Pictured L-R, F-B: Tony Peacham, Head of Data Management Amundi Women's Network Ireland (AWNI); Programme Director & Lecturer in Finance at NCI, Dr Gaia Barone; NCI President Gina Quin; NCI Vice President for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Professor Jimmy Hill; Aoife Small, HR Operations Team Leader and founding member of AWNI; NCI EDI Manager, Deirdre McCarthy; David Harte, CEO of Amundi and sponsor of AWNI; and Carol Grogan, PMO, Executive Assistant to CEO and founding member of AWNI. #BreakTheBias #IWD2022

On International Women's Day 2022, Amundi, Europe’s largest asset manager*, announces that Amundi Ireland has entered into a new partnership with National College of Ireland, to provide a scholarship programme to women wishing to pursue a career in Financial Services.

The scholarship will provide financial support through the student's 3-year studies, as well as a paid internship to gain direct experience working in one of Ireland’s biggest asset managers.  

David Harte, CEO, Amundi Ireland said: “I am excited to announce this partnership with National College of Ireland, and I very much look forward to supporting more women into financial services. The Amundi Women’s Network Ireland has made significant progress since launching in 2020 and we look forward to continuing this work in bridging the unequal balance between females and males within our industry.”

Lynne Massey, Head of Risk Expertise, Amundi Ireland said: “As one of the founding members of the Amundi Women’s Network Ireland, I am proud and excited to partner with NCI on supporting women on the cusp of their journey into finance. I look forward to offering support and guidance to the young women of NCI. In the Amundi Women’s Network Ireland, we believe it is important for women to be represented across all areas of the business and we are committed to creating a culture where everyone has the ability of reaching their full potential in the industry.”

The core mission of National College of Ireland is ‘to change lives through education’. The College has a diverse student body, from undergraduate to post-doctoral level, and a reputation for producing graduates of distinction. Based in the IFSC, NCI is embedded in the community of Dublin’s North-East Inner City, and many students are the first in their families to pursue higher education. The College holds an Athena Swan Bronze award for gender equality.

Gina Quin, President, National College of Ireland said: “This generous and targeted support from Amundi will impact not just the successful scholar, but every woman studying finance at NCI, as it presents an exciting opportunity that will generate aspiration and ambition, and reward hard work and commitment.”

Professor Jimmy Hill, Vice President of NCI with responsibility for Equality, Diversity & Inclusion said: “We actively pursue gender equity at NCI and are delighted to partner with Amundi to address the gender imbalance in Financial Services. It is particularly appropriate to be able to announce this partnership on International Women’s Day, in a year where we are urged to ‘break the bias’.”

Amundi Ireland has also pledged to provide a mentorship programme, which will be open to a wider group of female students, wishing to gain valuable knowledge and experience from Amundi Ireland’s pool of over 350 financial services professionals. 

This partnership further builds on Amundi Ireland’s existing FIT (Future in Information Technology) and IFS (International Financial Services) apprenticeship programmes that are already in progress through the National College of Ireland.
 

* Source: IPE “Top 500 Asset Managers” published in June 2021, based on assets under management as at 31/12/2020