The necessary winds of change: empowering women in central banking

This chapter sheds light on the neglected issue of gender diversity in central banks. Indeed, although there should be a mutual trust between central banks and society, this framework also encompasses persons working in central banks, including, crucially, gender minorities. I will examine this issue by focusing on the specific case of the scarcity of women in central banks' boards as well as in their internal organizations. My aim is to inquire both into the "managerial expertise" exerted by women central bankers and central bankers' handling of "gender-oriented managerial expertise". Specifically, my aim is to show that greater gender diversity in central banks, because it creates diverse forms of "experience", would: (1) Lead to individual empowerment within central banks, particularly women. (2) Energize central banks so as to transform them into "mobilization structures", a process facilitating change, as well as the production and circulation of information. The results would be internal gains in efficiency, and an increase of social cohesion within the institution. My research rests on a sample of six interviews with anonymized female central bankers as well as on data derived from a survey conducted in three central banks.