W's "Honeys" Work Hard for the Money

W’s July article “Money Honeys” goes deep inside the world of hedge funds to reveal something you won’t read in the Wall Street Journal: beautiful women in Theory trousers are taking over finance! The magazine deems the topic “impossible to ignore.” Actually, what’s impossible to ignore is the way they make this supposed trend sound like a good thing.

You might think a magazine targeted at women would take a dim view of hiring decisions that frankly favor appearance over intelligence. You might even think this article would try to prove that the women in question are indeed intelligent, or at least include women who manage to succeed without “blond hair and spray tans.”

You’d be wrong!

For those who aren’t familiar with the machinations of high finance, W explains. Hedge funds operate on the same principle as strip clubs: men will gladly open their wallets to beautiful and/or accessible women.

One of the apparently few male marketing execs fills us in:

“[Investors] want a hot chick with a nice ass and nice boobs who is going to come in and sell the fund to them. I have a friend in the industry who is drop-dead gorgeous, and even she knows that’s the only reason she has her job.”

And women are catty?

“You meet these bimbos and they say, ‘Oh, I work at a hedge fund,’ and you think, What?!?” says one head of an investment bank who pals around with high net worth investors. “And then you realize, Oh, this is, like, the PR girl…”

Do women resent the implication that their success is due to their pulchritude? According to this article, not at all!

“The looks definitely help,” one blond, curvy female marketing director admits matter-of-factly.

All of the men in this piece are identified by their job titles, not their looks, by the way.

Still, W doesn’t want us readers to underestimate these women. In fact, the article describes the incredible lengths they go to in order to succeed:

“I had to start watching more television, like American Idol, so I could find some common ground with [investors’ wives].”

But being a woman in marketing isn’t solely about objectification! There are awesome benefits! First, from a male marketer:

“I have never, ever seen an ugly person in this role.”

Do you work in hedge fund marketing? Congratulations!  You’re conventionally attractive!

Second, even though they’re basically required to go on dates with clients, marketing executives are paid way better than escorts. Directors earn up to $2 million, while lower-level employees pull down between $200,000 and $500,000.

Not like they stay in the workforce for long, anyway. The third perk:

“It’s an easy access point to a rich husband,” he says. “These girls don’t talk to anyone worth less than $50 million.”

Of course, the acquisition of a wealthy man is the most important transaction these women will ever broker! Maddeningly, the article ends with that quote.

So let me get this straight: Male-dominated companies hire women (from modeling agencies, even) to charm clients out of cash, and then men slam these women in print for trading on their looks? Nice! The article mentions in passing that women in hedge funds struggle to be perceived as professionals. “Money Honeys” does them no favors, but even so, it’s the men in this scenario whose behavior I really have trouble taking seriously.