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“ THE GOAL FOR RISE UP WAS TO WORK CLOSELY WITH EACH COHORT TO BUILD A VERY DEEP , PERSONAL LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME ”
Tracey Davies , President of Money 20 / 20 and Rise Up founder
welcome , with many large companies such as Accenture and PayPal publishing measurable inclusivity targets , along with new laws on female board representation and gender pay data visibility being implemented . “ The statistics are improving , but they ’ re still not great ,” she said . “ For example , women in the US make an average of 19 % less than their male counterparts , which has been the basis for our Breaking the 19 Challenge .” Breaking the 19 is a new initiative that , over 19 days from 1 October this year , encouraged action across the industry to support the inclusion and empowerment of women in the workforce and bring about the end of gender-based pay gaps .
“ We have a big stage and a worldrecognised platform with which we can take action , and so it ’ s our duty to work with the industry and to encourage both men and women to work together to call out inequality , to make a stand and to solve the problem together ,” she stated . “ If we have inclusion , businesses operate better , they reflect society more broadly and they are more successful . There ’ s a real prize for everyone if we can take action .”
POSITIVE CHANGE
Gauging the impact of that action , and the direction of the industry beyond 2020 , is a point often put to Davies . Deviating slightly from that standard question , we asked about her expectations for fintech – and for Money20 / 02 – for the next decade or more . “ Every year , you wonder what will happen ,” she said . “ And then , suddenly , you get an Uber Money or Calibra keynote . It ’ s just always evolving and always ongoing . The way that technology is devel-
DECEMBER 2019