Sector’s goal of gender parity demands action – Sarah Vaughan

Insures and brokers have been urged to do more to equalise gender disparities across the sector.

With International Women’s Day (IWD) 2025 celebrated tomorrow (8 March), Sarah Vaughan, founder and director at insurance focused data and actuarial solutions provider Angelica Solutions, said the industry had to do more to break down barriers and accelerate towards parity.

She says: “This year’s theme for International Women’s Day – Accelerate Action – states rather alarmingly that, at the current rate of progress, it will take until 2158, which is roughly five generations from now, to reach full gender parity.

“It’s vital that, as an industry, we focus on accelerating our efforts to address systemic barriers and biases that women face.”

As part of this project, Vaughan notes that it is vital for the industry to identify what the barriers towards female participation and advancement are, with the knowledge that these are likely rooted in societal norms.

According to data released by specialist employment law firm GQ Littler on 18 December 2023, women make up less than 7% of chief executives in the UK insurance industry, holding only 29 out of 431 available positions.

The research further found that women account for just 16% of the industry’s chief financial officers, with only 63 out of 390 in such positions, while less than 11% of chairpersons are women – 43 out of 407 of these roles.

Vaughan added: “Understanding the root causes of the underrepresentation of women, particularly in certain industries and at senior levels, is crucial.

“For instance, in many STEM subjects, female participation starts to decline as soon as students have elective choices.

“We need to explore why this happens. Is it cultural, educational, or something else? Does this phenomenon occur globally, or can we draw insight from regions where female representation is more balanced?”

A report on female involvement in the technology sector, published by Accenture in September 2020 and entitled Resetting tech culture: Five strategies to keep women in tech, found that the number of women in technology roles had declined over the past 35 years, with around 50% of the women who take on a technology job dropping out by the age of 35.

Diverse backgrounds

Addressing the issue of female advancement and long-term participation in the sector will also require heeding the views of differing perspectives.

Vaughan added: “A key part of addressing these issues is listening to women from diverse backgrounds and age groups. Without their voices, we risk making assumptions about what needs to change and possibly losing years pursuing ineffective solutions.”

As businesses, there is also a competitive advantage in welcoming talented women into the sector that felt unwelcome elsewhere.

Vaughan continued: “As a small business founder, I have sought out professionals who I trust will do the job well – and part of my team includes two very strong female performers in their fields where they no longer fitted into the corporate structure because of the inflexibility of the roles.

“The diversity of career paths available to women today emphasises the importance of moving beyond traditional work arrangements. Offering flexible roles allows women to balance work and family responsibilities – a crucial factor in retaining and supporting women in the workplace.

“Additionally, a simple yet significant step everyone can take is to be mindful of the language we use. We must also be aware of how our words and actions influence younger generations. Comments made in jest can, over time, condition children to perceive certain activities as gender specific.

“International Women’s Day acts as a prompt to be more thoughtful and proactive in the fight for gender equality, fostering an environment where everyone, regardless of gender, can thrive.”