Page 23 - Shaw Wall of Honor

WOMEN COMPETING IN A MALE DOMINANT INDUSTRY
It is a well-known fact that women make up the majority of jobs in the insurance industry. All you need to do is walk into an insurance office and look around. In fact, according to a 2018 study by consulting company McKinsey, 57% of employees in our industry are women, compared to the national average of 48%. Women dominate our industry, yet there is an issue that continues unaddressed: women in leadership positions. Why is it that we have so many women in the workforce, but so few make it into leadership positions? In fact, only 31% of agency owners are women and 18% in C-Suite positions. We are seeing a growing number of women making financial decisions for their households, and women already make 80% of the healthcare decisions for their family. It is not just about leveling the numbers, but also about the missed opportunities that can be gained from having women play key roles within our industry.
When I started in the industry in 2004, the majority of people I interacted with were men between the ages of 50 and 70. I was fortunate to have been hired by a female independent agency owner who was already making a name for herself in the benefits world, while another female partner was serving as president of Independent Insurance Agents of Washington (IIABW). I had two trailblazers as mentors who were amazing role models. Unlike many of my female colleagues in the industry, I did not experience the same discrimination and misassumptions that they had to overcome
According to a 2018 study by consulting company McKinsey, 57% of employees in our industry are women, compared to the national average of 48%.
WRITTEN BY
LACI K. MOYER
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