2022’s Rising Star Awards Winners Unveiled

An Antarctica adventurer, ambassador for the Captain Tom Foundation and a student supporting Afghan refugees are just some of this year’s WeAreTheCity’s Rising Star Awards winners

Now in its eighth year, the 2022 Rising Star Awards, are the first to focus on the UK’s female talent pipeline below management level. Through these awards, the UK celebrates 100 individual female contributors that represent the leaders and role models of tomorrow.

WeAreTheCity hopes that these awards not only raise the profile of the shortlist and winners, but also encourage organisations to consider how they strengthen the development of their female pipeline for the future.  Over 1,000 individuals entered the awards this year, who were judged by a panel of over 40 independent judges. Over 35,000 public votes of support were received for the 200 shortlisted nominees from across 115 countries.

SHOWCASING REMARKABLE & TALENTED WOMEN

The list of winners showcases remarkable women within the UK from across 20 categories representing different industries and professions. Those highlighted include Ebinehita Iyere, founder of Milk Honey Bees, working with young people who encounter the youth justice system and those who are impacted by violence in the community; Chanelle Smith, a medical student who is an ambassador for the Captain Tom Foundation and features in the children’s book honouring Captain Sir Tom Moore; and law student Sheekeba Nasimi, who leads the legal clinic at the Afghanistan and Central Asian Association, a charity dedicated to improving the lives of Afghans and all refugees in London.

The awards also include a Company of the Year prize, awarded to r10 Consulting. r10 is a management consultancy, focused on helping the global insurance market embrace change through business and technology transformation.

RISING STAR CHAMPIONS

This year’s awards also recognise five Rising Star Champions, who are actively supporting the progression of women in the workplace. These include Kanika Selvan, Associate Director of Data and Technology at the University of Sheffield, the youngest member of her leadership team and a committed advocate for diversity; Sam Cooper-Gray, Global Head of Market Strategy and Engagement at HSBC, where she advocates for male allyship across the firm through their global Balance network; and Marie Hemingway, founder and CTO of the award-winning not-for-profit, Speak Out Revolution.

Additionally, the awards celebrate women around the world the Global Award for Achievement category. This year’s winners include Anna Raduloski, who founded WomenTech Network, a woman-led and woman-focused organisation to empower women globally through mentorship, career development and networking; Aparna Saroagi, who is spearheading inclusive workplace practices at NatWest in India; and Jennifer Kent, a senior associate in Latham’s Washington, DC office, who is passionate about advancing diversity and inclusion in the legal profession.

The award also honours and celebrates senior men who are championing women and gender balance either inside or outside their organisation, through the Men for Gender Balance award. Winners for this category include Richard Pickard, Founder of Inclusive Search, an advocate for TLA Black Women in Tech and the 30% Club, and the author of the ‘Exceptional Female Role Model’s interview series; Lee Chambers, a psychologist, coach and founder of Essentialise Workplace Wellbeing, a wellbeing and inclusion consultancy; and William Torrie who serves as the UK Deputy Chair for Barclay’s Win group and is widely recognised for his campaign for gender equality.

REWARDING GENDER EQUALITY EFFORTS

WeAreTheCity also revealed the Editor’s Choice winners. This award recognises individuals who have been specifically selected by the leadership team at contribution and tireless efforts towards gender equality, both in the workplace and across wider society.

This year’s winners include Preet Chandi, who recently became the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition in Antarctica; Ian Clarke, Founder of Deilight Consulting, who holds the Millennium Volunteers Award for Excellence for a lifetime dedicated to mentoring, coaching and counselling disadvantaged young people and their businesses; and Frances Scott, founder and director of 50:50 Parliament, who is a passionate advocate for gender equality of representation.

“I am so proud that for the eighth year running WeAreTheCity has been able to shine a light on the achievements of so many remarkable women across the UK,” stated Vanessa Vallely OBE, Managing Director of WeAreTheCity. “Our 2022 winners join a phenomenal alumnus of 750 previous winners who continue to soar, both professionally and personally. I am ecstatic to welcome our 2022 winners to the WeAreTheCity family and to watch them progress into the senior positions they so rightly deserve.”

2022’s RISING STAR WINNERS

Here are this year’s Rising Star Award winners (by category):

Banking & Capital Markets

1. Aneesah Sarwar, Barclays
2. Ashwitha Bingumalla, Instinet
3. Hema Sood, Morgan Stanley
4. Rugiyya Gahramanli, London Stock Exchange Group
5. Xanthe Blain, NatWest

Charity & Not-For-Profits

1. Chloe Jones, Autism Together
2. Hannah John, Black Cultural Archives
3. Jenna Rainey, The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award
4. Molly Dawson, UK Youth
5. Sheekeba Nasimi, Afghanistan and Central Asian Association

Defence

1. Chloe Mae Austin, Babcock Land Defence
2. Chloe Stephens, Ministry of Defence
3. Kate Redfern, British Army
4. Kinjal Dave, BAE Systems Digital Intelligence
5. Yvette Kemp, British Army

Digital

1. Adetola Shasanya, PepsiCo
2. Cheyenne Clark, Zone
3. Georgia Mantzana, London Borough of Havering
4. Karamjot Jaswal, IBM
5. Sarah Slack, Homes England

Diversity

1. Annika Allen, Barclays
2. Aurelie Herrero, Bloomberg
3. Nisha Long, Citywire
4. Priyaneet Kainth, GlaxoSmithKline
5. Shruti Saujani, England and Wales Cricket Board

EA & PA

1. Chantalle Sullivan, Industrial Construction (Sussex) Ltd.
2. Hettle Vasani, Coty Inc.
3. Kallie Halai, Arup
4. Kelly Fox-Petersen, Tate & Lyle
5. Philippa Allen, Epic Games Animation UK Limited

Education & Academia

1. Adele Bates, Behaviour & Education Specialist
2. Ebinehita Iyere, Milk Honey Bees
3. Hei Wan Mak, University College London
4. Nicole Ponsford, Global Equality Collective
5. Sarah Chapman, 3M

Energy & Utilities

1. Judith Pomfret, Cavendish Nuclear
2. Lauren Neal, BP
3. Lucia Urra Viana, Scottish Power
4. Rimi Bassi, National Grid
5. Sherena Masharani, Centrica Plc.

Entrepreneurs & Startups

1. Abbie Hills, The Dazey Hills Company
2. Greta McDonald, Sweet Lounge
3. Indie Gordon, Foundervine
4. Michelle Leivars, The Soap Sponge Company
5. Nicole Dellipiani, Bump to Bambino

Healthcare

1. Abigail Swerdlow, Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust & East London NHS Foundation Trust
2. Bhairavi Sapre, Ministry of Defence/British Army
3. Chanelle Smith, NHS
4. Jessica O’Logbon, King’s College London
5. Victoria Kinkaid, Ministry of Defence/British Army

Hospitality

1. Georgina Warren, IHG Hotels and Resorts
2. Joanna Wales, Ascot Racecourse
3. Lucy Nowak, Ferdi Restaurant
4. Raven Cooke-Handley, Soho House
5. Rhianna Dineen, Ashton Gate Limited

Infrastructure, Transport & Logistics

1. Amy Baker, National Highways
2. Emily Jones, Atkins
3. Marny Moruzzi, Mott MacDonald Ltd./ Women in Transport
4. Marzia Bolpagni, Mace
5. Rupali Sharma-Patel, Transport for London

Insurance

1. Abbie Conneely, WTW
2. Aneesa Sharif, PwC
3. Angel Zhou, Warwick Business School
4. Anya White
5. Nadia Kruger, PwC

Investment Management Award

1. Bola Adesina, LGIM
2. Katja Oakley-Bell, Quilter Financial Planning
3. Philippa Allen, Aon
4. Roselyn Baah, Seilern Investment Management
5. Sarah Woodard, H.I.G. Capital

Law (The Lynne Freeman Award)

1. Egbe Manton, Manton Legal Consultancy
2. Iona Gallagher, Covent Garden Family Law
3. Kelly Knight, Reed Smith
4. Lynette Wieland, Browne Jacobson
5. Molly Scanlon, The Wine Society

Professional Services

1. Adina Pintilie, Ridgeway Information
2. Candida Paiva, PwC
3. Catherine Kenny, EY
4. Claire Magudia, Aon
5. Gemma Timmons, Oliver Wyman

Science & Engineering

1. Bamidele Farinre, UKHSA
2. Caitlin McCall, The Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC)
3. Diviya Devani – Q-CTRL
4. Lisa-Jayne Cook, GEA Heating and Refrigeration Technologies
5. Lynette Kebirungi, Rolls-Royce Plc.

Technology

1. Akua Opong, London Stock Exchange Group
2. Avye Couloute, Girls Into Coding
3. Harshitha Shivakumar, IBM
4. Ria Johal, Amazon
5. Siobhan Duncan, Robotical Champions
6. Karen Holden, A City Law Firm
7. Kanika Selvan, University of Sheffield
8. Kirsty Moore, HSBC
9. Marie Hemingway, Speak Out Revolution
10. Sam Cooper-Gray, HSBC

Company of the Year Award

• r10 Consulting

All Other Industries

1. Chanise Evans, BBC
2. Kirsty Wigley-Smith, Logicmonitor
3. Laura Mahoney, Browne Jacobson LLP
4. Louise Farrow, British Army
5. Trudianne Bedward, BBC

Men for Gender Balance Award

1. Daniel Lopez Rovira, OLIO
2. Lee Chambers, Essentialise Workplace Wellbeing
3. Richard Pickard, Inclusive Search
4. Stephen Gill, Salamander Limited
5. William Torrie, Barclays

Global Award for Achievement Award

1. Anna Radulovski, WomenTech Network
2. Aparna Saroagi, NatWest
3. Jennifer Kent, Latham & Watkins
4. Neha Malhotra, JP Morgan Chase
5. Patrizia Capogreco, 3M

Editor’s Choice Award

1. Caroline Graham, Barclays
2. Cat Wildman, Global Equality Collective
3. Frances Scott, 50:50 Parliament
4. Ian Clarke, Deilight Consulting
5. Preet Chandi, British Army

AWARD SPONSORS & CEREMONY

The 2022 awards are powered by Royal Bank of Canada (headline sponsor). “Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) is delighted to be powering the Rising Stars Awards for the third year and extended our partnership through to 2024,” stated Dave Thomas, CEO Europe, Capital Markets & Wealth Management, Royal Bank of Canada. “These awards are critical to celebrate and showcase incredible talent across multiple industries in the UK, something that is particularly important during these challenging times. Diversity and inclusion is more than just a value at RBC. It’s our strength; and it’s one of the ways we bring our purpose of helping clients thrive and communities prosper to life.”

Other category sponsors include an array of leading FTSE 100 companies and industry leaders: 3M, Accenture, Barclays, Bloomberg, The British Army, Citi, CMI Women, EPAA, Funding Circle, GSK, Highways Sector Council, HSBC, Lloyd’s, London Stock Exchange Group, Marie Claire, National Grid, Northern Trust, Oliver Wyman, Pan Pacific London, Reed Smith, Streets Consulting, Warwick Business School, and Wellbeing of Women.

This year’s winners, judges, sponsors and supporters will be invited to a prestigious ceremony on 14 July at Pan Pacific Hotel, Bishopsgate, London.

Check out the last year’s WeAreTheCity Awards Winners here.