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Myth Busted! Women are NOT more risk averse than men
June 30, 2010
I’ve been a member of NAFE (the National Association for Female Executives and Entrepreneurs) for about as long as I can remember and I love the articles in their members-only magazine.
In their Spring 2010 issue Betty Spence, PhD, the President of NAFE wrote a very interesting editorial titled, “When Women Hold the Purse Strings“. In the article, she demonstrates how one of the myths about women in business, that we’re more risk-averse than men, “has been busted in the wake of the recession.”
Dr. Spence goes on to explain that studies have now shown women actually don’t avoid risk, we just happen to manage it better than men (how many women already knew that?).
- According to a study by Hedge Fund Research, “Hedge funds managed by women from January 2000 through May 2009 returned 9 percent gains, compared to 5.8 percent for men.”
- Research from the University of Cologne, Germany has shown that women have a more measured investment style which results in strong performance over time. In fact, “even during the 2008 downward spiral, women lost half the money that men lost.”
Why is this? Dr. Spence believes “women simply don’t take the crazy gambles that men take.” The International Journal of Bank Marketing reports that “Women base investment decisions on detailed, comprehensive approaches, while men tend to simplify data and make decisions bases on one overall strategy.”
With this kind of information you’d think women would be quickly moving up the ranks in the area of financial management. Not so, according to Dr. Spence. “Last year women managed only 3 percent of the $1.9 trillion invested in hedge funds and made up only 10 percent of mutual fund managers, says the National Council for Research on Women.”
So if you’re female and your career passion is in finance, look for companies who put a specific emphasis on helping women succeed and pushing them into P&L management. And great place to start looking is at the NAFE annual list of Top 50 Companies for Executive Women.
~ Lisa Quast
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June 30th, 2010 at 7:11 am
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