WEQUAL-GLOBAL
17.11.2020 15:44:08 CET | Business Wire | Press release
Twenty-four female executives of leading EMEA companies have been identified as having the leadership traits for top level C-suite positions. The WeQual Awards (www.wequal.com/awards ) identify already successful senior women who are one level below C-suite, and are aimed at tackling the slow progress in appointing women to executive roles.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201117005907/en/
A quarter of the winners of previous UK and US WeQual Awards have since been promoted to the executive committees of FTSE and Fortune 500 companies.
“The glass-ceiling concept has been an issue for decades, and the drop-off is steepest just below the C-suite, so I launched WeQual to champion gender equality at the top,” says Katie Litchfield , founder and CEO of WeQual.
The EMEA finalists are from a wide range of sectors and companies, including Orange, Unilever, Schneider Electric, Bayer Consumer Health, ENGIE, KCB Group, Sodexo, Enel Group, L'Oréal, Mondi Group, Bureau Veritas, Standard Chartered, Veolia Environnement, Ericsson, Fresenius Medical Care, AkzoNobel, Ooredoo Qatar, Danone, Aryzta.
The 24 finalists were assessed against seven criteria: Leadership, Cognitive Ability, Integrity, Drive & Resilience, Equality, Knowledge of the Business, and Personal Development. All candidates were assessed blind with no name or company revealed in their application.
Eight executive interviewers will hold 30-minute interviews with the three finalists in their category before each choosing a category winner: Brand Innovation, Commercial Performance, Digital Impact, Finance, Head of Region, People Excellence, Strategy Development, and Transformational Leadership.
The finalists will be announced in December 2020.
Among supporters of the awards are Ann Cairns, Executive Chair of Mastercard and Global Chair of the gender equality campaign group ‘30% Club’; Sir Ian Cheshire, Chairman of Barclays; Dame Inga Beale; and Ron Kalifa OBE of Network International. They are part of a roster of well-known C-suite executives who will now choose eight category winners.
Sir Ian Cheshire says: "These awards are among the first to target women at this level. We believe building awareness of these talented people, as well as connecting them to each other, is an important step in improving diversity at top levels of business.”
This senior group of 24 executives will become members of the WeQual Club and join the existing 72 senior FTSE and Fortune 500 female executives.
(Ends)
Notes to editors
Methodology: The eight assessment questions were developed from a research-based meta-analysis of the factors and characteristics that mark leaders as different from non-leaders (Kirkpatrick and Locke, 1991). They were designed to help the women best describe how they deliver on leadership characteristics and how they are seen by others as a leader, and indeed engage people who see them as fit to lead.
About WeQual
WeQual's mission is to make businesses more inclusive by identifying exceptional women executives and address the gender imbalance across the world's Executive Committees. Katie Litchfield, founder and CEO of WeQual Awards, devised the new platform which calls for women senior executives to build their case as to why they are deserving to be appointed to the Executive Committee.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201117005907/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
OpenGate Capital to Acquire Maersk Training, the Global Safety Training and Gas-Safety Services Business of Maersk10.8.2026 08:00:00 CEST | Press release
OpenGate Capital (“OpenGate”), a global private equity firm, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Maersk Training and its subsidiary Maersk H2S Safety Services. The company, a provider of global safety training and gas safety services, is being carved out from A.P. Møller - Mærsk A/S (MAERSK A:CPH), a listed integrated logistics company. Headquartered in Svendborg, Denmark, Maersk Training is a leading global provider of essential safety services that operates through two complementary business segments. The first segment, Maersk H2S Safety Services, is a specialist provider of outsourced hydrogen sulphide and Health, Safety and Environment safety services, which include onsite supervision, monitoring and safety equipment maintenance for customers in high-risk operating environments. The second segment, Training Business, is a global provider of safety training, competency development and simulation, delivered through instructor led, digital and virtual
Ant International’s Bettr Partners with Muslim Pro to Introduce Umrah Financing Service in Malaysia10.8.2026 05:49:00 CEST | Press release
Bettr, a leading provider of inclusive and embedded finance and fintech solutions under Ant International, today announced its partnership with Muslim Pro, a popular Islamic lifestyle app serving over 190 million downloads worldwide, to launch an Umrah financing solution in Malaysia. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260809780047/en/ Ant International's Bettr and Muslim Pro launch an Umrah financing solution in Malaysia to help families better manage their cash flow and spread pilgrimage costs responsibly. The solution is designed for eligible Muslims who have the means to undertake the pilgrimage but prefer to spread its cost over time. This flexibility enables individuals and families to manage their cash flow responsibly, maintain regular savings and preserve sufficient liquidity for emergencies and other financial obligations. The launch marks a significant milestone in Bettr’s Islamic finance initiative and
ICC Arbitral Tribunal Issues Quantum Award for AOP Health in BESREMi® Proceedings7.8.2026 19:48:00 CEST | Press release
An ICC Arbitral Tribunal has awarded AOP Orphan Pharmaceuticals GmbH (“AOP Health”) a total of about EUR 112 Mio in a quantum award issued in the ongoing arbitration proceedings with PharmaEssentia Corp. (“PharmaEssentia”) concerning BESREMi® (ropeginterferon alfa-2b). The award quantifies AOP Health’s damage claims for PharmaEssentia’s intentional breaches at ca. EUR 82 Mio. It also awards AOP Health ca. EUR 31 Mio plus interest as reimbursement for AOP Health overpayments made to PharmaEssentia as a result of excessive pricing in the years 2019-2022. The Tribunal thereby confirmed that PharmaEssentia has been overcharging AOP Health by up to 900% over these years. The Tribunal affirmed AOP Health's valid set-off of the profit-sharing payments amount owed to PharmaEssentia of approximately EUR 17 Mio against AOP Health's substantially exceeding damages claims. This means that AOP Health shall not make any payment to PharmaEssentia. Interest on AOP Health’s claims will continue to accr
Coulson Aviation Canada Acquires 10 Former RCAF Hercules, Doubling C-130H Fleet7.8.2026 19:16:00 CEST | Press release
Canadian-led expansion will build the world’s largest and most capable C-130 airtanker fleet Coulson Aviation Canada, the Canadian division of Coulson Aviation, has acquired 10 former Royal Canadian Air Force CC-130H Hercules aircraft from the Government of Canada. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260807019094/en/ Britton Coulson, left, and Wayne Coulson stand in front of one of 10 former Royal Canadian Air Force CC-130H Hercules aircraft recently acquired by Coulson Aviation from the Government of Canada. At right is a Coulson C-130H outfitted for aerial firefighting with the company’s proprietary RADS-XXL retardant delivery system, capable of carrying up to 4,000 U.S. gallons, or more than 15,000 litres, of water or fire retardant. The acquisition doubles Coulson’s global C-130H fleet to 20 aircraft, expanding its capacity to build the world’s largest C-130 airtanker fleet. The acquisition doubles Coulson’s g
Energy Vault Announces Strategic Agreement to Deploy 1.25 GW of Integrated Power Infrastructure for Hyperscaler AI Data Center with Leading Power Generation EPC Deploying Caterpillar Gensets7.8.2026 18:16:00 CEST | Press release
Partnership combines Energy Vault's FEOC-compliant BESS, grid-forming PCS, and AI infrastructure control software with partner’s turnkey power generation, Caterpillar gensets and EPC capabilitiesReference architecture delivers firm grid-independent power, essential grid stabilization and load balancing to deliver modular, scalable, gigawatt-scale AI campuses with "always-on" availabilitySecond strategic framework agreement together advances Energy Vault's AI infrastructure strategy and establishes a repeatable “speed-to-power” deployment platformInitial 1.25 GW is backed by a hyperscaler customer contract for deployment in TexasEnergy Vault expects a revenue impact of ~$500 - $600 million in 2H 2026 and 2027, which will be discussed during the upcoming earnings call on August 11, 2026 Energy Vault Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: NRGV) ("Energy Vault"), a global leader in sustainable energy infrastructure, today announced the execution of a strategic commercial agreement under which Energy Vault
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom