2023 Shortlist: Award for Achievement nominees
news published date 6 October 2023Following our announcement on 14 September, we are delighted to share more details of each of the shortlisted nominees, starting off with our Award for Achievement nominees. But before we do here’s a reminder of the category:
Presented to an individual in the most senior of industry roles and who achieves success that can benefit the industry as a whole, the winner will have displayed qualities of determination, dynamism and daring in their working life to be a role model. They will have also sought to bring their experience to bear beyond their own organisation (e.g. by serving on other organisations’ boards) to further diversity and inclusion (D&I) in the financial services sector and support women more broadly. This is an individual making a significant impact, driving change, and is able to demonstrate that change through measurement/documented successes. They should be a role model who can be held up beyond our sector.
But why did those listed make the shortlist? Below we include a brief summary of their submission so you can see why they thoroughly deserve to be on the list. Scroll down to read the full list and some of the amazing successes already achieved to date.
| Aarti Sharma, Bank of England | A senior manager at the Bank of England, Aarti leads a team of financial control accountants and reports to the central bank’s Chief Financial Officer. She was instrumental in the successful unwinding £20bn of corporate bonds (bought due to 2016 and 2020 quantitative easing actions) – a programme which required significant cross bank effort and was considered a major success – and through the mini budget financial market turmoil in September/October 2022 where the bank temporarily intervened in the gilts market. Despite the challenges, Aarti led a cohesive team focused on results. Staff wellbeing has been paramount to her ethos of managing the team, which saw no attrition during the period. She balances work with raising young twins and is seen as an inspiration to colleagues. |
| Anita Kimber, EY | Seen as an internationally-recognised purpose-led leader, Anita believes innovation and diversity are inextricably linked. It’s why she has embraced open banking, fintech and new technologies, as well as equal opportunities for women across all aspects of financial services. She has also campaigned for better financial services for SMEs, helped the industry leverage open banking to deliver tangible benefits to the underserved (including women) and driven insights into the gender pay gap in fintech to provide recommendations for policy change. Now in her final year of partnership, Anita has publicly committed to increase her pro bono support to female founders board education on DE&I, as well as ongoing policy work for regulators and FS trade associations. She remains more committed than ever to a diverse and inclusive industry. |
| Charlotte Weir, Wells Fargo | Charlotte is a Managing Director who runs a team of 40 bankers responsible for managing all of Wells Fargo’s corporate relationships across the UK and Europe, ensuring they deliver the full suite of investment banking products that the bank offers. Prior to joining Wells Fargo, Charlotte was Head of Corporate Debt Capital Markets for EMEA at Barclays where she managed a team of 35 people. A relationship-focused leader for more than 25 years, Charlotte has a proven track record of accelerating revenue growth, developing award-winning teams, and empowering innovation that generates client-centric solutions in Europe and the UK. Recognised in the industry for her reputation and influence, Charlotte was voted one of the 100 Most Influential Women in Finance by eFinancial News for three years. |
| Geraldine Lawlor, KPMG | Currently KPMG’s global head of financial crime, Geraldine is widely recognised across industry, government and law enforcement for her leadership and a distinguished career of 37+ years in this domain. Over her career, she has represented her institution and the industry on various working groups, committees and panels leading the conversation and furthering industry initiatives and policy enhancements. She has displayed determination and daring in driving regulatory and operational reform in financial and economic crime working and influencing government and law enforcement on the future vision and ambitions for the UK. She champions, mentors, guides and sponsors women in their careers and has had a significant impact on individuals’ professional and personal ambitions as a result of her influence and support. |
| Helen Blackmore, Succession Wealth | Helen is a dedicated and hardworking professional who is considered an industry leader for diversity, equity and inclusion. Since joining Succession, Helen’s strong leadership qualities and her ability to influence people at all levels has been the driving force behind many of the company’s positive change initiatives in recent years. Examples of this include the establishment of learning and development academies focused in increasing the number of female leaders within our organisation and the creation of dedicated committees focused on wellbeing and diversity, equity and inclusion. Helen always brings a positive high energy and a personal touch to anything she is involved in and is often sought out by her colleagues, other professionals and the media to offer her views, opinions and insights in her area of expertise. |
| Jean Murphy, Recognise Bank | Jean Murphy is the Chief Executive Officer of Recognise Bank and stands out as an exceptional leader in the financial services industry, both for her remarkable achievements within the sector and her invaluable contributions to the organisations she leads. With over 25 years of experience in banking and capital markets, Jean’s expertise and visionary approach have consistently propelled her to the forefront of the industry. Most notably, she founded a highly successful wealth management business which caters to affluent families and individuals across Europe and the US, strategically investing across diverse asset classes on a global scale. |
| Kay Forsythe, Deloitte | Kay is a senior leader in the Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Advisory team at Deloitte. She joined Deloitte in 2011 having already worked in government, banking, insurance and professional services roles in Asia Pacific, Europe and the UK. Alongside her client work delivering change programmes, she is part of Global ESG Strategy and Transformation team and has held a wide range of people and purpose leadership roles across the UK and North South Europe businesses. These roles include business-wide D&I and wellbeing sponsorship, and she is the dean for the financial services curriculum at Deloitte University, EMEA. These dimensions now all come together in her client work as part of the ‘S’ in ESG. |
| Liz Claydon, KPMG | As one of six children, with parents who did not attend university or have professional careers, Liz grew up encouraged to always strive to be her best. She hugely valued the mentorship and support she was given, often from strong females, and as she has progressed, Liz has used her voice and passion to support and mentor females from all walks of life to strive to be their best. As UK & Global Head of Deal Advisory, Liz is a dedicated leader, mentor and advocate for inclusion, diversity and equality. As such, Liz has significantly increased the number of females on her UK leadership team. She purposefully changed the culture of the business to ensure greater inclusivity and an environment where all voices are heard. |
| Mel Newton, KPMG | With more than 30 years’ experience working in largely male dominated environments and one of three women to graduate from her university with a computer science degree, Mel knew that making a difference as a woman would not be easy, but it was essential. Following a career change from IT to change management, Mel pushed the view that women and less-represented minorities are needed to make any business successful and that exceptional teams incorporate a breadth of knowledge, experience and backgrounds. A role model and diversity champion, Mel has made enormous improvements in gender balance in organisations, as well as co-chairing in house groups such as LGBTQ. |
| Nicola Free, Wells Fargo | Nicola is an industry leader with over 20 years’ experience in the commercial real estate industry with a strong and loyal network of market players. She has a uniquely diverse background covering loan origination, structuring, execution, restructuring and distribution in both loans and bonds. An inspirational and dynamic group leader with a history of transforming teams to drive optimum results, whilst maintaining a strong risk culture, she is passionate about developing future talent and leading diversity initiatives as she pursues her her role at Wells Fargo: to expanding its commercial real estate platform into Europe; and build out a regional capital markets franchise. Nicola is also a Board Director of CREFC Europe, a trade association for real estate and finance market in Europe. |