The firm is looking to improve gender equality within the finance sector.

AXA Investment Managers has enrolled to the 30% Club as part of the firm’s wider efforts to improve gender equality in the finance sector.

The 30% club requires that signatories commit to: publicly support increasing numbers of women on boards; support initiatives to build the pipeline of women for executive and non-executive roles; and actively assist in recruiting and spreading the word to key influencers, AXA IM said in a statement.

The firm has alredy signed the Women in Finance charter and publicly pledged to significantly improve female representation within their global senior executive population by 2020. 

Currently one third of AXA IM’s senior executives are female.

It is also a participant in the 30% Investor Group – a group of investors working together to engage on a collaborative basis with companies lagging behind peers on gender diversity and to support the efforts of investee companies in promoting diversity as a strategic issue.

“We are convinced that to achieve sustainable gender balance at all levels, we must work to effect change, especially in the asset management industry that has traditionally been male dominated,” said Andrea Rossi, chief executive of AXA IM. “The 30% club impressed me with the work they are doing in our industry; the visibility and attention that their campaigns have attracted and the dialogue it has stimulated amongst senior business leaders and the government. I also liked that they address building the female talent pipeline broadly – working from schoolroom to boardroom.  I look forward to collaborating with our peers to share best practice, learn from them and drive progress collectively.”

Rossi added: “We must attract more women into our workforce, and support them as they progress in their careers.  I can see first-hand the benefits of having a diverse senior leadership team, as we have strong female representation here at AXA IM2, and I am keen to build further on this and  correct gender imbalance in our workforce.  To that end the AXA IM management board members have a specific performance objective on diversity and inclusion to ensure delivery on our commitments.”

AXA IM is one of many firms looking to improve the numbers of women in the financial services sector, including RBC Wealth Management, that said in a recent WealthBriefing interview that there needs to be more women in the industry.