Author Archives: Emily Fermor

Women in high places: senior female role models are essential in business and politics

emma-walmsley-ccl-some-rights-reserved-by-gsk

Emma Walmsley – photo by GSK

This week Britain took a huge leap towards greater gender equality on management boards. It was announced that Emma Walmsley is to become the most powerful woman in the FTSE 100 as CEO of GSK next year, making her Britain’s most powerful business woman.

In an interview featured in BBC Radio 4’s profile of Walmsley, she appeared quick to play down the gravity of this moment: “I’ve never primarily defined myself by my gender… I think of myself as a business person”. I balked at this. For some women defined by their gender, whether they like it or not, this privilege is not often afforded.

Posted in Op-eds | 11 Comments
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