Women in Business: Prime minister sends personal letter of support

By TBM Team

31 March 2017

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The launch for the 2017 Women In Business Awards, organised by The Business Magazine, took place on Friday March 31 in the picturesque setting of The Oakley Court Hotel, Windsor - and the campaign has been personally endorsed by prime minister Theresa May.

Over the course of the morning, around 100 female (and male) representatives came together to network, learn about the awards (and the three new categories), and listen to inspirational speakers from the world of business.

The event was sponsored by Barclays, Blake Morgan, KPMG and Windsor Vehicle Leasing, and supported by The Institute of Directors.

Tamsin Napier-Munn, campaigns manager for The Business Magazine, set the scene for the fourth annual WIB Awards by highlighting the importance of women on the global scene and their role in changing the political and economic landscape. This was particularly pertinent coming so soon after the triggering of Article 50 by the UK government.

The woman at the centre of this momentous decision, Theresa May, is also MP for Maidenhead. She had been invited to the WiB launch event, but unfortunately, owing to other (understandable) work commitments, was unable to attend. However, since this is a topic which the prime minister is passionate about, she sent a letter detailing how proud she was of the progress made to date, and endorsing the efforts of the Women in Business campaign in inspiring women. She added that ‘more still needed to be done to remove barriers’ and that ‘women should share their experiences, help mentor, and inspire others….to encourage women to go as far as their talents will take them…’.

Napier-Munn then outlined the WIB timetable: nominations opened March 31 and will close on June 23, with the WiB Awards evening taking place on September 21 at Oakley Hall, near Basingstoke.

In addition to the five existing WiB Awards categories, Napier-Munn explained that this year, there would be three new accolades:

Career-break Returner of the Year (also open to men)
Spotlight on Women in STEM
Role Model of the Year

STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) continues to be a focal point for The Business Magazine in 2017. Vikki Hemming of Barclays (event sponsor) introduced the STEM panel discussion, highlighting the wide disparity in males versus females who would currently consider a career in technology-based industries.

This panel consisted of:

Sheridan Ash - technology and investments director, PWC
Jacqueline de Rojas - president, techUK
Leona Shepherd – general manager, corporate sales, marketing and business services, 3M UK

In a wide-ranging discussion, the panel discussed the importance of role models, the need to use open, non-jargonistic language when recruiting for technology positions, and the importance of creating ‘bridges of communication’ to inspire the next generation.

Role models were in abundance during the morning session, with a selection of winners from the 2016 WIB Awards also present in a Q&A panel session introduced by Katie James of Blake Morgan (event sponsor). They discussed their respective journeys and what winning the WIB award had meant for them. This panel consisted of:

Barinder Hothi - CEO, The Knowledge Academy - 2016 Women Business Owner of the Year
Linda Christmas - chief human resources officer, Chiltern – 2016 Champion of Change
Nicola McQueen - managing director, Capita Resourcing – 2016 Board level Woman of the Year
Catherine Turness - executive director, Winchester Bid - 2016 Rising Star of the Year

Finally, Elizabetta Camilleri, founder and CEO of Shopological, the award-winning fashion platform that brings consumers closer to the brands they love, gave an entertaining presentation, sharing her enthusiasm for discovering innovations.

A full report will appear in the next edition of The Business Magazine.