Launching Stratos, the first-ever global network for female CEOs in financial services
Launching Stratos, the first-ever global network for female CEOs in financial services
In 2022, Bain Partner Nishma Gosrani had a realization. There were clubs for executives in many types of industries, but none specifically for the women she worked with—female CEOs in financial services. She and others at Bain started a gathering that became an academy to help train next generation of women leaders.
A handful of Bain teams happily volunteered to help
Stratos’ founder and Bain partner Nishma Gosrani gathered volunteers to confirm her hunch that the proposed group needed to exist. They conducted research, gave it an identity, kicked it off with a series of events, and then let the members drive.
A handful of Bain teams happily volunteered to help
Stratos’ founder and Bain partner Nishma Gosrani gathered volunteers to confirm her hunch that the proposed group needed to exist. They conducted research, gave it an identity, kicked it off with a series of events, and then let the members drive.
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Bain Marketing
Global Financial Services Marketing helped coordinate the entire initiative, end-to-end. The Brand Studio team created an identity for Stratos and Stratos Academy, Creative Services produced invitations and collateral, and the Events team secured premium locations and hosted the events.
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Executive/Manager Assistant
Executive Assistants and Manager Assistants handled all the administrative and organizational tasks that were critical to ensuring our teams’ success.
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General Consulting
Bain's Financial Services practice embraced the idea and assigned a team of consultants to make it happen. That task force helped create the event content, identified potential Stratos members, and invited them to join.
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Talent Management
The Bain Academy team helped build the content agenda for Stratos Academy sessions. It also now provides Stratos Academy members free access to masterclass sessions, executive programs, and eLearning.
The background
When it occurred to Bain partner Nishma Gosrani that there was no space to gather female CEOs in financial services, she and several volunteers set about conducting market research. They found that less than one-third of CEOs in that industry identified as female, and that number was growing at just 1-2% per year. At that rate, the industry wouldn’t reach gender parity until 2050. When Nishma asked female CEOs, all agreed that they should do something to narrow the gap.
The plan
Bain volunteers conducted market research to validate the idea that there was a need for such a community. They also found that many female CEOs would be glad to participate. A working group from the Bain Global Financial Services Practice formulated a plan. They would bring together c-suite female executives to expand their networks, discover shared ambitions, and champion the next generation of female leaders.
The core team began circulating the idea and found there was wide interest in creating a club. Bain’s branding, creative, events, and other teams gave that community a name—Stratos—and a charter. They drafted a list of potential members, and began reaching out.
The Stratos Charter: Create a community for senior female leaders in financial services to:
- Network with like-minded women to support each other personally and professionally
- Champion the next generation of female leaders in financial services
- Spearhead thought leadership on important topics to change the industry and society
The approach
Amanda Blanc, Group CEO of Aviva, immediately championed Stratos. After her, dozens followed. Stratos members agreed they would spearhead thought leadership on the most pressing concerns facing the industry and society—from diversity and cybersecurity to decarbonization and issues affecting emerging markets—and serve as a collective force for positive change.
Bain invited them all to gather for an inaugural dinner at the House of Lords, Westminster, London, and moderated a series of dialogues that put the members in charge. Where should the group focus its efforts? The consensus: create an apprenticeship program for skill building, experience sharing, and mentorship for emerging women leaders. That became Stratos Academy.
“The Stratos Academy will fulfill a critical role in shaping, supporting, and inspiring the future CEOs of financial services,” says Jennifer Tippin, Chief of People and Transformation at NatWest, who volunteered to champion this initiative. “I am so proud to be a founding member and look forward to meeting the first cohort of financial services’ most dynamic and high-potential senior women leaders.”
The results
Stratos members now meet on a schedule to expand their networks, discover shared ambitions, and champion the next generation of female leaders. And though it’s early days for the Stratos Academy, the first cohort to graduate will join the Stratos Academy Alumni network and continue to benefit from access to their peers and CEOs.
CEOs are now members in EMEA
CEOs are now members in APAC
individuals are part of the Academy
It takes a global village
Teams around the world launched Stratos first in EMEA, then in APAC.
North & Latin America
Europe & Africa
It takes a global village
Teams around the world launched Stratos first in EMEA, then in APAC.
