10 Years of the Women's Network - Life Magazine July 2024

Celebrating 10 years of the Women's Network

Over the past decade, the Women's Network have played a crucial role in fostering an environment where everyone can thrive, both internally and with our clients. Lucy Hughes and Noreen McGovern have been on the Network's journey since day one and took some time to reflect on how the Network has evolved.

The Women's Network hosted an event called "Fashion on the Ration".

Purpose and founding the Network

“The shape of our industry was very different 10 years ago to how it is now” recalls Lucy, a Partner in London Pensions Actuarial and one of the founding members of the Women’s Network. “There were far fewer women in our industry in senior roles, and we wanted to create opportunities for women to network, discuss gender-related issues and raise awareness”.

LCP felt there was a need to create more inclusive client experiences and events to help address gender disparities in the industry. The Women’s Network quickly gained traction, and although initially born out of an external need, the Network soon evolved to support LCP people also. Today, the purpose of Women’s Network is to create a broad, accessible, and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive.

Highlights and insights

Over the past decade, we’re proud to say that the Women’s Network has gone from strength to strength. Established as the very first of LCP’s DEI Networks, the committee consists of 12 individuals from across 8 departments, ranging from Associates to Partners. The Network is further bolstered by hundreds of advocates and supporters, both firm-wide and externally. But it has been quite a journey to get to this point.

“The first Women’s Network client event was a shopping event at LK Bennett” chuckled Lucy – “we would never run that as an event now!” Regardless, the Network proved to be a success from day one. Noreen McGovern, LCP’s Events Manager said “we blazed a trail at the time! Lots of other firms and even some competitors got in touch with us afterwards wanting to create something similar”.

Since then, the Network has evolved and has hosted over 1,300 guests across a range of events and topics. In particular, the history of underwear and supporting career development, all the way to more hard-hitting topics such as allyship and violence against women. The scale of support from the Network has been vast but has had a lasting impact. “We’ve had some attendees who have been with us since the very beginning” reflects Noreen, “and in some cases they’ve attended all 13 of our events!”

"We're proud that this is an evolution we have been a part of and that this positive momentum is continuing."

Since the Network’s inception, there have been positive strides not just externally, but internally within LCP too. In April 2014, LCP had just over 400 people including one female Senior Partner. Of the c90 Partners at that date, just 16 (c18%) were women, with most being from recent promotions (only 6 women had been Partner for more than 5 years at that point). Today, we are a firm of over 1,200 people. 27% of Partners are women and 6 Senior Partners are women. “We’re proud that this is an evolution we have been a part of, and that this positive momentum is continuing” states Lucy, referring to the recent commitment from LCP’s Board to have at least 40% women and at least 40% men across our strategic leadership roles, within the Partnership and across the firm by 2032.

Throughout the Women’s Network journey, they have always been linked with the Marylebone Project, a women’s shelter in London. Talking about the importance of this relationship, Lucy shares: “through fundraising, clothes drives, and supporting work opportunities with the Marylebone Project, we have made a tangible difference in the lives of many women. LCP’s efforts have also included launching the Women’s Talent Academy, to encourage more women to pursue careers in Investment”.

The purpose of the Women's Network is to create a broad, accessible and inclusive environment where everyone can thrive.

Noreen McGovern (left) and Lucy Hughes (right).

The Women's Network continue to support women's shelter, the Marylebone Project.

Ian Farrand, from the Winchester office, getting involved in International Women's Day

International Women's Day is just one of the many initiatives the Women's Network supports

Favourite memories

Over the years, the Network has hosted a series of successful and memorable events. One of the most popular was an event at the Imperial War Museum called “Fashion on the Ration”, highlighting how economic challenges during the Second World War influenced women’s fashion. The Network also had the privilege of running an event with Baroness Ros Altmann, who shared insights into her career and a tour of the Houses of Parliament.

The success of the Women’s Network spread far and wide in the industry. One of Lucy’s highlights was having “Margaret Mountford (who you may remember from The Apprentice), host a talk about working in a male-dominated industry, and how that had changed over the years, which was really interesting”.

But speaking of The Apprentice, Noreen shares that the Network’s events haven’t all been smooth running… “I remember we ran a workshop making basil oil with clients. Halfway through the event the venue ran out of basil, which cut a long story short, resulted in me running into all the local restaurants asking to buy their basil! It was like a scene from The Apprentice!”.

Internally, some of the most successful events from the Network include our “Audience With…” series where colleagues have shared their different career paths and insights, plus our TED Talk and panel discussions, which have helped facilitate important conversations across a variety of topics.

What's next?

In the short-term, the Women’s Network are hosting a cross-sectional event on 19 September, with Health Analytics and the Multicultural Network titled: “Women’s Health: How Can We Collectively Address Enduring Inequalities?”

Longer-term, as we celebrate the Network’s success from the past decade, both Lucy and Noreen recognise there is still more that can be done. “We still hear stories anecdotally where women are overlooked for roles within our industry, issues with work/life balance, or it’s assumed women are the more junior adviser in the room” reflects Lucy.

Looking to the future, we remain dedicated to fostering an environment where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. The Women’s Network continues to be a dynamic and inclusive forum, helping to drive equality in the wider industry, evolving with the needs of our people, our clients and the community. “We’d love to hear from people about the issues they’d like to see the Network address” says Noreen. “What do people want from the Women’s Network in the future and what does that support look like?”

We are committed to listening, learning, and evolving, ensuring that our Network remains relevant and impactful. So, here's to the next ten years, which we hope are filled with continued growth, support, and success.