Here's a contribution sent in by one of our readers:

'We all know that women generally don't earn as much as men working in the investment banking business. We all appreciate that they don't generally tend to move through organisations quickly and take up leadership positions. Hell, although an Indian native male runs Citi (Vikram Pandit) and a black American man was at the helm of Merrill Lynch for years (Stan O'Neal), there hasn't been one single female head of a Wall Street firm. And with good reason.

Women, of course, don't possess the character traits required to be a success in the financial markets. We are not unscrupulous enough. Unlike men, we are too straightforward, and tend to find it difficult to deflect criticism on others and dissemble when we find ourselves in a tight corner. We are tough and strong, but just not in the right way. We are flexible and pragmatic, which others tend to see as a weakness. We are happy to consider the views of others, but can be viewed as easily-influenced. We are thoughtful and like to consider a problem from a number of different angles, rather than jumping in like our male counterparts and staying the course dogmatically no matter what the outcome.

We are better organisers than men, are more diligent and possess a greater attention to detail. In short, we are everything that those who work in investment banking hold in low esteem. We are dismissed as clerks, written-off as support staff and given little opportunity to prove that we can mix it as well (and better) with the males in our working lives.

Managing our members of staff by leading by example and motivating the individuals in our charge to perform more effectively, we go about our duties in a low-key manner. Not for us the shouting and posturing which often characterises the management style of male peers. We don't rule by fear and propagate a climate in which alternative viewpoints aren't encouraged and constructive feedback is dismissed and derided. Of course, us females are just not macho enough to get to the very top.

A few of us, however, do come near the pinnacle. Zoe Cruz made President at Morgan Stanley and Sallie Krawcheck and Erin Callan were appointed as Chief Financial Officers at Citigroup and Lehman Brothers respectively. All three were elbowed aside, however (fired or effectively demoted), at the earliest opportunity.

Investment banking is a nasty, self-serving, dog-eat-dog business, and only nasty, self-serving callous people make it to the very top. And that's the main reason women don't get there. We're too respectful, too consultative and too damn decent to climb the ladder by back-stabbing our way up. If it were legal, I'd like to form a women-only investment bank - just to prove that our male-dominated, boys-club industry has got it so wrong. In quick time, we'd have the best staff, the best managers and, before too long, all the best clients as well. In the meantime, we'll just have to hope that one of the firms sees sense and appoints a woman CEO. I won't be holding my breath though, as I think us women are in for a long wait before one of our number claws her way to the very top'.

READER COMMENTS:

1. 'It will happen. Maybe not in your lifetime, but a woman will rise to the top of a Wall Street firm. Women are more tenacious. We are built like that'.

2. 'Go start your firm. It's won't be that difficult as most states have affirmative action programs for female-owned firms. There's a big client base for you out there. Now put up or shut up, lady'.

3. Three words why a woman will never make it - hormones and genetics.'

4. 'Women often have different priorities when it comes to what matters in their job. And they are not always the hard-done-by folks they are sometimes pointed out to be. I agree that men should shoulder much of the blame for women not reaching the top in business, but, ladies, you are partly responsible too. Whether we like it or not, the personal choices you make will affect your career goals'.

5. 'In attempting to refute the article, the comments posted actually support the point being made. Women have the skills to be at the top, but as one male reader points out, our hormones and genetics which contribute to our less abrasive nature, result in men disregarding what we have to say as they can shout louder. I have three words to say - longevity and labor; we are tougher than you and we will out-live you'.

6. 'An evolutionary psychologist would argue that we are not equipped with the traits necessary to compete with men for top positions. Perhaps our psychological make-up is a little too slow to recognise, or indeed reconcile, with the fact that nurturing is no longer our sole / primary role, rendering us effectively handicapped in a world where stereotypically male traits are rewarded. And the truth of the matter, of course, is that women with these traits are demonised - and more so by female counterparts than male colleagues. Go figure!'.

7. 'Blaming genetics and hormones is always the defence of inadequate males. All men are good for is scr.wing things up - look at the subprime crisis!'.

8. 'A very well reasoned argument. Just the level of perceptive insight wanting at the top firms in our industry'.

9. 'A man wouldn't have written an article like this. Nuff said!'.

10. 'Take your typical female v male stereotypes back to the 70s!'.

11. 'It's self-pitying women like her that give us a bad name. A generation of strong female leaders will emerge. The question is....'Will men be able to handle it ?'.

12. 'Generalizations such as these are refreshing on the one hand, but completely simplistic on the other. A female will rise to the top of a Wall Street firm, and I will be thrilled when it does happen. But, make no mistake, she will be the most ruthless of the bunch!'.

13. 'Why would any self-respecting woman want to run an investment bank ?!'

14. 'My best-ever boss was a woman - and that's coming from a man. Female bosses seem to really appreciate the contributions made by members of their team'.

15. 'It does seems strange that a woman was qualified enough to be Prime Minister of Great Britain (and Hilary almost made it to the pinnacle in the US), but has never made it to the top of one of Wall Street's finest'.

16. 'Can you imagine a man getting away with this back-slapping generalistic sexism ?'.

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