It’s that time of year again! Next month, Treasury Today Group launches our annual 2026 Global Equity Study. The Survey is an essential pillar to our Women in Treasury & Finance initiative that dates from 2013 and was established to celebrate and support women in finance by building a community of shared experiences to encourage female professional development.
Over the years, that vision has evolved to include a dedicated awards programme and dynamic workshops and roundtables across the world. Accolades include our programme featuring in the Global Diversity List’s Top Ten Women’s Networks in 2021 and winning the Women of the Future Corporate Award in 2024. In 2018 we were invited to the NYSE to unveil the Fearless Girl statue on Wall Street and in 2019 we hosted roundtables at Microsoft’s Redmond campus with former Treasurer George Zinn and current CFO Amy Hood.
Our annual survey not only provides a timely window into progress on diversity, equity and inclusion. We also use your responses to inform the resources and tools we offer our community, acting on what you say to provide structured support and shape our dialogue.
“Treasury Today Group was founded by my mother, Angela Berry, and I often joke that I came out of the womb a feminist,” says Sophie Jackson, CEO of Treasury Today Group who traces a direct line to her passion for the programme and its ongoing development to watching her single mother overcome multiple challenges (which included leaving school at 15) to build a thriving business. “As a company with our leadership, origin story, and deep and long-lasting relationships with female corporates, launching this platform was an obvious evolution.”
The study draws on diverse respondents from around the globe to gain insights on the most topical DEI questions for corporates in finance today. Most of our respondents are committed to DEI and because they have worked in corporate treasury and finance for a significant amount of time, bring valuable authority and experience to their responses and written testimonies which add a new depth of colour to the dialogue, with some eye-opening results.
New questions in this year’s survey include asking respondents to detail their company’s support for mental health and wellbeing, and if they feel comfortable talking about mental health. This year we also ask questions on the extent to which employers support male mental health and parental leave – essential in enabling men to share the burden at home and in persuading men they stand to benefit from equity. We also ask questions around the role of allyship, and how supporting others helps nurture an inclusive environment.
“We want to welcome male respondents and understand their own experiences of supporting equity, as well as their own struggles in the workplace. Parental leave, allyship and mental wellbeing are just some of the areas in which we were particularly keen to explore men’s experiences and challenges. For me, caring about supporting men, goes in tandem with advancing women,” says Jackson.
This year’s survey also digs into recurrent themes that we know you care passionately about – top of that list is flexible working. We ask if your employer only offers it to parents or all staff, and the extent to which it’s taken up. Is flexible working treated as normal and respected, or are those who take up flexible working arrangements seen in a negative light? Pay parity is another hot topic that has frustrated respondents every year. Are the women in your organisation paid at the same level as their male counterparts at an equal level of seniority?
We also ask questions on the role of mentorship, coaching and sponsorship in career progression in an opportunity for you to tell us how available it is in your organisation, and the extent to which it has supported your career development. This year’s survey is an opportunity to gather opinions on career aspirations in treasury and finance too. We ask if you are aiming for Group Treasurer or CFO, for example. Our survey explores employer support for neurodivergence and language differences, as well as women going through the menopause. We also want your responses to questions about how age impacts inclusion. Have you missed out on promotions, or other opportunities, because of your age?
“There have been so many highlights from our study and global Women in Treasury & Finance platform. At a small level every time I see a person achieve something as a result of being part of the community I feel the most immense validation for the work that we do,” reflects Jackson who keeps notes of the women who have successfully navigated pay rises, promotions or new roles as a result of the dialogue and support they receive from the platform.
“Oftentimes equity feels a far-off hope, but when I look at our global community of corporate leaders there has never been more support for the platform; more awareness of the struggles that many of us face or desire for collaboration to achieve change. This year’s theme for the UN’s International Women’s Day was Rights, Justice, Action. For ALL women and girls. It’s International Women’s Day every day at the Treasury Today Group and we will use the data from this imperative study to remove structural barriers for women in our industry and to offer support and compassion for all.”
Register your interest now to be informed when the study opens:
