25 Mar 2021
Investcorp, a leading global provider and manager of alternative investment products, announced today that its India office has partnered with WinPE, a not-for-profit platform working towards enhancing gender diversity within the investing ecosystem. Investcorp is among WinPE’s founding members and has recently signed a Charter for Gender Diversity along with other members, which outlines the fundamental principles that will guide collective action on increasing gender diversity within the private equity and venture capital industry.
Through the partnership, Investcorp aims to support and partner with industry peers in advancing gender diversity and promoting equal opportunity and representation of women within the industry, across levels. Since its launch, WinPE and its member firms have tackled issues like diversity in hiring, pay parity, measurement & metrics, and are supporting growth of women leaders through a suite of solution-oriented programs that include entry and early career resources, a 1:1 mentorship program, leadership development workshops, and an exclusive network of women in investing.
Commenting on the partnership, Investcorp’s Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Office Lead in India and Senior Vice President Legal & Compliance, Anjana Sinha said, “We, at Investcorp, are committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment and believe that D&I forms an integral part of our corporate strategy. Our partnership with WinPE in India enables us to work towards this vision and strengthen our initiatives in the market. We believe that this will yield long-term impact and deliver value for all our stakeholders.”
The business case for gender diversity has been well established through the last decade. It includes quantifiable benefits like enhanced financial performance and reduced costs of attrition and onboarding. It also includes qualitative factors like improved quality of decision making, a stronger corporate culture and increased customer responsiveness. Similar data is now available for PE/VC firms as well. Recent research shows that gender balanced investment teams deliver a 20 percent higher IRR than the median. Research has also correlated gender balance in leadership teams at portfolio companies with approximately 25 percent greater increases in valuations. Further, funds managed by gender balanced teams outperformed male or female dominated teams across emerging market geographies and investment strategies in terms of TVPI multiples with median excess net TVPI being 0.18x on average.
“What sets WinPE apart from other similar initiatives is its dual model of engagement – with fund managers and with women – founded on the belief that change can only be driven by collective action and a holistic approach that engages all stakeholders,” says Nupur Garg, Founder, WinPE. “We are delighted to welcome Investcorp as a partner in our efforts to convert positive intent to tangible results.”
As part of its D&I Strategy, Investcorp has partnered with various organizations across the globe as to further enhance its commitments. These include the GCC chapter of the 30% Club, CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion™ (CEO Action), Level 20, and 100 Women in Finance.
Today, Investcorp has more than 43 nationalities represented among its approximate 460 global employees. Women comprise over 30% of Investcorp’s global workforce and the Firm is actively looking to increase diversity across all levels of the organization. Investcorp has implemented new talent acquisition, retention and engagement policies including mandatory unconscious bias and D&I training for all Investcorp employees; requiring all open positions to shortlist at least 50% candidates from diverse backgrounds; establishing affinity groups and enhancing parental leave policies, among other actions.
