Emily Thorpe ǀ Happy Working Mum
Emily, is an author, coach and inspirational speaker, who is passionate about transforming the lives of career or business mums, helping them go from tired, stressed, overwhelmed and feeling guilty to relaxed, calm, balanced and in control.
Author of the book “The Working Mums 5-step Solution To Having It All”, Emily also offers talks, transformational workshops and programmes, which all help women to unlock the secrets to successfully combining professional success with being the mum they truly want to be. Ditching the plate spinning, juggling and guilt and instead enjoying quality time with their children and becoming a 'memory maker'.
As a devoted Mother to two boys, and a highly successful air-traffic controller working in a high-pressure environment, whilst also running her own successful coaching business, Emily knows exactly what it takes to “have it all”, helping women to enjoy the journey and those precious family years with a sense of balance, ease, serenity and fun!
Liv Cooke ǀ Liv Cooke Freestyle
I am the only professional female football freestyler in the UK, at 16 years old I can happily say I've achieved all of this myself from the countless nights staying up late finishing my website or writing emails and the cold winter days out there training in the rain.
I aim to promote females in sport and aid the movement for equality via the product of my hard work.
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Becky Rogers | C & C Search
Growing up as one of three girls it is fair to say that I am the classic middle child! Overly Loud and regularly saying the wrong thing at the wrong time I would happily say I am the child that has always caused my parents the most problems. However my outgoing nature has always led me to want to be the best and to never settle for anything less and I have been incredibly lucky to work for some hugely influential and empowering woman.
Despite not being an overachiever on the academic front and struggling with dyslexia I have always felt that a competitive and committed attitude was all I needed to succeed in the world of business.
Currently working for an all female start up recruitment agency I am hugely proud of everything we have achieved and am privileged to have been recognised for this award.
Caroline Andrews | Giles Wilson
I am extremely flattered to have been nominated for this award but this also reflects the team ethic that we produce at the firm. I started working in law because I wanted to help families get through their most difficult moments, and my developing practise of fertility law was a natural result of that.
Through my work for the charity Verity, I have come into contact with tens of thousands of women who have personal health issues which make starting a family quite a lot more complicated than it should be. The law in this area is rapidly developing, and so through my firm I am privileged to have been able to help families understand these issues in my region. I started initially as a paralegal, and over the past 8 years I have developed to a Senior Associate with responsibilities for overseeing many younger members of staff. I am grateful for the role I have in training these , as I am able to demonstrate to them how powerful good legal representation can be in protecting and mending families.
This year I have had a paralegal specifically working on my case load and it has been fantastic in watching how with care and attention from myself as her trainer, she has developed her legal understanding of family law cases; as well as the changes in her own confidence. Both this firm and the charity I volunteer for place an emphasis on self awareness of matters to then be able to access the right professional support, and I engage in this through our social media outlets.
Stephanie Niven | Tesco Pension Investment (TPI)
Stephanie joined TPI in December 2012 as an Equity Portfolio Manager on the global equity team with responsibility for stock selection in the materials, energy and healthcare sectors. Together with her team she has established a robust and effective investment process, driving top quintile performance of the fund over the past two and a half years, with direct oversight of £3.4bn of assets and indirect responsibility over a further £3bn.
Stephanie was previously at hedge fund boutique Javelin Capital LLP, where she was a Partner and Portfolio Manager with responsibility for the fundamental investment strategy of the portfolio. She joined Javelin Capital with former colleagues of Goldman Sachs Asset Management, where she worked for five years on the Global Active Equity team.
Stephanie graduated from Merton College, Oxford University with a Double First in History, coming in the top ten of her year. Stephanie is a CFA charterholder, receiving the designation in 2010.
Outside of work, Stephanie is a keen athlete, having been selected to represent Great Britain at the ITU World Long Distance Triathlon Championships in Belfort, France. She has also completed four ironman triathlons, most recently achieving a podium position in Langkawi, Malaysia in September 2014.
Rosie Batty ǀ Oliver Wyman
Rosie started at Oliver Wyman in January 2012 having done an internship with the company in 2010 and having graduated from Oxford University with a first in Physics (MPhys).
Since starting work, Rosie has worked with many top tier clients across a range of different industries including Aviation, Financial Services, Retail and Healthcare. Last year, she worked in the project management office for the European Central Bank as they performed the AQR (Asset Quality Review) that Oliver Wyman supported. Since then, she has chosen to specialise in Healthcare Consulting and has worked across both private and public healthcare provision as well as doing some life sciences work.
Rosie is currently working for an NHS client to support the development of new models of care that aim to improve outcomes and experience for patients whilst simultaneously reducing cost within the local health economy. She also supports business development opportunities for the HLS practice within Oliver Wyman, inputting her acquired expertise into proposals and contributing to pitches with senior clients as required.
Alongside her project work, Rosie is a very active member of the office. Right from the start she has taken a prominent role in recruiting and recently supported a project to review the recruiting process and the impact the different stages have on the diversity of candidates receiving an entry-level offer. As well as her involvement in the design of the recruitment process, she attends and presents at many recruiting events, has acted as a mentor for women interested in joining the industry and regularly does interviews for entry level positions. She also acts as a ‘buddy’ for more junior female consultants, providing support as required and generally offering mentorship and advice. Each year since she started, Rosie has received a ‘Firm Contribution’ award each year in recognition of her involvement and contribution to the firm.
Nyarai Kadungure | Barclays
Nyarai joined Barclays Bank at entry level (Analyst 1) as an undergraduate, through hard work and determination she has progressed through all four Analyst stages within the company and is currently on a year’s secondment for an Assistant Vice President position.
As part of her own self-development and learning, she embarked on a seven year personal development plan, to improve her industry awareness and employability. The learning objective funded by Barclays, started with a course on Credit Skills Development, an industry qualification to enhance her understanding of the lending relationships banks have with their customers. Once completed, she moved to phase two completion of The Professional Certificate in Banking certified by the Institute of Financial Services (ifs) and The Professional Diploma in Banking Practice Management. Now five years into that development plan, she is progressing to level six of the ifs university programme, a BSc (Hons) qualification in Banking Practice and Management. Aware that her journey is unique to herself, Nyarai is working with Barclays HR department, project managing the development of a Talent management scheme that supports colleagues in developing a targeted and individual development plan.
In her capacity as Co-Chair of Barclays Junior Advisory Committee, a sub-committee of the Women’s Initiative Network, Nyarai helps to engage junior employees at AVP and Analyst levels with the business. The aim is to focus on areas with maximum impact under the three areas of Mentorship, Training & Development and Retention. She facilitates programs which empowers juniors to not only meet critical business objectives but to also establish mentoring relationships for their own personal development. Nyarai helps to deliver great initiatives which create dialogue between senior leaders and junior members within the business and has looked to develop the initiative in the US and Asia.
As a member of the Women in Banking and Finance network, Nyarai is also progressing through the Toastmaster’s competent speaker and competent leader manuals to develop her skills for that senior role in Banking she is aspiring for.
Sue Stoner ǀ PwC UK
I am a passionate and busy PA working at PwC where I work for 3 partners and 3 directors. I have been here since 1988 and love working here because it is a great place to work - lots of opportunities, and a bunch of very talented people. Each of the partners and directors I work for require different levels of my time - the busiest being the main partner I look after and he says I am an essential part of his life - his job takes him to some of the most challenge places around the world (Congo, Pakistan, Kenya, Kosovo, etc) and so this involves a lot of travel, including obtaining visas - often at short notice which results in major diary management. I also help him to do what he loves at PwC, he runs our international aid consulting business but he's also hugely passionate about strength based leadership, diversity and strength based development, so I help him make sure he gets to deliver his day job and keep him organised to do more of what he loves. One of his events are called Genius Power Dreams workshops - which he created about 4 years ago and these workshops are run every other month and I do all the administration for it which involves diary management, booking rooms and registration - we currently have around 500 people on our mailing list for these events - of which between 20 and 60 people attend each session. I also help him keep healthy by carefully scheduling hospital appointments and check-ups - he had heart failure last year and I have helped keep him going by scheduling hospital around his passions at work.
Over the last 5 years I've become increasingly involved in the PwC International Development business, not only do I support the main Partner in this business but I also get involved in helping the entire team when it comes to events and international travel (including flights and visas), this can be very complicated and often requires last minute country evacuations and flight changes due to the changing security situations in many of the countries that the team operates in. Based on this work I've now been asked to take on another Partner, the new leader for our UK/Africa Alliance, his schedule will no doubt be a nightmare and will require complicated travel in and out of African countries, my knowledge and experience with the International Development team makes me perfect for the role with him.
Finally, my main Partner is also a trustee for 2 charities, Diversity Role Models and Action Breaks Silence. I've been supporting him in getting board meetings scheduled and helping the charities to get their marketing information refreshed. I've been able to use the full capability of PwC's design team and facilities team to make sure we are supporting these charities as much as possible. For ABS, we arranged some Self Defence Training for PwC staff, to which the team from ABS came along to do for us – we had over 30 attendees attend this with some fantastic feedback. He is also heavily involved in working with Stonewall and also National Diversity Awards.
I have a vast knowledge about the firm and am often used as the point of contact for new joiners, or employees from our regional offices if they need help in any way. I am known as the "go-to" person!! Last year I was extremely proud to have won the London PA of the Year Award for the Above & Beyond Category - beating 65 other nominees.
Outside of work, I commute to Kent by coach and have been doing this for the last 20 years, I became a ticket collector on the coach about 18 years ago, and then about 6 years ago I was asked if would become the supervisor - so I currently manage around 25 ticket collectors, ensuring that all our coaches have cover, arranging cover and also meeting/interview/train new collectors - and all whilst commuting to work!! We also keep chickens at home and so I am known for selling my eggs in the office!!
Tara Rajah | Allen & Overy
Tara is a Senior Associate at Allen & Overy and advises on corporate and commercial transactions. In the last six months alone, Tara’s work has ranged from leading on cross-border deals from $500m-$2billion in value, to providing technical support for UK start-ups. Her clients describe her as “very composed and clear in a difficult atmosphere” and “prompt, hardworking, polite, competent, structured, responsive and most importantly has a positive mindset”. Her team describes her as a personable and approachable "rock" even when stretched. Tara qualified mid-financial crisis, and these personal attributes have been invaluable in building and maintaining her practice in complex and volatile environments.
Tara is a keen violinist and participant in her firm's charity musical productions. Tara’s contributions to her colleagues and to her firm’s initiatives extend much further: she sits on a committee responsible for organising thought-provoking forums for associates, is a pro-active member of the firm’s innovation group and is an enthusiastic organiser on her department’s social committee.
In her spare time, Tara is an avid traveller, having been to over 40 countries, and living and working in the US (New York) and Asia (Bangkok). As a complement to her international experiences, Tara previously established and ran a dining club, which she used to explore different cuisines available within London and as a vehicle to fundraise for charities such as the Consortium for Street Children. Her pro bono and community work has also included advising the Red Cross on disaster management legislation, volunteering at Dress for Success (now Smartworks) and mentoring students as part of the Smarter Futures E-Mentoring Scheme.
Tara holds a Law degree from Cambridge University. Last year she was awarded a Masters with Distinction in Finance and Financial Law from the University of London, achieved through part-time study in parallel to her client work.
Bloomberg to host shortlist celebrations | WeAreTheCity's Top 50 Rising Star Awards
WeAreTheCity is proud to announce that Bloomberg will be hosting a celebration event for 100 shortlisted nominees for its newly launched Top 50 Rising Stars awards.
The event will be held on the 13th August 2015 at Bloomberg’s European headquarters and will also be attended by the judges, corporate sponsors and supporters of the awards.
Invites will be sent to the shortlisted nominees on completion of the first round of judging on the 20th July 2015.
Erika Irish Brown, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion at Bloomberg said: “Here at Bloomberg we embrace the saying, ‘Diversity plus inclusion equals innovation’. Fostering a diverse and inclusive culture isn't just ‘the right thing to do’, it’s critical to attracting and retaining top talent – and the wide range of ideas and perspectives - that we need to grow as a company. We define diversity broadly, and work every day to create an environment in which all Bloomberg employees can bring their authentic selves to work and achieve success. We are delighted to join WeAreTheCity in celebrating top diverse talent here today."
Speakers at the event will include;
- Mark McLane, Global Head of Diversity and Inclusion, Barclays
- Tamara Box, Partner, Chair of Financial Industry Group, Reed Smith
- Catherine Spencer, Ex England Rugby Captain and founder of Inspiring Women
Vanessa Vallely, Managing Director of WeAreTheCity said: “We are so pleased that Bloomberg have chosen to support our awards and shortlisted nominees by sponsoring and hosting our celebratory event in August. Gaining Bloomberg’s support alongside our other sponsors and supporters demonstrates how determined these large companies are to support the female pipeline. Both my team, our judges, sponsors and supporters cannot wait to meet our shortlisted nominees at Bloomberg in August.”
After the shortlisted nominee event, judges will meet to confirm the top five winners for each category. Winners and their nominees will be informed by the 1st September. The winners will then be invited to an exclusive celebratory event to be held at a prestigious venue on the evening of the 9th September.
WeAreTheCity would like to thank all of those who have nominated a Rising Star and wishes those who have been nominated the best of luck!
