April 2018: Better Late Than Never
Victor discusses the importance of WatersTechnology's inaugural Women in Technology and Data Awards.

One just has to scour the financial services industry for women-centric awards programs and you’ll find more than you can shake a stick at. But the important thing is that we’re finally here and we’re doing something just a little bit different: Whereas other programs tend to concentrate on the capital markets generally, the Women in Technology and Data Awards focus on the outstanding contributions women have made in the technology and data realms over the years. It’s taken us 25 years to get here—yes, Waters celebrates its 25th year in existence in September this year—but judging by the interest in these awards and the outstanding list of this year’s winners, it’s clear that they were long overdue. As they say, better late than never.
While I’d like to think that our industry is progressive, open-minded and fair, the truth is that from a gender-equality perspective, it isn’t. Not yet anyway. Yes, it has come a long way in a relatively short space of time, and there are large numbers of women in executive positions across our industry—this month’s cover story on Bea Martin, COO of UBS Investment Bank in London, is a case in point—but there is still quite some way to go, as illustrated by the women in technology feature, which will run on Thursday.
In years to come, people looking back at how our industry used to operate might well ask the question: How did it continue as it did for so long? The thought that in this day and age salaries, bonuses, promotions and recognition might be determined by one’s gender is unthinkable, and yet it continues.
To be clear, the launch of the “women’s awards” had nothing to do with the Harvey Weinstein revelations at the back end of last year, and the Time’s Up movement in early January this year, closely followed by the Carrie Gracie incident where the BBC’s China editor resigned due to an equal pay dispute with the Corporation. On the contrary, we had been mulling the launch for quite some time and the three issues cited above were more coincidences than catalysts.
I’m happy to say that one way or another we took that leap and we’re now the proud owners of an awards program that aims to right some of the injustices of the past by recognizing our industry’s outstanding women and the contributions they have made and are continuing to make to their respective organizations. After this year’s unqualified success, I have little doubt that they will become an annual highlight, and I’m equally certain that this year’s winners will be as proud as I am that their involvement in the inaugural awards will be reflected on their CVs.
Only users who have a paid subscription or are part of a corporate subscription are able to print or copy content.
To access these options, along with all other subscription benefits, please contact info@waterstechnology.com or view our subscription options here: https://subscriptions.waterstechnology.com/subscribe
You are currently unable to print this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
You are currently unable to copy this content. Please contact info@waterstechnology.com to find out more.
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (point 2.4), printing is limited to a single copy.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
Copyright Infopro Digital Limited. All rights reserved.
You may share this content using our article tools. As outlined in our terms and conditions, https://www.infopro-digital.com/terms-and-conditions/subscriptions/ (clause 2.4), an Authorised User may only make one copy of the materials for their own personal use. You must also comply with the restrictions in clause 2.5.
If you would like to purchase additional rights please email info@waterstechnology.com
More on Awards & Rankings
Waters Rankings 2025: Best distributed-ledger technology provider—DTCC
Name of product or service: DTCC ComposerX suite of products
Sell-Side Technology Awards 2025 winner’s interview—FIS
FIS’s Post Trade Processing platform brings success in the Sell-Side Technology Awards
Waters Rankings 2025 winner’s interview—S&P Global Market Intelligence
S&P Global Market Intelligence's Justine Iverson discusses the firm's wins in the 2025 Waters Rankings, alongside the versatility its S&P Capital IQ Pro offering platform.
Waters Rankings 2025: Best outsourcing service provider—SmartStream Technologies
Name of product or service: SmartStream’s managed services
Waters Rankings 2025: Best buy-side order management system (OMS) provider—Bloomberg
Name of product or service: Bloomberg AIM
Waters Rankings 2025: Best artificial intelligence (AI) technology provider—S&P Global Market Intelligence
Name of product or service: S&P Capital IQ Solutions AI-Powered features
Waters Rankings 2025: Best market data provider—S&P Global Market Intelligence
Name of product or service: S&P Capital IQ Pro
Waters Rankings 2025: Best managed data service provider—SmartStream Technologies
Name of product or service: Reference Data Services