LV= inside and out: The importance of diversity in good business

In the lead up to International Women’s Day, Workplace Journal spoke with Katherine Carnegie (pictured), chief commercial officer at LV=, about the importance of a strong internal culture when catering for an evolving customer base

According to LV’s ‘Wealth and Wellbeing’ report, 40% of non-retired women surveyed say they will have enough saved to be comfortable in retirement, compared with 53% of men. Women (9%) are also less likely than men to have increased their pension contributions above the standard amount than men (15%).

LV’s ‘Reaching Resilience’ report found a similar imbalance, with 48% of women having received financial advice, compared with 57% of men, while 8% fewer women had income protection than men.

Pair this with the fact that, overall, more than four in 10 households report that they would only be able to survive for up to three months without an income, and a picture starts to emerge. There is a protection and financial resilience gap affecting consumers across the board, which often becomes more acute among female cohorts.

Katherine Carnegie, chief commercial officer at LV=, says that providers have a key role to play in creating the kind of product propositions that bridge this gap, as well as the flexibility to help people of all backgrounds and characteristics to reach financial resilience.

This is not just an external effort. Indeed, Carnegie voices the importance of “nurturing talent from all different backgrounds,” and helping those individuals recognise their own abilities and thrive within a business, as being key to LV’s commercial success.

This includes employee-led networks across the organisation, championing key areas of inclusion identified by staff themselves. The LV= Balance network focuses on supporting staff through the key milestones in life, with a focus on gender diversity – areas such as menopause, parental support, improving women’s financial resilience, and investing in their careers.

In 2016, the firm signed up to the Women in Finance Charter as part of its pledge to promote gender diversity, while Carnegie also speaks to the importance of initiatives such as ‘reverse mentoring’, whereby younger employees can help senior leaders gain fresh perspectives and tackle barriers they might not realise are in place.