Two Big Banks Revert to a ‘Blokes Are Best’ Strategy
Anoticeable gap has opened up between the big four banks in relation to gender diversity. In the wake of the Austrac-induced crises, Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and Westpac found male solutions to their management problems.
Women have been losing their grip on the top jobs at two of the big four banks as boards and chief executives have responded to failures in managing non-financial risks with a “blokes are best” strategy.
This has opened up a noticeable gap between the two Sydney-based banks and their Melbourne-based rivals in relation to the gender diversity of their executive leadership teams. There was a time when the big four banks competed with each other to lead on this issue, which comes under the banner of sustainability.
Not only was the promotion of women to executive leadership teams on an upward trajectory, there was an increasing trend toward women filling line management jobs. But the upheaval caused by the Hayne royal commission and the crackdown by the financial crime agency, AUSTRAC, have prompted the Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Westpac Banking Corp to go backwards in terms of diversity at the top.
ASX200
The latest chief executive women ASX200 senior executive census found that gender diversity in the executive leadership team at CBA dropped to 31 per cent in 2020 from 46 per cent in 2017.
It was even worse at Westpac.
The gender diversity in its executive leadership team fell to 21 per cent in 2020 from 33 per cent in 2017.
Compare that to ANZ Banking Group, which has lifted gender diversity in its top executive team from 33 per cent in 2017 to 50 per cent.
National Australia Bank lifted its percentage of women at the top from 27 per cent to 36 per cent.
In times of crisis the chief executives at both banks Matt Comyn at CBA and Peter King at Westpac were unable to find women to fill the roles left vacant by women.
ANZ chief executive, Shayne Elliott, told a Chief Executive Women panel discussion last week, that some men tend to revert to the old ways of doing things in times of crisis.
“I will say that it is normal human behaviour when confronted with a crisis to revert to what you know,” he told the CEW panel.
“There is a tendency to go back to the past. You know, that safety idea.
“Good companies and good cultures and good leaders actually look for new solutions to those problems rather than relying on things of the past.”
ANZ stands out
ANZ stands out on diversity at the top because not only does it have 50 per cent women in its executive leadership team, it has four women in line management jobs plus a female chief financial officer.
NAB has two women in line management roles, Westpac has none and CBA has one.
Elliott says there are varying degrees of maturity and commitment to gender diversity in corporate Australia.
“I come across very few male executives who don’t care about it who are literally dismissive,” he said
“I think there are lot who struggle and are frustrated about their own inability to make real change.”
He said there were too many male executives wound up with ticking boxes in relation to diversity, such as parental leave when they need to be focused on cultural change.
“If you don’t embrace the cultural aspects of it and being inherently flexible and adaptive to today’s needs, I think you fail.”
If you read the annual reports of the big four banks, there is extensive material on their commitment to gender diversity, and statistics to show they are all doing well in the broadest sense.
But history shows that unless there is an increase in women in executive leadership teams with responsibility and accountability for financial returns, there will not be an increase in female CEOs which is languishing at five per cent of the ASX200.
Westpac
While only three out of the 15 top executives at Westpac are women, the bank says it has 50 per cent women in leadership roles.
This is defined as ‘the proportion of women (permanent and maximum term) in leadership roles across the group’.
“It includes the CEO, group executives, general managers, senior leaders with significant influence on business outcomes, large team people leaders three levels below general manager, and bank and assistant bank managers,” the bank said.
Westpac has several highly talented women working just below the executive leadership team, which gained a new man when Chris de Bruin was named chief executive, consumer. Jo Dawson is Westpac’s acting group treasurer, and prime candidate to become head of institutional banking.
Nell Hutton, who was head of securities at Goldman Sachs, has just been appointed head of financial markets, and Rachel Grimes is deputy chief financial officer.
CBA
At CBA, there are 56.9 per cent women in the workforce, 45 per cent in manager and above roles, and 42 per cent in executive manager and above roles.
For some reason, CBA has left out the percentage of women in its executive leadership team in 2017 and 2018.
This when it was industry leading under former CEO Ian Narev.