Rochelle Gordon-Blake | Residential Property Graduate | Knight Frank
I am a Residential Property Graduate within Knight Frank, having started as an intern I have navigated my early career from Sales, letting to International residential developments.
I entered the world of property with an open mind as I was studying marketing for my degree. I sold my first property at £560,000 in my 3 month internship at Hampstead which essentially gave me drive to Perdue it as a career. I loved the client consult and advisory sector of sales and knew this was the perfect fit for my interests and personality.
Fast forward, two years and now I’ve collected a wide range of experience through my rotations, which has ultimately led me to find my feet in the Residential development sector of Real estate.
Not only am I passionate about real estate but I’m passionate about the diversity in the industry. I’m the Co-Chair of our ERG for Age and Generations. I want to be an advocate for change in the industry no matter how big or small. I wasn’t able to see people that looked like me or where from a similar background as me (single parent household, Edmonton raised, non privately educated) at the top and I’ve been keen to be that for others wanting to break into the dynamic world of Real estate.
Stella Aichholzer | Senior Negotiator | Knight Frank
Stella advises UHNW clients and family offices on international real estate portfolios, both personal and investment focused.
At Knight Frank alone, in less than 3 years, she has been involved in over 255 millions in sales. Prior to joining Knight Frank, Stella worked extensively in real estate asset management, development and super prime sales. She holds a BSc in Business Management from King’s College London and is able to advise clients in English, German, French and Italian.
Ashleigh Foreman | Assistant Site Manager | Barratt London
My interest in construction began during my time at university, when I found myself in conversation with contractors developing the student accommodation.
This inspired me to seek a career path I had no idea existed previously and wasn`t something I had seen another woman fulfilling. I did some work experience with Telford Homes and started my career with Barratts in 2021 as a Trainee Assistant Site Manager. I have since promoted to Assistant Site Manager and have over seen the CMLs of hundreds of homes and personally led the program of 106 apartments in the year 2023. in 2024 I am working alongside another site manager to handover a feature block of unique design which includes 60 luxury retirement apartments, a gym, café and other staffing areas. I am aiming to promote again this year to Site Manager and look forwards to future opportunities that encourage other women into the industry.
Donna Otchere | Co Founder | SiSTEM UK
Donna co-founded SiSTEM UK with her sister in 2022. It was created as a solution to an ongoing issue of lack of representation of women specifically black women within the STEM (science, technology, and mathematics) industry.
Donna had a passion for engineering despite not achieving the entry requirement and the discouragement from teachers she still broke barriers and studied mechanical engineering at university. Whilst she was at university, she felt very isolated as one of the few women on her course. It was support of her sisterhood which gave her the courage to complete the course. Since then, she has gone on to complete a master’s degree and now she is starting her PhD in Gender Equity in STEM. The beauty in her journey is that at every step, she has opened doors for other young ladies. SiSTEM launched as a social media platform to increase representation of women in STEM. When you searched #womeninSTEM, there was a lack of black women. It became her mission to change this. As well as showcasing women in STEM, SiSTEM educated their audience on different carers within STEM. A community of women grew and the SiSTEM movement began. Donna goes into schools, universities, festivals and anywhere that would give her a platform educating people on engineering and debunking the notion that engineering is just for men. She leads her team with unique visions through events, workshops, mentoring and social media to increase and retain women in STEM.
Frankie Thatcher | Product Assurance Lead | BAE Systems
My career has grown from early days of work experience involving stock checking fasteners for electric propulsion engines (that are now in Space) to becoming a Product Assurance Lead for a Space System.
This involves the co-ordination of and participation in various assurance activities across Satellite, Ground Segment and Equipment development. Throughout my career, I have had opportunities to work on a wide range of exciting technologies with wonderful, engaging and talented people from a variety of backgrounds.
My career is continuing to grow and I am excited now to help develop the next generation of space-industry engineers.
I joined the industry as a graduate from the University of Manchester with my Master`s degree in Physics with Astrophysics. I continue to support STEM activities to encourage new talent into the industry through various entry routes.
Geerthiga Parameswaran | Medical Devices Integration Team Lead | Cleveland Clinic London
Geerthiga Parameswaran is a Medical Device Integration Team Lead at Cleveland Clinic London.
Dedicated to enhancing healthcare technology, cyber security of medical devices and improving integrated workflows, she brings her engineering expertise to the forefront. With a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the UK, she began her career as a biomedical engineer before transitioning into a role in digital health.
Gillian Barber | Research Consultant and STEM Public Engagement Specialist | Barber Research
Gillian is an independent research consultant and a post-doctoral researcher in science communication and education.
She works with public bodies, NGOs, and universities to create engagement programmes that promote inclusive and equitable access to science. Gillian has dedicated her career to the belief that scientific research benefits from knowledge sharing by communicating with diverse audiences.
She has a strong background in health, acquiring her PhD in Immunology from Trinity College Dublin in 2021. During this time, she co-founded the successful national charity Women in Research Ireland (WIRI), which gives voice to under-represented groups in research.
After her PhD, she worked as a medical writer in clinical trials, where she managed the writing of clinical study reports communicated with major regulatory bodies.
Since then, she has been working in science communications and education. In 2023, she helped to launch the Wellcome Trust’s new podcast about global health research, which tells stories from around the world of real people and their health experiences. She is currently working as an independent research consultant who reviews and evaluates public-facing science initiatives.
Gillian is an advocate of maintaining trust in science, inclusive research, and equitable health agendas. Her work seeks to bridge what science achieves with how the public understands those achievements.
Karen Perry | Head of Customer Service | Daikin UK
I am currently working as Head of Customer Service for Residential business within Daikin UK, a global heat pump and air-conditioning and refrigeration manufacturer.
Having been at Daikin for 25 years working in various sales, engineering and management roles. I am now on the Senior Leadership team.
I joined the industry in 1993 straight out of school education as an office junior and feel privileged to have been given the opportunities I have to reach my career goals.
I took the decision to start an Open University Degree in 2010 part time while continuing to work. I graduated with Honours in Psychology in 2016.
Kat Draper | Principal Engineer | Mott MacDonald
Kat is a Chartered Civil Engineer and has been working in the construction industry for more than 15 years.
She completed a Master’s degree (MEng) in Civil Engineering at the University of Southampton and has completed the APM Project Fundamentals Qualification.
Her latest roles focus on management and co-ordination of design teams; including team leader, project manager and design manager, and projects range from early feasibility studies, preliminary design and detailed design, with extensive collaboration with various third parties. In 2023 she was project manager for a team that travelled to Rwanda to build a 77m trail bridge.
Kat is keen to encourage others into the construction industry and is passionate about creating a diverse, equitable and inclusive industry. She promotes engineering to others through mentoring, by being a STEM Ambassador and facilitating student work placements and attending career events.
With lower-than-average numbers of women and minority groups working in the industry, Kat acknowledges that change is required to make the industry more effective at attracting and retaining talent.
Kat believes that if people have certain skills or are capable and keen to do certain roles, they should be able to do a role that utilises those skills. This shouldn’t be limited or defined by gender.
The best teams will have different skills, emotions and personalities within them, and this provides resilience and balance. Everyone within the team has the right to be their authentic self, so they can give their best and achieve their own and the project objectives.
Lauren McCarthy | Project Manager | InSpace Missions
I have worked in various industries and roles , all of which have been centred around supporting people, either as customers or as part of my team.
My start in the Space Industry came via a chance opportunity within the Compliance & Export Team at SSTL, and I haven`t looked back since. It gave me a brilliant grounding and allowed me exposure across the business to see where I wanted to work; this is how I decided upon Project Management. My first role within projects was in resource management & capacity planning, implementing a new system across projects & engineering to make processes more efficient. This evolved into a Project Management role, being responsible for the R&D/Non-mission projects portfolio including working with CEOI & DASA. Whilst in this position I had a yearlong break following the birth of my son but came back to support a multi-million pound MOD project as well as continuing to manage my existing portfolio.
Following my move to In-Space Missions (ISM) (now part of the BAE Systems Group) I feel like I’ve been fully supported to grow in my role and further develop my career, it’s been a steep learning curve. I’ve worked on high profile bids, supported the satellite operations team & customers through In-Orbit Commissioning on ISMs first ride share mission, to delivering the Systems & Integration Test Phase on ISMs largest programme, which is spear-heading BAE entry into the UK space market, backed by a significant internal investment from the group.