Our inaugural Women in Finance ranking spotlights influential women across various sectors, including government, business, finance and accountancy, who are all leaders, trailblazers and transforming their respective fields.
Earlier this month, we put forward a longlist of female leaders to an audience vote. This week we’ll be announcing the results of the vote – listing five women each day ahead of the full ranking release of the Top 20 Women in Finance 2018 on 29 March.
So, on day two, here are the five women who have been named in positions 11-15 – based entirely on your votes.
15. Nicky Morgan, MP, Chair of the Treasury Select Committee
Conservative MP Nicky Morgan was elected chair of the Treasury Select Committee in 2017, becoming the first woman to hold this position.
In this role Morgan examines the expenditure, administration and policy of HM Treasury, HMRC, and associated public bodies such as the Bank of England and the Financial Conduct Authority.
Recent inquiries launched by the committee include into SME finance and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin and its underlying blockchain technology.
She has also challenged the government on various facets of Brexit, particularly calling for clarity on behalf of business planning.
Morgan, a former corporate lawyer, has also been a champion of the Women in Finance charter, putting pressure on financial services firms to sign up.
Morgan has been MP for Loughborough since 2010 and has previously served in various positions in the Treasury and cabinet.
14. Liv Garfield, CEO, Severn Trent
Garfield became chief executive of Severn Trent Water in April 2014. Prior to joining Severn Trent, she was the chief executive of Openreach, a BT Group business, in which she spearheaded the £2.5bn commercial roll-out of fibre broadband to two thirds of the country.
At Severn Trent, she is a member of the corporate responsibility committee, driving the direction of the company’s corporate responsibility programme in line with the organisation’s Code of Conduct.
Garfield is a member of the prime minister’s business advisory group, which meets on a quarterly basis to foster an ongoing dialogue on economic concerns and priorities. She is also a member of the 30% Club, campaigning for better gender balance on company boards.
Garfield was also non-executive director of Tesco for two years, and she is the youngest chief executive in the FTSE 100.
13. Helena Morrissey DBE, Head of Personal Investing at Legal & General Investment Management
In 2017 Morrissey became head of personal investing at Legal & General Investment Management, joining from Newton where she held the position of CEO for 15 years.
Morrissey is a champion of workplace equality, and in 2010 she established the 30% Club to campaign for greater female representation on company boards. In the five years following its creation, the proportion of women on UK company boards doubled.
Her book A Good Time to be a Girl outlines how modern society might transform to being truly inclusive, presenting a manifesto for ensuring diversity and gender balance in the workplace to drive economic prosperity.
Morrissey is a member of the government’s Financial Services Trade and Investment Board, which examines how the UK can strengthen its position as the centre of global finance.
Morrissey was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2017 for services to diversity in financial services.
12. Inga Beale BDE, CEO, Lloyd’s of London
Beale became CEO of Lloyd’s of London in January 2014. She currently sits on the UK government’s Financial Services Trade and Investment Board, which aims to promote UK has a centre of global finance and ensure that the UK financial services sector delivers growth across the country.
At Lloyd’s, Beale has focused on promoting diversity and inclusion, improving representation of women in a traditionally male-dominated environment, and supporting LGBT rights. The Inclusion@Lloyd’s initiative aims to share best practice, widen perspectives and increase engagement, setting out a five-year roadmap for increasing diversity and inclusion.
The organisation signed became a signatory to the Women in Finance Charter in 2016, committing to at least 40% male and 40% female representation in senior management by 2021.
Beale is also a member of the London Mayor’s Business Advisory Board, the Geneva Association Board, and is president of the UK Chartered Insurance Institute.
She was made a Dame in the 2017 New Year’s Honours List for services to the economy, and regularly speaks on diversity and inclusion matters.
11. Liz Truss, MP, Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Conservative MP Liz Truss was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury after the 2017 general election, and in this role is responsible for public expenditure, women in the economy, tax credits policy, and more.
An unlikely social media star and champion of free enterprise, Truss holds the second most senior ministerial position in HM Treasury, after the Chancellor, and plays a key role in shaping the direction of the UK’s economic policy.
When Truss was appointed Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in 2014, she became the youngest female cabinet minister in British history.
Truss initially qualified as a management accountant and worked in the energy and telecommunications industry before moving on to become deputy director of think-tank Reform.
Truss entered parliament in 2010 as MP for South West Norfolk, a position she has since retained.
Find out who was named at 16-20 on Women in Finance 2018.