Gill Cooke | Three UK / STEMConnext
Gill Cooke has had a career of two halves, she spent 10 years in TV production, working for Carlton TV, Princess Productions and Endemol.
After redundancy, she moved into Telecommunications and over the course of another 10 years is now Head of Digital Planning & Delivery at Three UK. Gill has worked flexibly throughout her career at Three demonstrating that outcomes are more important than hours in the office.
Gill is incredibly passionate about helping people and making the world a better place to work for everyone. Gill's own background is diverse, from being brought up in Africa, studying Islam and Arabic and experiencing prejudices first-hand! Gill drives the conversation about diversity, inclusion and belonging at work, in her social circles and as part of her side-hustle, raising topics such as menopause at work, Neurodiversity and supporting diverse recruitment.
In her role as Head of Digital Planning and Delivery, she acts as a mentor and coach - most especially to the younger females and BAME community.
Gill drives the Women in Tech at Three agenda which champions role-models, flexible working, pay-gap challenges, diversity & belonging for all and supports all women and minorities in their career journey at Three. She was fundamental in setting up a Business Volunteer programme to go into schools and the community. She is also a Mental Health First Aider.
Gill founded STEMConnext in 2018, her mission is to connect people in STEM: remove barriers, change thinking and demonstrate how diversity and inclusion benefits everyone.
Sophie Ward | Sophantastic
My name is Sophie Ward, from Lancashire. I am 26 years old & suffer with Lyme Disease.
I have suffered with Lyme since I was 14 but was only diagnosed at the age of 23. It has turned my world, upside down. The disease is slowly killing me as it attacks my organs. I have become so grateful everyday & it has been my rocket fuel for my work. I blog about my personal journey. I host my Chronic But Iconic podcast channel, where I share chronic illness stories, I work for two charities Lyme Disease UK and Invisiyouth. Invisiyouth is a charity that support youths and young adult battling invisible illnesses find purpose in life again! Every important to me. I adore travel and always have. With my health declining rapidly, I haven’t been able to do as much in recent years as I would have liked. I went on a cruise last year and was catered for SO well! I had the best trip!! The sun is also the only thing that gives my body that dose of vitamins it needs to keep stable. At present no treatment really aids my health. This inspired me to go home and train to become an independent travel agent so I could get more chronic illness warriors out exploring the world and beyond their front door. This is important to me because sufferers often feel isolated, their lives not worth fighting for and I wanted to add that sparkle back for them but also ensure the carer’s and parents had fun too. So I trained and passed all my exams. I now book travel for a lot of chronic illness sufferers who before now thought they would NEVER travel again. I am managing to build up their confidence and give them a sense of life back. I also am now coaching others many chronic sufferers how to become agents themselves and earn an income from home, be their own boss & work their own hours around their health. Because treatments are EXPENSIVE & we can’t work a normal 9-5 job. My goal in all the work I do is to help create some form of life for myself but most importantly inspire others & empower them to do the same. I don’t just coach them on agent training however, I try to empower them to dig deeper and build up their self-worth, work our their self-development so they feel like themselves again but even stronger. Chronic illness is devastating & can seem like a life sentence for so many. My aim is to add the sparkle & sunshine back into their lives. Let them experience the world and happiness they have forgotten they deserve. Nothing makes me happier than seeing pictures of memories from a trip, seeing people grow their businesses & gain their sense of pride back. Hearing people can relate to my content & have gained value from it. I use my passions to feed my soul but also to drive my mission to help others. I never stop raising awareness for Lyme disease. Hosting charity events & lighting up landmarks like Blackpool tower to raise awareness. I give talks in schools and to businesses to educate them and have also had the pleasure of being interviewed on BBC Breakfast, Sky News and ITV North West Tonight. I adore all the work I do but becoming an independent agent has really ‘brought Sophie back to life’ I am feeding my passion, building up my own self-development and I am encouraging others to do the same. I hope to empower others that we should never dampen down our dreams. Never STOP dreaming & believe we can’t because of our health. I want to put the ‘I can!’ Back in people’s lives and see them glow again. Because we ALL deserve that.
Taslima Khan | Taslima K
I am Taslima Khan, a social entrepreneur, founder of TASLIMA K; a conscious fashion label, fashion designer, an activist and public speaker.
My fashion label is a way of showcasing my activism. We engage fashion and politics to create awareness on different social issues. We travel to the source of our inspiration with different charities/organisations and learn about the situation within these countries. We tell the stories with our collection to share with the rest of the world, creating acknowledgement and build support. We give back to the source of our inspiration from the sales made. All ethically designed and handmade by me.
I graduated in fashion design and marketing and I am very creative. Yet very much into politics, campaigning and charity work.
I started volunteering and campaigning from the age of 16, and through out my life I have always spoken out about injustice and what I believe in (HUMAN RIGHTS), I would volunteer when I can and would take things into my own hands to campaign.
I have worked on various human rights campaigns such as female empowerment, cyber bullying, racism, genocide, anti-knife crime, general election on encouraging young people to vote, started my own movement on mental health awareness in St Lucia. Written reports for the United Nations on immigration, Kenny Report 3 on gender inequality. I am a Prince's Trust ambassador. Fellow and have done ambassador work for Uprising Uk, o2 Think Big, Yunus and Youth fellowship, Envision. I have facilitated workshops and mentored young people from year 10 to university students for their next steps.
Through my work I have the power to relate to young people that look like me and work with people in power within the parliament and big corporations who need our help to make a change in the world we live in.
I know my purpose in this world is to create a positive change.
Chloe Selvey | HSBC
Chloe joined HSBC Private Banking (PBUK) on the graduate programme almost 5 years ago, and has progressed rapidly since then to become the youngest Investment Counsellor in PBUK, providing investment advice to High Net Worth Individuals.
During that time Chloe also became fully CFA qualified passing all exams on first attempt, as well as completing her PCIAM and IAD Wealth Management exams. Prior to this Chloe studied Economics at Warwick University. Chloe takes a lead role in mentoring her more junior colleagues, particularly female graduates and interns in order to encourage more women to join the investment team and finance more broadly. Chloe also plays an active role in the recruitment process of graduates and interns, and has been a panellist at diversity events looking to provide an insight into banking for young women who typically haven’t had these opportunities in the past. Chloe is an active member of PBUK’s Balance Committee (an employee network focusing on gender diversity), where she spent 3 years co-running the mentoring programme with c. 100 participants each year, growing participation levels in the scheme and providing opportunities for connection across the organisation. She has also organised many inspirational speaker events, and launched a Book Club collaboration for books with a focus on gender in order to widen the conversation around diversity.
Tahia Tahmin | Sanlam Investments
My attraction to the world of finance stemmed from an early age and was confirmed when I had chosen to study Economics at the University of Portsmouth.
Throughout the course my passion grew, and I continued to peruse a Masters in Finance for which I earnt the highest grade in the programme and was presented an award for this achievement at graduation. In September 2017, I began my professional career at Sanlam Investments working in the Fund Operations team. During this role I highlighted my passion and desire to learn the investment side of the business. The opportunity as an Investment Support Analyst within the Wealth Multi-Asset team to help manage a range of risk-graded managed funds solutions had become available. Being the only female, youngest and least experienced on the Fund Operations team, I was overjoyed and proud to have been accepted in the role in just under two years. My one-year anniversary in the investment role is fast approaching and I am overwhelmed at how much I have learnt and grown as a person. During this time, I have completed the IMC Qualification and currently studying to take the CFA Level I exam in June 2020. I am extremely appreciative and proud to be working alongside four experienced fund analysts and portfolio managers, as well as thankful to the business for presenting me with this opportunity.
Salena Lee | Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets
Determined from a young age to work in Washington DC, Salena graduated from high school early at the age of 17 to pursue a bachelors and then a Masters degree in Politics which she finished at the age of 21.
Instead of DC, she ended up in a foreign direct investment role in state government managing inbound investments from Germany, France, and Italy in automotive, racing, orthopedics, and advanced manufacturing.
Unexpectedly drawn to the business side of her role, Salena decided to pursue a Masters in Advanced Finance at IE University in Madrid, the world's 3rd ranked finance program in 2016, her year of graduation. During that time she participated in a microfinance consulting project in Ghana, sparking her passion for sustainability and responsible investing.
This passion led her to a revenue-generating role in renewable energy principal investing at Macquarie Capital in 2017, the year of Macquarie's landmark privatization of the Green Investment Bank. In 2018 she pivoted again to a role in Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets, the largest infrastructure manager in the world, to facilitate the merger integration of GLL, a Munich-based real estate investment platform.
Salena is passionate about D&I and equal opportunity and has sat on the steering committee for Fusion, Macquarie EMEA's Ethnic, Religious, and Cultural diversity employee network group, for most of her time with the firm. She has facilitated programming around connecting colleagues of differing background (the Know Your Colleague series of panel discussions, roundtables, and 1:1 coffee chats) as well as cultural events such as performances and programming for Black History Month, Eid, Diwali, Chanukkah, and others. She currently mentors four young women embarking on their careers: one in tech, two in front-office financial services roles, and one in politics.
Shannon Love | TwentyFour Asset Management
After completing her LLB law degree, Shannon began her career on the Morgan Stanley Graduate Scheme before moving to TwentyFour Asset Management in 2017.
We nominate Shannon Love, as we believe she demonstrates a variety of attributes which mark her out as a role model today, and as a future leader within the industry. Shannon’s qualities include her proactive attitude and positive mind-set, her application and endeavour towards resolving any issue, her natural inquisitiveness to discover and understand new concepts, and her naturally open and friendly demeanour.
For these reasons, Shannon has quickly established a large footprint upon our organisation in an impressively short space of time, as a leader within her current function, but also with her significant contributions to a number of projects and initiatives which sit outside of her immediate remit. Examples include sitting on the TwentyFour ESG working group, with a significant contribution towards implementation of a number of ESG initiatives. Shannon also plays a key role on the Product Governance Committee and is the firm’s first Charity Co-ordinator, organising a number of charitable initiatives to raise funds for worthy causes.
Additionally, Shannon has recently increased her engagement with our parent company, Vontobel Group, including involvement on a group-level international regulatory steering group. Shannon has been instrumental in the training and development of new team and company members, particularly those in TwentyFour’s graduate programme, whom she has helped integrate into the firm and provided guidance and advice to.
For all manner of reasons not limited to those described above, we feel that Shannon is an outstanding nomination for the Rising Star Award.
Hasmeen Deol | Capital Dynamics
Hasmeen Deol is a Clean Energy Infrastructure Product Specialist at Capital Dynamics and is a member of the Responsible Investment Committee and Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
She has over 7 years of experience working in alternative investments. Within her role she has raised funds for renewable energy projects in Europe and has promoted firmwide responsible investment initiatives. She has led key initiatives including the issuance of the first firmwide diversity survey and the issuance of a statement placing increased focus on labour practices throughout the supply chain. She also led a project to create the firm’s Environmental Benefits ticker, which illustrates carbon offset by renewable energy projects on the website. Hasmeen enjoys working in a role that is assisting the goal of combating climate change and is dedicated to responsible investment.
Hasmeen also founded the online bespoke womenswear company, Drapery London, promoting body confidence through the concept of ‘size you’. She is passionate about helping others and serves as a Board Trustee for Homestart UK and has previously served as a mentor for the Prince’s Trust. She subsequently co founded the local mentoring program, H squared, which encourages female students to broaden their horizons and learn about various career opportunities.
Prior to joining Capital Dynamics, she worked in investment management, managing a portfolio of investments across renewable energy, regulated utilities, ports and transport infrastructure. Earlier in her career, she worked as an Alternative Investment Funds Relationship Manager at Citigroup. Hasmeen holds a First Class Honors bachelor’s degree in Mathematics with Management & Finance from King’s College London.
Carolina Escudero | Vattenfall
I'm an electrical engineer with a masters in sustainable technology and work for Vattenfall which is a Swedish Energy company.
I currently work in the Networks department which is a new business unit set up in the UK for electricity distribution networks. We work to own, operate and maintain distribution networks (both private and independent) on behalf of customers.
My role as a Business Development Manager is to find technical and commercial solutions to enable the decarbonization of heavy transport via electrification. I'm particularly interested in electrification of marine transport and I am very proud of the impact we can make to slow down climate change. I have worked in transmission and distribution most of my career both in Colombia (where I'm from) and here in the UK.
I'm also a keen volunteer and council member of the Women's Engineering Society and actively organise events to promote women in engineering.
Alero Abe | Shell
Alero Abe is a Front End Development Manager with Shell, responsible for managing multidiscipline teams and engaging with internal and external stakeholders, to achieve project goals and objectives.
Born in Lancaster, England to working parents, who instilled in her the values of hardwork, resilience under pressure, pursuing her dreams and embracing opportunities to develop herself, she decided to pursue a career in Engineering.
After completing a first degree in Chemical Engineering and a master’s degree in Petroleum Engineering at Imperial College London, she started her career as a Process Engineer. Alero has worked in the oil and gas industry for 19 years in several project management roles, across several locations which include; United Kingdom, Netherlands, Kazakhstan, United Arab Emirates and Iraq. She has used her international exposure to share her knowledge across geographical boundaries and has always been conscious of the opportunities to be a role model at these locations.
Alero is motivated by developing solutions to complex problems and is passionate about mentoring and developing others. She is committed to her continuous professional development and has recently commenced an MBA Programme at Warwick Business School to further develop and enhance her business skills.
She is married with two children and enjoys travel and culture.