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Industry Spotlight > Women in Wealth

20 top companies for women in the finance and insurance industries

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In honor of Women’s History Month, we bring you the top 20 companies in the finance and insurance industries that are perfect for women who value workplace culture, and learning how to develop and grow their careers.

Working Mother magazine and the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE), one of the largest associations for women professionals and business owners in the U.S., partnered to release the 2016 list of the Top Companies for Executive Women. The list includes 60 companies in total, 32 of which are related to health care, the health industry, business and the financial industry, and 20 of those we are featuring here.

So, what makes these companies great places for women to work? According to the methodology posted on the Working Mother website, the companies decide if they want to participate in the application process in which they are asked about career advancement for women within the company, employee engagement and other requirements. This year’s list is based on data collected from 2014.

Here are the top companies in the health insurance and financial industries for women for 2016, in alphabetical order, with the number of employees, the percentage of female employees (which are estimates based on NAFE’s list or the companies’ information), corporate programs for women, and brief information about the company and what it offers.

Aetna

No. of employees: 48,383

Percentage of female employees: 76%

Corporate program for women: Aetna Advocating Real Change group, which works to increase employee engagement, retention and visibility.

The well-known American-managed health care company, Aetna, sells health insurance and other related services.

(Image: Aetna’s Facebook screenshot)

Allstate

No. of employees: 32,095

Percentage of female employees: 56% of their employees; 25% of Allstate agency owners at year-end 2014.

Corporate program for women: IMPACT leadership courses also provides leader development sessions.

Allstate Corporation is the second largest personal lines insurer in the U.S. and the largest publicly held insurer. 

(Image: Allstate’s Facebook screenshot)

AON

No. of employees: 72,000

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: AON has an executive sponsorship program for emerging female and multicultural leaders that gives participants a chance to take part in other projects.

AON is a multinational corporation that provides risk management, insurance and reinsurance brokerage, as well as investment banking, human resource solutions and outsourcing services.

(Image: AON’s Facebook screenshot)

Bank of America

No. of employees: 191,825

Percentage of female employees: More than 50%

Corporate program for women: The Women’s Leadership Program is offered in partnership with two universities and in which participants get promoted at seven times the rate of nonparticipants.

A banking and financial services company, Bank of America is the second largest bank asset holding company in the U.S.

(Image: Bank of America’s Facebook page)

BDO USA, LLP

No. of employees: 4,678

Percentage of female employees: 50%

Corporate program for women: Women’s Initiative Network started in 2008 and it offers grassroots events and other ways to engage with executive leadership. It also has a new webinar series featuring experts who talk about everything from work-life balance to the perspective of male leaders.

A member of BDO International, BDO USA is an accounting and consulting firm that serves national and international clients.

(Image: BDO’s Facebook screenshot)

Citi

No. of employees: 78,322 (in the U.S.)

Percentage of female employees: More than 50%

Corporate program for women: Citi Women Initiative, launched more than 10 years ago, has two development programs, nationwide panel events, and has provided 761 senior managers with formal sponsorship.

Citi is a multinational investment banking and financial services company based in New York City.

(Image: Citi’s LinkedIn page)

Ernst & Young LLP

No. of employees: 35,240

Percentage of female employees: 48%

Corporate program for women: They have multiple initiatives, events and competitions for women. They also presented their Women. Fast Forward research at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, about how companies should spearhead female-friendly policies and promote a supportive work environment.

Better known as EY, this multinational professional services firm is headquartered in London, United Kingdom.

(Image: EY’s Facebook)

First Horizon National

No. of employees: 4,305

Percentage of female employees: 60%

Corporate program for women:  Their program provides six internal resource groups to receive additional training, mentoring, education and networking opportunities. The company also has a three-year diversity plan that encourages hiring, retention and advancement of women and multicultural employees. Also, according to Working Mother, management in each department makes sure that women and men are paid equally by studying their salaries on a regular basis.

First Horizon National Corporation is a bank holding company based in Memphis, Tennessee, and the parent company of First Tennessee Bank, FTN Financial, FTB Advisors, Inc., and other insurance and financial services companies.

 

Grant Thornton LLP

No. of employees: 6,456

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: Senior Manager Academy is a three-year program that exposes employees at that level to coaching, leadership research and other opportunities. The company also offers a training program that prepares employees for maternity or adoption leave.

The American member of firm Grant Thornton International, Grant Thornton LLP, is the fifth largest accounting network in the world when measured by its combined fee income. The American counterpart is the sixth largest U.S. accounting and advisory organization.

(Image: Grant Thornton’s Facebook)

MassMutual Financial Group

No. of employees: 7,018

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: The company decided to take an in-depth look at how they were engaging with their female employees. They’ve launched a diversity dashboard that shows senior leaders how well objectives are being met and last year introduced a three week, fully-paid maternity or adoption leave, available in addition to the company’s short-term disability leave.

With more than 13 million clients worldwide, MassMutual is one of the largest insurance companies in the world, and provides insurance and other financial services.

(Image: MassMutual’s Facebook screenshot)

MetLife

No. of employees: 27,364

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: MetLife has various programs for women, such as the Developing Women’s Career Experience, Global Women’s Initiative, Women’s Business Network, events and other training programs.

The Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, or MetLife, is one of the largest insurance, annuities and benefits providers in the world.

(Image: MetLife’s Facebook screenshot)

Moss Adams

No. of employees: 2,166

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: Forum W is a learning series and sponsorship guide that urges leaders to better support women’s careers. They also have another program called Growth Series that provides high-potential female senior managers with coaches and sponsors.

Recognized as one of the 15 largest public accounting firms in the U.S., Moss Adams provides accounting, tax and other consulting services.

(Image: Moss Adams’ Facebook screenshot)

New York Life Insurance

No. of employees: 8,499

Percentage of female employees: 50%

Corporate program for women: Peer Leadership Circles are events to encourage, mentor and support one another. The results: 34 percent of the members of the first cohort have scored new positions.

The largest mutual life insurance company in the U.S., New York Life offers insurance, annuities and other financial products and services.

(Image: New York Life’s Facebook)

Northern Trust

No. of employees: 8,788

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: The Leadership Development Forum fosters intimate talks on professional subjects between women at the VP level or above. They also have the Women in Leadership Business Resource Council, which aligns members with senior execs for mentoring and networking.

The Northern Trust Corporation is an international financial services company based in Chicago, Illinois, that provides investment management, asset and fund administration, fiduciary and banking services.

(Image: Northern Trust’s website screenshot)

PNC Financial Services Group       

No. of employees: 53,667

Percentage of female employees: 61%

Corporate program for women: Women Connect is their employee resource group that helps retain and develop potential future executives.

PNC Financial Services Group is an American financial services company focused on banking, asset management and other financial services.

(Image: A view of The Tower at PNC Plaza from Market Square. Photo/PNC)

Principal Financial Group

No. of employees: 9,781

Percentage of female employees: 35% are senior leaders

Corporate program for women: The Career Exploration Program helps pair entry- to mid-level employees with more experienced coworkers to draw up professional plans and explore appealing work areas.

Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, the Principal Financial Group is a global financial investment management firm, which also provides other financial services.

(Image: Principal Financial Group website)

Prudential

No. of employees: 19,902

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: Women’s Initiatives to Network, Grow and Share (WINGS) was created more than 10 years ago and consists of different development programs, events and more for female employees across the U.S.

A Fortune Global 500 and a Fortune 500 company, Prudential provides insurance and other financial services. The company was founded in 1875 in Newark, New Jersey, and still has its headquarters there.

(Image: Prudential’s headquarters. Photo/Prudential)

PwC

No. of employees: 37,944

Percentage of female employees: n/a

Corporate program for women: The company has a few different development programs. For example, their Diamond program helps facilitate the development of multicultural senior managers and directs by using sponsorships and intensive coaching. The Breakthrough Leadership course helps female coworkers to partner and negotiate work-life balance, and more.

PricewaterhouseCoopers, or PwC, is a multinational professional services network, the largest of its kind in the world, and one of the Big Four auditors.

(Image: PwC’s Facebook. PwC at the Center for Women in Business: PwC’s U.S. Chairman, Bob Moritz, taking part in an important discussion at Center for Women in Business (CWB) Summit in DC. The topic? The need for organizations to empower women women business leaders by increasing opportunities in leadership roles.)

State Farm

No. of employees: 72,120

Percentage of female employees: 59%

Corporate program for women: Programs such as tuition reimbursements, mentoring, community activities and leadership conferences help employees continue developing their leadership potential and careers.

Founded in 1922, State Farm is a group of insurance and financial services companies based in Bloomington, Illinois.

(Image: State Farm’s Facebook)

Zurich North America

No. of employees: 8,401

Percentage of female employees: 33%

Corporate program for women: The company developed the Zurich Women’s Innovation Network and paired with two external development initiatives, the Leading Women Executives and the Signature Program, to help selected female employees at the director and vice president levels on how to set goals, understand the business and succeed in a corporate environment.

(Image: Zurich Website screenshot)

See also:

Women in insurance and the champions of change

20 women in insurance you need to know

Women: On how to be successful and improve client relationships

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