Beware of putting today’s FX talent into yesterday’s work culture

Millennials (1981-1996) are the next generation of emerging FX talent, followed closely by Gen Z (1997-2012) who are already entrenched in the workforce. Having grown up in a predominately digitally-driven world, these young professionals are shaped by a different history than previous generations and have different expectations of the role of work in their lives.  They are also more racially and ethnically diverse than any generation that has come before them, which challenges the homogeneity of corporate culture and the FX industry as we know it today – particularly around workplace practices, culture and leadership styles.

In a recent roundtable forum chaired by ACI UK, a group of Millennial and Gen Z front-office professionals shared their experiences of the FX industry. The insightful and thought-provoking discussion ranged from workplace culture and challenges, expectations from their leaders and organisations as well as their hopes and predictions for the FX industry of the future. Ten individuals participated, the majority of whom were female millennials from diverse ethnic groups currently working in top tier banks. Males, buyside institutions and Gen Z groups were also represented.

The small group size means their views are not completely representative of the industry as a whole. However, the unignorable top line takeaway from the discussion is one that every FX institution should pay heed to – and this is that you can’t put today’s talent into yesterday’s work culture.  The FX industry must continue to evolve if it is to develop and preserve a talent pipeline for years to come in the largest financial market in the world.

Overall, the participants felt ‘lucky’ to be part of their current teams, which they said were generally supportive and provided good opportunities for formal and informal learning.  However, there was consensus on multiple areas where they felt improvements are needed; diversity management, decision-making structures, cultural traditions, and workplace flexibility.

Diversity as a Meaningful Practice

Participants collectively felt that institutions need to rethink how they ‘do’ diversity. While they acknowledged that diversity is now more widely acknowledged as a prerequisite across the industry, efforts often appear as superficial ‘tick box’ initiatives that don’t translate into meaningful change on the ‘shop floor’. This dynamic has meant that in their early careers many of the participants felt pressured to work harder than many of their peers to prove their abilities – primarily to demonstrate that they were more than simply a ‘diversity hire’. They would therefore welcome more transparent merit-based recruitment and progression processes to indicate how individuals are placed in roles suited to their skills rather than based on a need to meet diversity quotas.

As part of this theme, they also highlighted a reluctance to express uncertainty or lack of knowledge, fearing it would undermine their credibility and give further weight to the ‘diversity hire’ label.  They emphasised the importance of having an environment where it is acceptable to admit when they don’t know something – and not just for junior employees.  Generally speaking, they observed that it’s challenging (and potentially career damaging) for anyone in their organisations, regardless of seniority, to admit not knowing something for fear of being judged – all of which results in ineffective communication, reduced collaboration and general ineffectiveness and time-wasting!

Lack of Diversity in Leadership

Although workforce diversity has improved in terms of better female and ethnic group representation, this has not extended to leadership teams. They noted that most senior leadership teams and management structures (and by default conference discussion panels) are still predominantly middle-aged white men. This limits the diversity of thought in top level decision-making and a willingness to deviate from the status quo.  They discussed the benefits of having more diversity in corporate leadership teams in order to better reflect the diversity of the workforce, allow for a broader range of perspectives to be included in business decisions and inevitably create more genuinely diverse organisations and an industry as a whole.

Outdated Cultural Practices

Participants reported that many longstanding cultural practices within organisations continue to favour the older generations, often at the expense of younger employees or those with different lifestyles or career expectations. Two key areas of concern were highlighted:

Presenteeism and Lack of Flexibility

Many participants felt that the expectation to be physically present in the office every day is outdated, particularly as roles continue to change as work becomes (and will continue to become) more electronified; the changing emphasis on eSales vs voice sales and the increased need for coding skills were just some examples cited.

Despite the successful implementation of flexible working arrangements during COVID, most of these have since been revoked and the general feeling was that these decisions were based on a desire to take back control rather than a genuine business need – especially as some work can actually be better suited in a quiet working environment than a busy trading floor.  A specific example that seemed to ‘lack common sense’ was when employees were expected to be at their desks, even during periods of low activity such as a US holiday, simply because “that’s the way things are done.”

This culture of presenteeism is also especially concerning for females. Although the female participants in this group all love their jobs and would like to continue working in the industry, they feel that such inflexibility may impact their future in the sector and potentially force them to leave if they were to have children, since it would be an incredibly difficult lifestyle to manage – especially in roles that involve client entertaining.

Networking and Entertaining

Client entertainment and networking activities are still heavily centred around evening events and alcohol consumption. While some clients are open to alternatives such as breakfasts or lunches, evenings are still predominately the preference for the older cohorts. However, because these younger generations really value their free time, they all expressed a desire for more varied socialising options that do not always encroach on personal time.  The over-reliance on alcohol for networking and entertaining was also discussed and although those that didn’t drink alcohol said they did not necessarily feel excluded, the lack of alternative social events was noted as a missed opportunity for more inclusive team bonding.  Individual and team sports events, quiz events, cooking events were all suggested as alternatives to pub nights.

Conclusion

This roundtable discussion highlighted how the FX industry continues to attract smart, savvy, dynamic Millennial and Gen Z individuals who have a genuine desire to succeed and make a difference.  However, if the industry wants to optimise the diversity, energy and talent of these bright young individuals, this discussion has underscored the need for a re-evaluation of many workplace traditions. The need to support and role-model greater flexibility and inclusivity is critical as well as conscious effort to address many of the existing presenteeism and networking norms. It also suggests that a more strategic and thoughtful approach to diversity beyond surface level optics is needed, both in terms of recruitment and leadership structures.

Addressing these issues will be key for FX organisations that are genuinely seeking to foster more equitable, supportive, and generationally-aware working dynamics. Failure to do so is likely to result in a migration of the Millennial and Gen Z pool talent to other industries that can better meet their desire for more flexible working arrangements and diverse cultural practices.

The bottom line is that long-term success relies on developing and maintaining a talent pipeline that extends far into the future. And that starts by realising that you can’t just put today’s talent into yesterday’s jobs.

For more information about the report please contact:

Martina.doherty@aci-uk.com or jasmin.fellnerbozdag@aci-uk.com