Investigating Gender Equality in the Financial Sector

This research project aims to identify the impact and importance of gender equality in the financial sector, with a case study on HSBC Holding Plc. It explores the understanding of gender equality, its impact on employees, importance in financial sector organizations, challenges faced, and strategies to manage gender equality.

Research Project

Table of Contents
Topic: Investigating gender equality in the financial sector............................................................3
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
TASK 1............................................................................................................................................3
P1) Research question or hypothesis supported by a literature review..................................3
P2) Appropriate research methods and approaches to primary and secondary research.......8
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12

Topic: Investigating gender equality in the financial sector.
INTRODUCTION
Gender equality is a concept which focuses upon different behaviours, aspirations and need
of both men and women which must be valued and favoured equally. It is not related with
making men and women same but considers that the rights, roles and responsibilities along with
opportunities must be provided equally to both (Rothaermel, 2016). With this the organisations
can efficiently manage their workforce so that they can accomplish their goals and objectives.
This motivates their existing employees, improves the image of the company which supports
them to attract new talent and to retain their existing people for a longer period of time. It has
been analysed that the discrimination as well as biaseness had direct influence on the growth of
the company and its productivity due to this the importance of managing workforce with equality
increases. For this research project the organisation which is taken into consideration is HSBC
Holding plc. It is well known banking and financial service company operating in various
countries having headquarters in London. It is one of the largest bank in Europe with almost
2,28,687 professional employed. In this research project the investigation is done on gender
equality in terms of its importance and implications on the financial sector companies such as
HSBC.
TASK 1
P1) Research question or hypothesis supported by a literature review
Research Aim – The aim of the research is to identify the impact and importance of gender
equality in the financial sector. A case study on HSBC Holding Plc.
Research objectives - The objective of undertaking this research includes:
 To determine the understanding of the concept of gender equality within the organisation.
 To identify the impact of gender equality on the employees of the companies.
 To determine the importance of the concept of gender equality in the financial sector
organizations.

 To identify the challenges that are faced by the organisation in financial sector related with
the gender equality.
 To ascertain various strategies with the help of which the companies manage gender
equality.
Research question -
 What does the concept of gender equality means for the organisation?
 What are the impacts of such concept on the employees of HSBC?
 What is the importance of the concept of gender equality in the financial sector
organizations?
 What are the challenges that are faced by the organisation in financial sector related with
the gender equality?
 What are the strategies with the help of which the companies manage gender equality?
Rationale of the research:
The main aim of undertaking research on this topic is to determine the role of gender
equality on the companies of financial sector as in the competitive business environment the
companies need to efficiently manage their workforce. With the help of this research the
organisation can efficiently formulate various strategies for dealing with their human capital and
retaining them for long. For undertaking this research the investigator will be using various
methods for collecting the data such as the data will be gathered with the help of both primary
and secondary sources. Also for the research, both qualitative and quantitative methods research
method will be used by the investigator. For ensuring the completion of the project a Gantt chart
will be used so that they can allocate the time limit to different activities within which they must
be completed.
Literature Review:
What does the concept of gender equality means for the organisation?
According to Julia Gillard, gender equality is considered to be the concept with the help
of both the men and the women at the workplace are treated equal and fair. They have equal
opportunities to grow and have access to each and every resources of the organisation. Along

with this they have the right to participate in the decision making process of the organisation. All
the employees will treat equal as per their roles and responsibilities and capabilities so posses by
them. But the author also considers that it is not an issue for the women but for the men as well
because the capabilities of the women are increasing with their increasing level of education and
competence the dominate position of the men are reducing. In the financial sector it use to be
considered that women cannot take efficient decision but various women on the designation of
finance managers in financial sectors has motivated other and proved the dominance is not for
the growth of the organisation as well as for the economy. The concept of gender equality is the
goal while gender neutrality and gender equity are considered to be the practices and medium
with the help of which such goals can be achieved. For managing the situations of gender
equality, gender parity is considered with which gender balance can be measured by the
organisation. Despite various policies, laws and regulations treatment to each and every woman
are still not likely as to the man at the workplace in context of ownership, employment, training
and decision making. The understanding of the concept of gender equality is crucial for the
organisation as with the help of this they can ensure that they develop a competent and inclusive
workforce that can enable them in taking competitive advantage over their competitors in terms
of better performance as well as better image for treating their employees equal and fair
(Significance of gender parity within financial services, 2018).
What are the impacts of such concept on the employees?
According to Kimberlee Leonardo, the gender equality has various positive impacts on
the workforce as with the help of this they will be motivated to contribute to the organisation but
when they are not treated equal then the organisation various adverse impact which are in terms
of reduced productivity, frequent conflicts arises within the organisation has to be managed by
them. The author also believes that it lead to various mental health issues of the employees as the
discrimination directly affect their morale and their ability to perform their job role. Also it leads
to various legal issues for the organisation as the each and every personal has equal rights in the
eye of the law and if the employees are treated with inequality then the can sue the company.
With such issues the organisational culture gets affected and it reduces overall productivity and
performance of the organisation. Along with this it has adverse impact on the image of the
company due to which they may face the loss of their business. The concept of gender equality
also increases number of conflicts among the employees on various unacceptable issues, this

affect the overall morale of the teams which ultimately has a negative effect on the overall
corporate culture that can be reflected while serving the customers. In addition to this reduction
in the level of motivation and their morale, the overall productivity of the organisation
diminishes. To cope up with this the leaders within the organisation need to take active role so
that they can make their employees understand it on the bottom line of the business (Effect of
gender discrimination, 2019).
What is the importance of the concept of gender equality in the financial sector organizations?
According to Sarah Kruger, the financial services sector has been growing but need to
consider various aspects related to gender parity as with the help of this they can improve the
satisfaction level of their customers. The gender parity within the financial organisations is
important and due to this it must be taken as strategic initiative. With the help of this the
employees can be motivated by ensuring equal pay, equal opportunity to all for their growth by
taking such opportunities (Noble and Smith, 2015). According to the world economic forum, the
concept of gender equality is crucial as it ensure the healthy and motivating workplace
environment which facilitates the companies to retain their employees. For companies operating
in financial sector it is important to consider this factor as with they can keep their trusted
employees for a longer period of time. To ensure this the companies can provide trainings to all
so that equal competence and understanding can be developed along with better mentorship and
supporting advocacies as with the help of this can determine various methods that can facilitate
them in managing the conflicts. The organisations need to identify the benefits of having better
and competent employees with gender diversity as with this they can promote the business with
the innovative ideas that can be suggested by any employee irrespective of their gender. For
promoting this various tools, training and development opportunities need to be provided to the
women so that we can adapt to technological development which is taking place in the industry.
Consideration of the concept of gender equality enables an organisation to contribute to the
economic development as with this they can provide more job opportunities to the female
candidates along with others. With a growing trend and abilities of the women employees the
organisation must focus upon recruiting more females as they are more committed and
determined in comparison to the male employees. Also they put much efforts to get things done
such as in financial sector they can contribute more in satisfying the customers by establishing
better interaction with them (Concept of equality, 2020).

What are the challenges that are faced by the organisation in financial sector related with the
gender equality?
According to Yasmin Bin-Humam, gender equality has been offering various challenges to the
organisation as it has direct impact on the performance of the employees, especially in the
financial sector inclusion of the women is not taken into consideration activity. The opportunities
to the women in financial sector not provided as better as to the men. To cope up with such
challenges various laws has been enacted and policies are formulated so that the challenges can
be overcome easily. The critical challenges that are faced by the organisation in context of
gender equality include inadequate human technical and financial investment. This implies that if
equal opportunities are not offered to both the men and women then it can adversely affect the
long-term and sustained investment in the resources because it affects the productivity and thus
the performance of the organisation. Another challenge includes weak coordination and
monitoring mechanism which has direct impact on the organisational culture. It occurs because
women are not given better opportunity to their opinions and ideas due to which understanding
among the employees did not becomes too strong and this has impact on the coordination among
the employees which is crucial in financial sector organisation. Various social norms becomes
the constraints for the demand of women in the financial sector as it is believed they do not have
the capability as men have for managing various financial decisions and financial products. Also
the mentality of the male employees offers various challenges to the organisation as the family
dynamics influences their mentality which favours that money related decisions can be taken
better by the males in comparison to women. Due to this decision making power within the
organisation remains unequal and this effect the moral of the women employees. With this the
turnover rate of the women within the sector is high as they are not given equal opportunity as
men by way of training and development so that they can have better access to technology which
has direct impact on their capability to perform better. Lesser competence and capability leads to
more pressure on them to complete which compel them to quit the job (5 Challenges for
Women’s Financial Inclusion, 2017).
What are the strategies with the help of which the companies manage gender equality?
According to Arvind Rongala, it is important for the organisation to maintain the dynamic
business environment with the help of efficient workforce. For ensuring this, the concept of
gender equality is an important factor which develops ability of an organisation to take

competitive advantage over others. The organisation need to adopt various strategies for
managing gender equality which can be altering their hiring practices so that diversity can be
increased within the workplace. It can be achieved by making inclusive and diverse workplace
with better job description that can promote gender equality, also various fair compensation
practices must be encouraged within the organisation of the financial sector so that all the
employees can be kept motivated. In the financial sector it is important that leadership are
considered for both male and female employees, with this they can encourage equality for all
irrespective of their gender. More women in the leadership role will ensure higher percentage of
female employees by advancing their career and by providing effective mentorship. The policies
in regards to harassment and workplace offence must be strict and effective. This will improve
the image of the organisation as well as the satisfaction level of the employees with which they
can retain them for the long and can attract better talented women candidates. Apart from this
various interactive activities must be organised within the organisation as this will enable them to
create open-minded atmosphere in which everybody will be given opportunity to express
themselves. This will also improve the communication among all the employees and will enable
them to appreciate the capability and talent of other. Such strategies will enable organisations in
financial sector to improve their overall performance by making employees motivated and
committed with the help of eliminating gender inequality from the workplace (Ways to Promote
Gender Equality at Workplace, 2019).
P2) Appropriate research methods and approaches to primary and secondary research
For undertaking the research various research methods and approaches are utilised. To
facilitate this various such methods and approaches need to be identified. It can efficiently be
done with the help of research onion model that enables to develop better and organised
methodology for undertaking the investigation (Martens and Carvalho, 2016). With the help of
this model different elements related to the research can be planned that support the investigator
in undertaking the research which includes:
Research Philosophy: It refers to the set of principles concerned with the view from which
search is being undertaken. The philosophies which are taken into consideration are positivism
and interpretivism. The positivism philosophy assumes that the knowledge for the research is
independent of the subject matter that makes it scientific while the other is based upon the
perception and understanding of the reality of the investigators which makes it qualitative. For

this research positivism philosophy will be used as with this data gathered will be reliable and
authentic (Kumar and Noble, 2016)
Research Approach: With this appropriate approach must select which can be inductive
or deductive. The inductive approach is based on observations while deductive approach is based
upon the development of the specific hypothesis. For this research deductive approach will be
used as with the help of this in-depth research can be conducted.
Research Strategy: For undertaking research various strategies can be used such as
action research, interviews, surveys, case study, systematic literature review etc. and for this
research questionnaire method will be used as with the help of this response of the employees
can be taken (Sparrow and Makram, 2015).
Choice of methods: The choice of research method includes mono-method, mixed
method and multi-method. For undertaking this research mixed method will be used with the
help of which various methods will be used such as quantitative and qualitative methodology
(Ingram and Glod, 2016).
Time Horizon: This defines the time frame in which the research project has to be
completed which can be longitudinal and cross cultural. The cross cultural data is used by the
investigators when all the observations are to be managed at a single point of time while
longitudinal is used for a particular variable that has been available for a number of years. For
this research cross-sectional horizon will be used as with the help of this time limit will be
allocated to different activities related to the project. To support this, a Gnat chart will be
prepared with the help of which the investigator can allocate the time limit to different activities.

For undertaking any research efficiently it is important for the researcher to gather
resources from various sources. They gather data from primary and secondary sources. The
primary data is the data is been collected by the researcher for the first time and it facilitate them
to ensure authenticity and reliability because is accurate as collected for the purpose of the
research itself (Heagney, 2016). The secondary is the data that has already been collected by
someone for their use but it can be use by other after making modifications as per their uses.
Data collection method: The data collection method that has been used by the researcher
for undertaking this research is both the data as with the help of questionnaire they will be
gathering primary data while with the use of various books, journals and website of the company
they will be gathering secondary data for the company.
Research ethics: While undertaking the research various ethics related principles must be
adopted as with the help of this it can be ensured that the information of the respondent are kept
confidential along with all the data that has been gathered (Strange and Humphrey, 2019). This
also ensures the dignity and integrity while collecting and using the information so that the
authenticity and reliability can be ensured. All such principles and aspects will be taken into
consider while undertaking the research.
Sampling: Sampling is a statistical analysis with the help of which the number of
observations is determined from the entire population which fall under the area of research. For
conducting research generally two types of sampling are used provability sampling and non-
probability sampling (Frow and Storbacka, 2015). The research will be using probability
sampling for this research as with they can randomly select the samples from the population. 30
employees of HSBC will be the samples for this research.
Questionnaire method will be used by the researcher which is considered to be an effective
quantitative method of data collection as with these specific responses can be collected from the
respondents (Taylor, 2018). The analysis of the content is considered to be an effective tool for
analysing the data so gathered with quantitative approach (Daniel and Daniel, 2018). In this
approach various themes are developed on the basis of the questions for efficiently analysing the
information so gathered with the help of quantitative methods in lesser period of time. In

addition to this, frequency table will be prepared along with various graphs so that interpretations
can be made of the responses so gathered from the employees.
CONCLUSION
It is concluded from the above report that most of the employees of the organisation had a
significant understanding of the concept of gender equality. This concept has an adverse impact
if not incorporated as it affects the productivity of the employees, their moral and level of
motivation. To support this, various importance of incorporating gender equality within the
organisation by the financial sector companies are discussed such as highly motivated and
determined employee, reduced turnover rates and conflicts etc. which will enable the company to
achieve their objectives efficiently. To support the research, data is gathered from primary and
secondary sources, the questionnaires is used along with other research techniques and various
approaches that increase reliability and authenticity on the research outcomes.

REFERENCES
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Online
Concept of equality, 2020.[online] Available through:
<https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/mar/08/gender-equality-not-
womens-issue-good-men-too >
Effect of gender discrimination, 2019.[online] Available through:
<https://smallbusiness.chron.com/effects-gender-discrimination-workplace-
2860.html>
Significance of gender parity within financial services, 2018.[online] Available through:<
https://talentorganizationblog.accenture.com/financialservices/the-significance-of-
gender-parity-within-financial-services >

5 Challenges for Women’s Financial Inclusion, 2017. [online] Available through:<
https://www.cgap.org/blog/5-challenges-womens-financial-inclusion>
Ways to Promote Gender Equality at Workplace, 2019.[online] Available through:<
https://www.invensislearning.com/blog/workplace-gender-equality/>