Citi Just Became a Magnet for Ambitious Working Moms

A couple of weeks after Jane Fraser had her first child, she made partner at McKinsey & Co. She wanted some balance in her life, so the future Citigroup CEO decided to work part-time—an arrangement she maintained until she departed the consultancy for Citi in 2004.

- Bloomberg

"I honestly don't think I'd be here today if I hadn't," she said in 2020, not long after being named the bank's new chief.

Fraser benefited firsthand from flexibility in an industry notorious for its grueling hours and rigidity. And since becoming the head of Citi, she's tried to inject a bit of that same attitude into the finance world. During the pandemic, she implemented Zoom-free Fridays, reminded employees to take vacations, and asked that they schedule calls during traditional working hours.

Fraser, the first woman to lead one of Wall Street's major banks, has now made clear that she was offering a new way of working, not just fleeting pandemic-era perks. Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported that Fraser told managing directors in mid-January that the company will continue to allow most employees to work remotely at least two days a week—a decision that puts Citi at odds with the rest of the finance world and the general corporate zeitgeist.