The culture of the investment industry often acts to curtail innovation, CFA Institute said in a new report.
In a report detailing the future of work in the investment industry, the CFA Institute said that innovative thinking has become even more critical with the integration of new technology and sustainability, but that barriers in culture often serve as roadblocks to experimentation.
According to the non-profit, for stronger cultures to develop, leaders must promote more adaptive, agile and inclusive organisations.
“We have structural hurdles in culture, such as a tendency toward conservatism and unpreparedness to experiment, that leave our industry with a pressing problem,” the report found.
The CFA institute urged investment leaders to hit rest, particularly in the context of a new sustainability paradigm which has made cultural adaptation more urgent.
According to the non-profit, innovative thinking starts with a culture that promotes and rewards collaboration and creativity.
“[A culture] that is entrepreneurial and has an ownership attitude, that has a clear focus on the marketplace and anticipates new market needs, that encourages and recognises new ideas, that supports calculated risk taking, that has a bias toward taking action, and that is prepared to consider long time horizons and demonstrate patience,” the CFA Institute said.
Commenting on the report, CFA Societies Australia CEO Lisa Carroll conceded that resetting existing culture might not be an easy task for some organisations. As such, she encouraged employers to focus on employees’ performance, inclusive work practices and values such as trustworthiness.
“Culture is shaped by top-down organisational messages and bottom-up team experiences. The investment industry has an opportunity to build more effective teams through the power of inclusion that values the benefits of diversity,” said Ms Carroll.
“As a guide to investment leaders, organisations should do the practical things well, such as setting out precise work parameters, interpret metrics thoughtfully and fairly, and give feedback on how things are working,” she added.
The Future of Work report also recommends building and maintaining a people-centric cultural identity.
