HSBC has committed to ensuring half of the management staff it recruits at its new Birmingham headquarters are women.

With HSBC UK moving to Arena Central, on Broad Street, the banking giant has committed to a 50/50 recruitment target to increase the number of women moving into senior management roles.

Female employees account for more than half of HSBC UK’s overall workforce but are significantly underrepresented at a senior management level, reflecting a wider trend across the financial services sector.

HSBC Bank chief executive Antonio Simoes said the move to Birmingham was an ideal opportunity to achieve gender parity.

More than 1,000 head office roles will move from London to Birmingham before 2019, potentially creating vacancies where existing employees choose not to relocate.

He said: “It’s completely unacceptable that in 2015, women are still significantly under represented at a senior management level across the financial services industry. We are committed to putting that right at HSBC UK.”

Two Arena Central with Alpha Tower peering behind and Municipal Bank on the right
HSBC UK is moving to Arena Central

Only 21 per cent of senior manager roles at FTSE 100 banks are held by women and 22 per cent across all FTSE 100 companies, according to the BBA.

The paucity of women at the top is even worse in the West Midlands. When the Post last researched the number of female executives at listed companies, it was fewer than 10 per cent.

At HSBC UK, only 29 per cent of senior manager roles are currently held by women.

Mr Simoes added: “We have the opportunity to build a different type of bank through the creation of HSBC UK, which is more responsive to customer needs and fully reflects the diversity of society.

“Our aspiration is to achieve gender parity at all levels of the bank and to create a true meritocracy where everyone has the opportunity to develop their career.”

HSBC UK is introducing a number of initiatives to recruit more female senior managers and create a more diverse and inclusive organisation.

Marking the start of work on HSBC's new home at 2 Arena Central (from left) Andrew Sutherland and Jonathan Wallis of Miller Developments and Antonio Simoes and Peter Davies from HSBC
Marking the start of work on HSBC's new home at 2 Arena Central (from left) Andrew Sutherland and Jonathan Wallis of Miller Developments and Antonio Simoes and Peter Davies from HSBC

It includes a Professional Returners programme, to support candidates for senior manager roles who have been out of the workplace to care for children or other dependents.

There will also be a new leadership development programme – ASPIRE – to support talented female, black, Asian and minority ethnic senior managers at HSBC to become senior leaders.

HSBC has also committed to supporting the internal progression of female employees through targeted coaching, mentoring and sponsorship, and succession planning.

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