2016 Media Releases

The scope of risk – courage vs caution – was the theme at the 8th Women in Banking and Finance Annual Forum this week which saw an audience of 520 high-fliers from Deutsche Bank and other financial institutions gather at Sydney’s City Recital Hall in Angel Place.

The event brought together three exceptional speakers in a new format for the forum moderated by Joanne Gray, Editor of BOSS magazine and leadership news at the Australian Financial Review.

Following an opening address by Julie Hunter, President of Women in Banking and Finance, Dr Philippa Malmgren, author, founder of DRPM Group, co-founder H-Robotics and former financial market adviser to the US president, was first to take the stage and said that everyone has a different “risk DNA” which influences their personal capacity for taking risks.

“This means what will happen with the economy and how it affects you will depend on your attitude towards risk,” she said.

Dr Malmgren was followed by David Gonski AC, Chairman of the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd and Coca-Cola Amatil Limited, who shared two examples that redefined failure.

“It seems that Australia is less tolerant of honest failure,” he said. “And yet the fear of failure can limit our careers. Failure is the chance to come again.”

And while Gonski did not advocate taking risk without caution - saying the most important thing about taking risks is calculating risk - he said he was quite certain he would not still be enjoying what he does had he not taken some risks during his career.

The event’s final speaker, Deng Thiak Adut, has an almost unparalleled personal experience of risk which has fuelled his self-belief. “You create risk for yourself every time you doubt yourself,” he said as he shared his unique story.

Adut, defence lawyer, community leader and refugee advocate, has become well-known internationally after a video about his journey from child soldier in Sudan to lawyer in Australia went viral.

Describing the moment he chose to escape south Sudan as the first time he had taken a risk by himself, he said although he was aware of the dangers, the adrenalin kept him moving. Adut then shared details about his experiences living in a refugee camp in Kenya and also as an immigrant transitioning into life in Western Sydney.

Naomi Flutter, Head of Global Transaction Banking, closed the event by sharing her experiences of working in the very same refugee camp as Adut.

During her time there, she ran creative writing workshops with the refugees which she found displaced the refugee stereotype. “Because those who participated were university students, doctors, lawyers, teachers, nurses, judges.  They were people like me – educated, interested in world affairs, ambitious, avid readers,” she said.

Upon her arrival back in Australia, Flutter went on to publish a book of the poems she had collected to give the refugees a voice while raising money for UNHCR. Flutter presented Adut with one of her three remaining copies in what was a particularly poignant moment to end the event on.

About WiBF and Deutsche Bank’s involvement

Women in Banking and Finance (WiBF) is a not-for-profit organisation that supports the professional development of women in the banking and finance sectors. Deutsche Bank has hosted the WiBF Annual Forum since 2009 which has since become a flagship event in recent years in line with Deutsche Bank’s global commitment to promoting diversity. Locally, Deutsche Bank launched a new employee network, dbGO (Gender Opportunity) which aims to accelerate the pace of progress towards equal opportunity for all talented people working at the Bank by fostering an inclusive gender-balanced workplace.