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3
ST EDWARD’S
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You are a member of the 2 Percent
Club in London, part of a national
network of females in business.When
did you first become involved with
the organisation?
I met with the founder of 2 Percent Club
in 2011 as she was looking to extend to
Scotland. I was asked by my then CEO and
the founder to act as Chair in the Scottish
arm of the organisation and it was a great
opportunity to develop a commercial
network based around gender to bring
together senior women across the
F E A T U R E S
professional services to discuss topics of
the day. When I returned to London in
2013 I moved to the London branch and
remain involved to this day.
How do you see your role in
relation
to gender equality?
I am an advocate both in work and in
the professional community for the
development and growth of balanced
businesses which is not only about gender
equality, but about inclusion across the
agenda. RBS now has 30% of senior roles
occupied by women, and I have played
a part in this. However, it is not down
to one person, but educating a wider
system. I do not believe in quotas, but
they are key to measuring progress.
Do you have any advice for pupils and
young OSE who want to work within
the financial sector?
Financial services is changing significantly, and
it is not the industry I joined and that many
OSE reading will remember. It is focused on
solving the needs of the customer irrespective
of size and complexity, and it serves a key role
in the economy and is increasingly returning
to community roots. There are multiple
avenues to take in financial services - I would
recommend not specialising too quickly. Do
your research. Do not get tempted by flash
headlines. It is a broad offering of careers from
IT to risk to commercial banking. If possible,
join a graduate programme or apprenticeship
as both offer a great breadth of experience,
training and structured support in the early
years of a career.
The Girls’ Hockey Team of 1988