Sarah Woodard | H.I.G. Capital
When I finished school I went to study medicine, thinking I would be a doctor for the rest of my life.
However, two years into the degree I realised this was not the career path for me and went to Bristol University to study International Business Management. Not afraid of challenges, I sought new encounters and was exposed to the world of finance and never looked back.
My first experience of finance was through University Societies. I had the privilege of being President of the Women in Finance Society for two consecutive years and led the Society to being awarded ‘The Most Inspiring Committee’ by the Bristol Students’ Union and ‘The Most Improved Society’ at the NUS National Societies Awards. I launched a mentoring scheme, which helped the Society membership base to grow by 122%, and I continue to be a strong advocate of the benefits of mentoring.
Having completed a Spring and a Summer Internship, I joined Goldman Sachs Asset Management (GSAM) in the Summer of 2019. I worked as an analyst on the UK and Ireland Institutional team, focussed on maintaining and strengthening existing relationships with corporate pension funds and endowments. When COVID hit six months into my career I noticed there was a lack of events for juniors to address the impact of the pandemic. I sought to address this scarcity by launching a Future Leaders call series; inviting junior clients and colleagues to share experiences and receive virtual coaching sessions to help navigate the pandemic. My idea was awarded the ‘GSAM 2020 Differentiated Client Engagement Award’ and the initiative has since been rolled out globally across America, Asia and Australia.
An exciting opportunity to move into the world of Private Markets came in 2021 and I joined H.I.G. Capital. I am part of the Capital Formation Group and work with European and Middle Eastern clients to raise funds across the H.I.G. platform. I am committed to improving gender diversity within the firm and am collaborating to launch equity, diversity & inclusion training for employees.
My commitment to gender diversity in financial services extends to my volunteering work through my role as Co-Chair of the Future Leaders Shadow Board of the Women in Banking & Finance Organisation (WIBF). I am currently driving the development of a Future Leaders Network, to connect junior females across the industry, and a Graduate Engagement Strategy, to widen the pool of female talent applying for finance jobs.
Bola Adesina | LGIM
Bola is a seasoned technologist who continues to work tirelessly to empower others especially women from underprivileged backgrounds through industry initiatives and her eMentorMi platform.
As a previous member of the C-suite led Women in Technology (WIT) forum, she contributed to ways of addressing gender underrepresentation within Technology and continues to help influence early careers initiatives e.g. work experience, insight days, internships and the IT apprenticeship scheme. Bola regularly carves out time for young women, peers and potential returners to help them enter and navigate a male-dominated industry. She also volunteers as the founder and Co-Chair of Culture Club, creating an inclusive workplace for future generations through collaborations with stakeholders at all levels, gaining buy-in, and aligning D&I initiatives with overall business & D&I strategy. Bola has been instrumental in effecting rapid organisational change with the support and commitment of senior leadership.
Roselyn Baah | Seilern Investment Management Ltd
Roselyn is the founder of The GRC Network, a knowledge sharing and career advancement community for professionals in Governance, Risk, and Compliance within financial services. The platform builds on several years of expertise accumulated whilst working in the financial and legal sectors.
Roselyn began her career within the Regulatory Internal Audit team at Goldman Sachs. She is now a Senior Compliance Generalist and Advisor with experience developing compliance frameworks and heading the departments in small to medium-sized investment firms. In addition to her experiential learning Roselyn has acquired a CISI Diploma in Investment Compliance professional qualification along the way.
Roselyn has a glowing track record of leading various regulatory change implementation projects such as MiFID II, SMCR, Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR), and the UK Investment Firm Prudential Regime (IFPR). She currently holds a Compliance Oversight Officer (SMF 16) and Money Laundering Reporting Officer (SMF 17)) role at Seilern Investment Management, a boutique asset management firm. As a compliance generalist Roselyn has benefited from being exposed to various compliance areas and has been very passionate about the power of knowledge sharing within the risk and compliance space. She remains determined to impart this knowledge to the next generation through various workshops, events, and public speaking engagements.
Katja Oakley-Bell | Quilter Financial Planning
Katja Oakley-Bell is an investment analyst with Quilter Financial Planning and is a senior member of a team which manages the investment proposition for a large proportion of UK financial advisors.
I started my career at Quilter in 2019 as a temporary administrator to help process applications over tax-year end. In 3 years, I have trained and qualified as both a wealth and mortgage adviser and completed the Investment Management Certificate. I am currently studying a Level 3 Transformational Leadership Programme with Future Talent Learn. Recently I have taken on the training and development of two new team members, practically demonstrating my leadership abilities. My skills shine when I create innovative and creative solutions benefitting our clients, advisers, and colleagues, for which I have received both company and group level recognition.
My background was in studying Chemistry at university; unfortunately dealing with illness throughout forced me to pause my degree. Despite this, I was recognised as one of the top 20 female undergraduates in the country (Rolls Royce organised by TargetJobs) in 2017. I also sat as a registered company director and charity trustee on the board of the University’s student union and as a committee member in several societies. I have found great fulfilment, over the last 15 years, fundraising with Rotary, Guiding and my university as well as independently. Most recently my husband and I hiked 26 miles in the Lake District in a day to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support for our first wedding anniversary.
Beyond my day job, I have mentored several female colleagues; answering queries alongside specific interview preparation and have now initiated a working group to discuss how the company can help support and recruit more female advisers as well as support existing female staff. My experience is that many young people are uninformed and it’s becoming increasingly easy for inexperienced investors to take risks that they do not truly understand. Therefore, I have initiated a piece of research into younger people’s engagement and understanding of investments with a focus on cryptocurrency. My aim is that this research can provide a framework for further work in supporting and educating at-risk young people.
Starting in STEM and then progressing into finance, I am very used to being one of the only women in the room. This has driven me to push myself to a place where I can actively create opportunities for others; I believe that’s how we all succeed. True inspiration and innovation come when we not only hear everyone’s voices, but everyone feels empowered to speak.
Abbie Conneely | WTW
Like many others in insurance, I fell into the industry.
Having finished my degree in 2015, I Googled ‘careers with a geography degree’ and found the Marsh Graduate Scheme. Starting as a Client Executive, I seized my opportunities to grow professionally, viewing the industry from the top down - selected for an Executive Assistant placement for Joe Grogan and then taking a secondment to Burberry.
Now at WTW, and having worked in various roles in my six years in insurance, I appreciate the necessity to promote I&D at every opportunity. I constantly strive to attract and reach new talent by organising events, mentoring and writing blogs for the NGIN Committee and the CII Outreach team.
Nadia Kruger | PwC
After graduating from the University of Pretoria with an Honours degree in Accounting Sciences I started my career back in South Africa with KPMG, working in external audit for a number of years before moving to London. Shortly after moving I realised it was time to start a new journey into Financial Services Advisory, this is when I joined PwC.
For the past three years I’ve been helping my clients successfully navigate technical change as part of transformation, implementation and remediation programmes, within Insurance. I have led and managed large teams through complex programmes by leaning on the authentic professional relationships I’ve built. Using my extensive network enables me to deliver quality and excellence to my clients whilst also providing valuable industry insights. This, together with investing, coaching and mentoring my core delivery teams have been the key factors to success in my career.
Having met amazing people who have mentored and coached makes me passionate about ‘paying it forward’ to the next generation. Anyone who has met me knows that I have an enormous amount of positive energy. I use this to empower others with an attitude and mindset which enables them to bring their true authentic selves to work each day
Growing up in a very diverse culture has fueled my passion for Diversity and Inclusion. I am an advocate for challenging the status quo to generate positive change. I empower others to bring their true authentic selves to work. Using my role as Wellbeing lead for my business unit I facilitate leadership panels speaking on the impact of bias around gender, race and disabilities on mental health and work performance.
Aneesa Sharif | PwC
Since September 2016 I have been working in the PwC insurance audit practice. My focus has been on global insurance clients across both general and life insurance.
During my first two years at PwC, I split my time between the Insurance and the Stakeholder Assurance team within Asset Wealth Management. A turning point in my career came in 2019 when, having completed a particularly difficult insurance audit, I was given the opportunity to join the Stakeholder Assurance team within PwC. I decided to stay with the Insurance practice, despite knowing how challenging the work would be. I was keen to build on my experience and felt I had a clear idea of my strengths and how to build on them. I’ve felt the impact of my progress as my clients have fed back their appreciation for my ability to overcome challenges and deliver high quality work.
I’ve always understood the importance of taking every opportunity to build on my experience as well as the importance of knowledge sharing and collaboration. I’ve acted on this by leading regularly scheduled meetings for all Managers in the Insurance team. The purpose of these meetings is to discuss key technical issues and hot topics in the market; relating to both Lloyd’s of London Syndicates and the wider general insurance market.
Besides client work, I am devoted to the wellbeing of the teams I work with and have been working to break the stigma around mental health. One of the initiatives I implemented across my projects has been to introduce a 'team charter' setting out team behaviors. Individuals are encouraged to share their commitment to the team and are empowered to commit to certain boundaries for themselves.
I’m also passionate about Diversity & Inclusion. Knowing how important this is, I have led conversations, sharing my own experiences by opening up and showing vulnerability and encouraging regular discussions within my teams. In turn, I have built trust within my team, where we communicate openly about issues which may affect individuals in the workplace and work flexibly to support those from different experiences.
One of the things I’m most proud of is that I’ve been able to create a comfortable and safe working environment which in turn adds to the levels of collaboration on my team, delivering high quality audits for global insurance clients. Being told by team members that they want to continue working on my teams is fulfilling and makes me proud of all I have achieved.
Lastly, and perhaps the most rewarding and fulfilling job is my role as coach to 4 junior members of our audit practice. I support them throughout the year, but more prominently through our busy season which can be an adjustment for those who have just graduated from university or have not worked in a similar role before. This support may simply mean being there for a chat over a coffee, or guiding them to the appropriate PwC resources to help them with any hurdles they may face. I have continued this role even as those I have coached have left PwC and they continue to look to me for mentorship and professional advice.
Angel Zhou | Warwick Business School
I was a co-founded Shanghai Green Life Agri-tech Co - the first organic product company in China.
In a challenging market, opened 10 branches within three years and secured a US$1 million investment from Japan NIS Group. As a result, business now has 30 branches in China and has expanded overseas to Japan, increasing annual revenue to US$1.5 million.
Headhunted to be Secretary General for Guqin Culture Foundation China. Raised US$75,000 sponsorship from Bank of Beijing and led a further round of financing to secure US$18 million using Guqin as an investment tool. This enabled the foundation to underwrite the National Youth Guqin Culture Event 2012, enabling young people to be empowered through cultural identity.
Worked for Willis Towers Watson as a head of business development - China Global Practice, Increased total revenue in Chinese business by 90%, steered 38 significant government owned Chinese enterprises to follow. Strategic support alignment with Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Middle East.
Polo ambassador - First female polo player in China and winner of the first female Polo Tournament, Beijing 2010. Recruited, trained, and managed own polo team called ‘Phoenix Women Polo Team’ and led an overseas tour from China to the USA and UAE to promote the polo culture from China.
In my spare time, I enjoy travel, active outdoor sports and love life in general! As an animal lover, if my dog allows me, during weekends I can be found in the stables horse riding.
When I was young, thanks to my parents encouragement I learned calligraphy, painting and playing the piano - these experiences have played a key role in developing my focus, diligence and enthusiasm – now some of my key values together with positive outlook and curiosity.
Anya White
I joined r10 as a Marketing intern, with little prior knowledge but an interest to learn and develop.
Working with the wider r10 team, I gained understanding and knowledge from those around me, while always looking for opportunities to help and learn. Over the first few months, I taught myself many new skills and programmes and took courses to increase and develop my knowledge in the marketing space. I was able to offer ideas and helped develop the marketing capabilities and deliverables, allowing us to become a defined service that we could offer to clients. I have designed and implemented new processes to allow the marketing department to produce expert and informative material and content on an ongoing basis.
Through 2020 I scoped, planned, led and delivered a full company-wide rebrand to clearly define the r10 vision and create a brand for the future. This included a new website that experienced a 200% increase in engagement. I delivered a simple yet effective solution, designed to simplify our message while also providing processes and documentation that supported the knowledge and expertise of our team.
I’m keen to learn and develop my London Market knowledge and in the last four months I’ve completed several exams from the Chartered Insurance Institute, Netcall’s Low-code training programme, and Business Analysis training. These have allowed me to define my own career development plan. Through speaking with colleagues, and doing my own research, I have identified Business Analysis as my next challenge, and am actively working to develop my key skills and understanding to transition into this role, as it’s a shift from my current responsibilities.
Marzia Bolpagni | Mace
Marzia is a 33 years old qualified engineer specialised in Digital Construction and Infrastructure.
She is Head of Building Information Modelling (BIM) International at Mace where she implements digital technologies for five international hubs using shared digital representations of built assets to facilitate design, construction, and operation processes to support reliable decisions.
She received a MSc. in Building Engineering and a Ph.D. in ICT and Smart Construction, where she collaborated with the Massachusetts Port Authority and the UK Ministry of Justice.
She is Task Group Leader at the EU Committee for Standardization (CENTC 442) and lead author of the EU standard EN 17412-1 adopted also in the UK. She is also EU representative at the International Organization for Standardization ISO/TC 59/SC13. She is Assistant Editor of the BIMDictionary, Ambassador of the UK BIM Alliance and co-author of national Guidance. She is member of ACE Digital Transformation Group. She is STEM Ambassador and keynote speaker and lecturer in different universities. She is Chair of the European Council on Computing in Construction Modelling and Standards Committee, Honorary Lecturer at University College London and Visiting Professor at Northumbria University. Finally, she is Founder of Italians in Digital Transformations UK (IDTUK), a community of 250+ Italian professionals working in the UK.
She received several awards. Mace assigned her the prestigious Star Award as Digital Innovation Change Maker in 2019 and Ambition Maker in 2021. She is Inspiring50 by AccelerateHER, the Young Engineer of the Year 2021 and she received the Sir George Macfarlane Medal as overall winner by the Royal Academy of Engineering, ACE Emerging Professional of the Year and Woman of the Future for Construction, Infrastructure and Real Estate.