The 16 women leading Britain's top firms in the FTSE 350 in 2021

Latest data shows that there are just 16 women leading Britain's biggest 350 firms despite massive progress over the last decade.

The findings of the Hampton Alexander review reveal that there are now no all-male executive boards in the FTSE 350 after the last remaining firm Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings Plc welcomed a woman to the board in January.

But with just 16 female Chief Executives of the FTSE 350, gender balance at the very top of business remains exceedingly one sided.

And just four firms in the FTSE 350 have women in the post of Chief Executive and Chairman– insurers Admiral Group and Direct Line Insurance Group, as well as water firms Pennon Group and Severn Trent.

And the numbers got worse in February when Trainline boss Clare Gilmartin - who would have swelled the numbers to 17 - departed as Chief Executive.

She has been replaced by the company’s recently hired chief operating officer Jody Ford. However, Clare will stay on at the company as a senior adviser.

And with the proposed £1.1bn takeover of TalkTalk, the telecoms company will bow out of public ownership meaning the FTSE350 will have one less female boss in its CEO Tristia Harrison. That deal is due to come into effect on March 15.

We are running a series of articles in the days ahead to mark International Women's Day on March 8- starting with this article on why highlighting women's achievements still really matters. Follow us on social media, sign up to our newsletters or become part of our online community and join in the comments section.

These are the women leading the way in the FTSE 350

Jette Nygaard-Anderson- Entain Plc (FTSE 100)

Jette Nygaard-Andersen has become the latest woman to join the FTSE ranks after being named group CEO of the gambling company behind Ladbrokes and Coral in January.

She succeeds Shay Segev who left to join sports streaming platform DAZN . Jette has served as a non-executive director of Entain since 2019 and has guided the FTSE100 firm on its recent group transformation and development of its new corporate charter.

Nygaard-Andersen, a Danish national, previously chaired Danish e-sports team owner Astralis, and had senior executive roles at Modern Times Group, a Swedish media firm that also has e-sports interests.

Milena Mondini de Focatiis- Admiral Group (FTSE 100)

Milena became the insurance firm’s first female chief executive when she was appointed in March 2020.

Previously head of UK and European insurance, she fully took over from David Stevens when he stood down in December for a part-time consultancy role.

The Cardiff-based firm is the only company in the FTSE 100 to have its headquarters in Wales.

Ms Mondini de Focatiis has worked for Admiral since 2007 and was previously CEO of Admiral's Italian insurance business ConTe.it.

Milena has an MBA from INSEAD, and prior to Admiral, she worked as a consultant for Bain&Co.

Admiral also has a female chairman, Annette Court who joined in 2017.

Dame Emma Walmsley- GlaxoSmithKline (FTSE 100)

Dame Emma became Chief Executive of the FTSE 100 firm in 2017, joining from her role as CEO of GSK Consumer Healthcare, a Joint Venture between GSK and Novartis.

She joined GSK in 2010, after working for L’Oreal for 17 years where she held a variety of marketing and general management roles in Paris, London and New York. From 2007 she was based in Shanghai as General Manager, Consumer Products for L’Oreal China.

Emma joined the Microsoft board as an independent director in December 2019. She was a Non-Executive Director of Diageo plc from January to September 2016.

Emma was appointed Dame (DBE) in 2020 for services to the pharmaceutical industry and business.

Alison Rose- NatWest (FTSE 100)

Alison was named Chief Executive of FTSE 100 NatWest Group plc in 2019 having joined the bank as a graduate in 1992. The first woman to lead one of the UK’s big four banks, Alison has previously been shortlisted for the 'most influential woman in investment banking' award by Financial News, included in the Women in FinTech Powerlist and named in Vogue’s Top 25 Most Influential Women.

Alison’s diverse career at NatWest has included a number of senior leadership roles, including Deputy CEO NatWest Holdings, Chief Executive of Commercial & Private Banking, Head of Europe, Middle East and Africa, Markets & International Banking and Global Head of International Banking Capital and Balance Sheet.

A passionate supporter of diversity and executive sponsor for the bank’s employee-led networks, Alison was commissioned by the UK government to report on the barriers to women starting businesses. She now sits on the Rose Review Board and is responsible for driving forward its recommendations.

Alison sits on the Board of Directors for the Institute of International Finance and is a member of the International Business Council for the World Economic Forum. A Trustee of Business in the Community (BITC) and Chairman of the Scottish BITC Advisory Board, Alison is also a Non-Executive Director of Great Portland Estates plc and sits on the board of the Coutts Charitable Foundation.

Susan Davy- Pennon Group (FTSE 100)

Susan was appointed Chief Executive of the FTSE100 firm in July 2020, succeeding Chris Loughlin. Previously Pennon’s Chief Financial Officer for the previous five years, she joined the Group as Finance Director of South West Water in 2007. Her knowledge of the industry, coupled with her financial and regulatory expertise, has underpinned the development of Pennon’s strategy which has included the value creating acquisition of Bournemouth Water in 2015 and the successful Viridor disposal process, both of which she has led. In her 25 years experience in the utility sector, Susan has also held a number of other senior roles in the water sector, including at Yorkshire Water.

Under her guidance South West Water is the only water company to have achieved fast-track status for two consecutive business plans – the first in 2014, the second in 2019.

She is Chairman of the CBI South West, Non-Executive Director and Audit Chairman of Restore Plc and has previously been a member of the A4S (Accounting for Sustainability) CFO leadership network.

Pennon also has a female Chairman, Gill Rider, former head of the Civil Service Capability Group in the Cabinet Office.

Liv Garfield CBE - Severn Trent (FTSE 100)

Olivia (Liv) was appointed in 2014 at Severn Trent Water after serving as Chief Executive of Openreach, part of the BT Group, where she spearheaded and oversaw the commercial roll-out of fibre broadband to two-thirds of the country.

She joined BT in 2002 and held the pivotal roles of Group Director of Strategy and Regulation, Managing Director Commercial and Brands, Global Services and UK Customer Services Director. From 1998 to 2002, Liv worked for Accenture as a consultant in the Communications and High Tech Market Unit, designing and implementing business change solutions across a number of industry sectors.

In October 2020, Liv was appointed CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to the water industry.

Alison Brittain CBE - Whitbread (FTSE 100)

Alison joined Whitbread, the FTSE 100 firm behind Premier Inn, Costa Coffee and Whitbread Inns, in 2016 from Lloyds Banking Group, where she was Group Director of their Retail Division, with responsibility for the Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland retail branch networks, business banking and wealth businesses.

Prior to joining Lloyds Bank, Alison was Executive Director for Retail Distribution and Board Director at Santander UK PLC. She previously held senior roles at Barclays Bank. Alison was named ‘Business Woman of the Year 2017’ in the Veuve Clicquot awards and awarded a CBE in the 2019 New Years honours list.

Amanda Blanc- Aviva (FTSE 100)

Amanda her career as a graduate at one of Aviva’s ancestor companies, Commercial Union, working her way up the ladder across senior executive roles across the insurance industry before taking Aviva’s top job in July 2020.

Previously Group CEO at AXA UK, PPP & Ireland and CEO Europe, Middle East, Africa & Global Banking at Zurich Insurance Group, she has also held executive leadership positions at Towergate Insurance Brokers, Groupama Insurance Company and Commercial Union. Amanda was previously a management consultant at Ernst & Young, working on transformational assignments.

In 2020, Amanda was recognised by Forbes as one of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.

Penny James- Direct Line (FTSE 250)

Penny was Chief Finance Officer until her appointment as Chief Executive in May 2019. Her previous career included roles as Group Chief Risk Officer and Executive Director at Prudential plc, where she was responsible for leading risk oversight globally. Before this, she was Director of Group Finance at Prudential. Penny was previously Group CFO at Omega Insurance Holdings Limited and CFO, UK General Insurance, at Zurich Financial Services. She was a Non Executive Director of Admiral Group plc from 2015 to 2017.

Zillah Byng-Thorne- Future Plc (FTSE 250)

The chief executive of Future Plc, the magazine publisher behind titles including Marie Claire and Total Guitar has been in post since 2014 after joining from her role as Chief Finance Officer. She is a former Chief Financial Officer for Thresher Group Ltd, Chief Executive Officer at Auto Trader Holding Ltd. with senior positions at HMV and Waterstones.

Zillah is a non-executive Director of Paddy Power Betfair plc and Gocompare.com Group plc. She is a senior independent director of The Hut Group.

She is also a qualified accountant and corporate treasurer, and has an MSc in behavioural change and an MA in Management.

She is credited with turning the fortunes of the print and online portfolio around with a relentless focus on profit while still offering staff unlimited paid time off.

Helen Gordon- Grainger Plc (FTSE 250)

Helen was appointed Chief Executive of the FTSE 250 private rental homes provider in January 2016, joining from RBS where she spent five years as Global Head of Real Estate Asset Management. Former Director of Legal and General Property, she has been Group Property Director of Railtrack and Managing Director of John Laing Developments.

Helen has held a number of non-exec positions and Government appointments including President of the British Property Federation, the Board of Covent Garden Market Authority, Board of British Waterways and was a Trustee for The College of Estate Management for nine years.

Helen is an Honorary Fellow of University College of Estate Management and a chartered surveyor.

June Felix - IG Group Holdings (FTSE 250)

June took the top job at the online trading broker in October 2018, having previously served as a non-executive director for three years.

With a track record of growing and leading global financial services and tech companies, and living and working in Hong Kong, London and New York.

A former President of Verifone Europe and Russia, she has held executive management positions at Citibank, IBM Corporation and Chase Manhattan Bank.

She is a recipient of the Edison Award – an award honouring excellence in technological innovation and elected in the Innovators Hall of Fame for Banking Technology News.

In 2019, June was a finalist in the business category of the Asian Women of Achievement (AWA) awards. In 2016, June was recognised as the Most Influential Woman in Payments by PaymentSource and Source media. She is a founder of the Women’s European Network and elected to the Committee of 200 – an invitation-only membership organisation of the world’s most successful female entrepreneurs and corporate leaders.

Dame Carolyn McCall- ITV (FTSE 250)

Carolyn is the first female Chief Executive of ITV, joining in early 2018. She was previously Chief Executive of easyJet for 7 years. Under her leadership easyJet achieved record passenger numbers and record profits. The airline entered the FTSE 100 in 2013. Prior to joining easyJet, Carolyn was Chief Executive of Guardian Media Group plc.

In 2013, Carolyn was awarded the Airline Business ‘Airline Strategy Award for Low Cost leadership’, City AM’s Personality of the Year award and the Gold Medal Award from the Chartered Management Institute for her work in management. In 2014 she was the winner of the Business Achievement Award ‎at the British Travel Industry Hall of Fame Awards.

Carolyn was awarded a Damehood in the 2016 New Year Honours list.

Carolyn McCall was a non-executive board member of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) from 2017 to 2020.

Daphne Zohar- Puretech Health (FTSE 250)

The American entrepreneur is the founder of biotech firm Puretech Health, which went public in June 2015 and is a FTSE250 company.

The business develops medicines for serious illnesses under a number of brands including Akili, Karuna and Gelesis.

Starting with nothing and inspired by her father’s background as a scientific researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital and by her mother, a nursing home administrator, her ambition is to create a major pharmaceutical company.

According to Wikipedia, she has been named by the MIT Technology Review TR35 as one of the top innovators in the world under the age of 35. In 2010 she was selected by industry publication BioWorld , as one of 28 leaders predicted to be the "movers and shakers" of the biotechnology industry over the next twenty years.

Tristia Harrison- TalkTalk Telecom (FTSE 250)

Tristia initially headed TalkTalk’s consumer business before her appointment as Chief Executive at the Salford-based group in 2017, succeeding Dido Harding, the baroness heading the NHS Test and Trace programme.

She joined The Carphone Warehouse Group Plc in 2000 and has held a number of senior management and executive positions in The Carphone Warehouse and TalkTalk Group.

Tristia is an Independent Non-Executive Director at Next PLC and Trustee at Comic Relief, Ambitious about Autism and also sits on the Board of Trustees for Crisis, the national homeless charity.

A £1.1bn takeover bid will mean TalkTalk will no longer be in public ownership from March 15, if it goes ahead.

Rita Rose-Gagné - Hammerson (FTSE 350)

Gagné was appointed Chief Executive of property company Hammerson, owner of some of the UK’s largest shopping centres including Birmingham’s Bull Ring, in November.

She joined the firm from her role as president of growth markets at Ivanhoé Cambridge, a subsidiary of Canadian pensions giant Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec.

The pandemic has put pressure on the company with the ongoing shift to online shopping and many of its tenants falling into administration or unable to afford pay rent.

Before she joined Ivanhoé Cambridge in 2006, she held a variety of roles from Senior Vice President, Legal Affairs and General Counsel at Société immobilière Trans-Québec (SITQ) to Executive Vice President of Global Strategy, Portfolio Management and Investment Funds at Ivanhoé Cambridge.

Rita-Rose is also a lawyer and holds an MBA from McGill-HEC Montreal. During her career, she has worked in property markets across the world, including the UK, France and Germany, and her expertise spans across various asset classes and mixed-use assets, including residential, retail, office and logistics.

What measures can businesses take to support women in senior roles? Share your views in the comments section below