Bring in the women...

...When The Chips Are Down

 NOW the women are taking over. It's typical; the men make the mess and the women come in to clean it up." This paper's views? No, the view of a government official in Iceland! Reason? The government's decision to appoint two women, Elín Sigfúsdóttir and Birna Einarsdóttir, chief executives of New Landsbanki and New Glitnir, the nationalised banks created in the wake of a banking crisis that has brought Iceland to the verge of bankruptcy. The three largest banks with a loan portfolio of about $61 billion, about 12 times the size of the economy, have collapsed, forcing the government to step in and take over. According to a government minister, the appointments are an attempt to signal a new culture within the banking system, one that is a break from the bonus-driven cowboy culture that had become par for the course during the past few years.
    For those who think Iceland is an exception, think back to our own experience not so long ago with Indian Bank. When the bank went into the red, thanks to shady lending practices, eroding even its deposits, who did the government of the day turn to? In an industry overwhelmingly dominated by men, especially at the top, it turned to a woman, Ranjana Kumar, to set it right. She took over the problem-ridden bank at a time when not a senior male banker or bureaucrat from the finance ministry was willing to touch it with a barge pole. Slowly but surely, she nursed it back to health. If today Indian Bank still quotes above its issue price, it is in large part due to the efforts of a woman. This is not to argue that merely being a woman ensures success. What helped, in the case of Indian Bank and is likely to make a difference in Iceland, is that the job was entrusted to women with sound knowledge of the sector. While the Icelandic duo is from within the ranks of the failed banks, Ranjana Kumar was a career banker. But the bottom line is the same — when the chips are down, bring in the women!