee value propositions and will be among the topics covered in our 2020 Summit. We’ll also be sharing lots of new know-how including proprietary research on the fintech industry’s focus (or lack thereof) on the female economy and the steps needed to change. This includes the integration of sex disaggregated data at all stages in the fintech business lifecycle. The latest report in our Roundtable series “Data Driving Action for Women” in collaboration with Data2x preempts this finding and highlights specific areas to be looked at to make digital financial services more inclusive of women. At the Summit, we’ll also have the latest insights on the future of work and the pandemic’s impact on the diversity and inclusion agenda as well as sharing the newest and much more scalable approaches to delivering non-financial services. Finally we’ll be hearing from some the world’s leading financial services company executives on why they think that focusing on the female economy is the new normal.
One such leader is Ulrike Decoene, Head of Communication, Brand and Corporate Responsibility for AXA Group, who this month shares her perspective on the opportunities that the COVID 19 crisis has unearthed on healthcare provision such as the rise of telemedicine, and of the efforts AXA is making with partners to ensure that pandemic risk is more adequately covered going forward.
This month we extend a very warm welcome to, Banca Comercială Română (BCR), member of Erste Group, to the Alliance. We interviewed Dana Dima Demetrian, Executive Vice-President Retail & Private Banking, to learn about the bank’s focus on women in a country with the lowest level of financial inclusion in the European Union.
And last, but by no means least, our network news roundup shares the latest news from our members and stakeholders as they adapt to the new normal.
Thank you all.
In community,
