While women have made many strides in the financial services sector, they are still woefully underrepresented. Women account for only about 10 percent of the middle market, and they hold an even smaller fraction of senior management positions. Since dealmaking is all about forging relationships, feeling comfortable and connected is essential. Enter Mergers & Acquisitions’ The Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A.

Our 2016 special report identified 25 of the best and the brightest female dealmakers, including: corporate dealmakers, private equity investors, investment bankers, lenders, attorneys and other advisers. Among them are: Jeri Harman (pictured), the founder of Avante Mezzanine Partners; Pam Hendrickson, the chief operating officer of The Riverside Co.; and Emily Waldorf, vice president, corporate strategy, Campbell Soup Co. (NYSE: CPB).

Who else ranks with them? Send your suggestions to Mergers & Acquisitions editor-in-chief Mary Kathleen Flynn at [email protected]. In the subject line of your email, please write: “Candidate for Most Influential Women in Mid-Market M&A.” Tell us why you believe the candidate is influential throughout the middle market (not just within her firm). The deadline is Nov. 1, 2016.

Financial services industry