The Most Powerful Women in Banking

Candi Wolff of Citigroup and Anita Eoloff of Wells Fargo are two of the most powerful banking lobbyists in the nation’s capital, but they don’t think the transformation of their once male-dominated field is done, nor do they think everything about the past should be abandoned.

When Laura Sikora interviewed at BMO Financial 20 years ago, she was struck by the fact that several people asked her what she wanted to do next. She got the message that her aspirations were important to the company, and now she has spearheaded a new micromentoring program to give others help with realizing their career goals. Employees who have specific skills they want to improve can get matched up with a colleague for some customized coaching sessions.

Centric Financial is one of the few publicly traded banking companies with women in the chief executive and chief financial officer roles. Centric is also distinctive for its enviable growth and performance. Those two facts are not purely coincidental, according to President and CEO Patricia Husic.

Women at JPMorgan Chase don't just settle for the formal check-the-box networking groups. Their grassroots efforts have launched multiple programs to raise the profile of women at the company and help them advance, including a new "30-5-1" campaign inspired by Marianne Lake. Other examples include the globe-trotting Women on the Move initiative and the ReEntry program to help ex-bankers return to the workforce after extended time off.

There's a lot to be done now that KeyCorp has closed on its deal for First Niagara, and it's telling who has been put in charge of the many different facets of the integration. While some might have just a few token women on their leadership team, Key can boast about the diversity of its bench strength.