At LGT Capital Partners, we value the diversity of our staff members. We believe that diverse organizations attract and retain higher quality talent, while also adds to improving decision-making that ultimately benefits our investors. We are also convinced that diversity is an integral component of being a long-term oriented, sustainable investor, that offers equal opportunities to individuals from underrepresented backgrounds.
Although we are in the early stages of a long-term diversity, equity and inclusion journey, some highlights of what we have achieved so far include:
Over the last few years, a top priority for LGT Capital Partners has been to recruit and retain a more diverse workforce. The first step in achieving this has been to broaden the application pool to attract and recruit diverse talent. One example of this is a partnership with the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Twice a year, we host events on campus and at our office for female students to introduce them to our firm and asset management as an industry. We are continuing to establish other partnerships and initiatives in other LGT Capital Partners offices globally.
We also have set clear expectations with the recruitment agents we work with to present a broader pool of talent, while working with a wide range of external organizations to expand the group of applicants. Our 2021 recruitment results reflect that these efforts are bearing fruit, where 43% of new hires were female.
Equally important is the development and retention of diverse talent within the firm. Only by ensuring an inclusive culture, where all staff members are given equal opportunities, will we be able to retain a diversified workforce. A positive result from our staff development and retention efforts can also be seen in our numbers, for example, over the last five years, we increased the proportion of senior female team members from 5% to 11%. We are committed to increasing this ratio further over the next couple of years.
We support our staff members and promote a culture of lifelong learning. LGT Capital Partners partnered with Blue Ocean Brain (BOB), a professional development e-learning platform, through which we offer our staff members learning modules on various topics related to diversity and inclusion. At the same time, together with BOB, we offer leadership training for our senior team members on how to embrace DEI and develop inclusive skills to foster an environment where everyone is respected and feels they belong.
We participate in industry organizations focused on DEI in order to collaborate with peers and to help raise awareness in our industry. Below a list of organizations that we are members of:
Tycho Sneyers, Managing Partner LGT Capital Partners"We have created a very diverse workforce when it comes to the nationalities and backgrounds of the people we employ. But when it comes to gender balance, we still have work to do. And therefore, we have launched several initiatives to attract, retain and promote talented women."