The central component of my professional life has been developing leadership relationships, built on trust. Living and working in London has been truly life-enriching, because getting to know people from all over the world has gifted me with an education into so many cultures.

I launched Elevate City in January 2018, motivated by my long-standing commitment to accelerate the pace of equality in the City of London’s Financial and Professional Services sectors. This motivation arose out of my personal observations, conversations with industry leaders, and experience – gained over 20 years in the City, establishing and managing specialist Risk and Compliance executive search firms (servicing some of the world’s largest financial and professional services organisations), and an early career role as a Director for a leading Operational Risk Management software and consulting firm, based in New York.

My time in both types of organisations identified a real need for women to network more effectively; the benefits derived are far reaching for individuals and for the industry overall. Women’s voices and expertise need to be shared and amplified too, not just in Risk and Compliance functions, but across a broader spectrum of financial services and related professional services roles. And for the numerous women who risk remaining invisible or overlooked for Managing Director and C-Suite appointments, we have devised a way to help, with the support of our Industry Partners.

This resulted in the launch of Elevate City Papers and our Quarterly Talent Review in early 2020; both are industry-first initiatives. In addition to Elevate City, with its focus on women in leadership, I also established “One City”, an equality leadership network, focussing on all nine protected characteristics of the UK Equality Act.

I hold a BA(Hons) in Business Administration, specializing in Human Resource Management. I’m the Managing Director of GIAN Consulting and an active member and participant in the Global Association of Risk Professionals (GARP) and the Professional Risk Managers International Association (PRMIA).