Advisory recruitment efforts aim to attract women advisors

December 6, 2018 | Last updated on December 6, 2018
2 min read
Senior Couple Talking To Financial Advisor At Home
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Financial services has a pipeline problem. A 2014 Advocis report on small and medium-sized firms finds that 71% of respondents (IIROC- and MFDA-licensed and insurance-based advisors) are over age 45. Attracting more women to financial services could be part of the solution.

A recent review of recruitment efforts found that men are more likely to join the firm directly after university, while women tend to become advisors after a career in another field, says RBC Wealth Management in a release.

The bank aims to recruit more women advisors with a series of videos, the first two of which feature advisors talking about their offbeat career paths to advisory roles. The campaign aims to dispel myths about the industry and focuses on the flexibility and autonomy the bank offers advisors, says the release.

“Many people think this job is highly technical, highly analytical, but I think the most important thing you can bring to the table is caring—caring about your clients and wanting to build a relationship with them because that’s really the power of what we’re doing,” says Michelle Vickers, vice-president and portfolio manager at RBC Dominion Securities, in the release.

When Advisor’s Edge spoke to industry experts for our feature on women in advisory services, they highlighted a different misperception about advisory careers: students tend to think the roles are sales-focused, not professional positions.

Read: Stop losing talented advisors

Banks might inadvertently add to that misperception when they classify advisory roles as sales-based on their websites, as RBC does on its jobs page. While that classification might simply reflect a transactions-based regulatory regime, it likely affects the perceptions of young job hunters.

The bank might be on to something, however, with its focus on flexibility and autonomy, since students might not realize advisors are entrepreneurs. In one of RBC’s new videos, Elyse Clements, a portfolio manager and former aerospace engineer, says she was disappointed in her previous career because there was no direct relationship between how hard she worked and how well she did—likely a common sentiment among the entrepreneurial set.

To address industry attraction to advisory services, banks typically offer internships or co-ops in wealth management. For example, National Bank offers a mentorship program for female students, which includes networking opportunities and attending meetings with investment professionals.

RBC says in its release that four additional recruitment videos will be released in December.