"I am immensely proud of what I have tried to do to further the Women in Finance agenda across the sector and for subsequently gaining recognition for this work."
To celebrate the voting period of our 2020 Women's Recognition Awards, our first interviews are with previous winners of the FRWRAs, starting with Clare Jupp.
FR: Thanks for talking to us, Clare! What’s your current role and how long have you been in it?
I am director of people development for the Brightstar Group. I have been in this role for about five years, although involved with the business since outset.
FR: How did you first get into the financial services industry and why?
I worked in education for 16 years and am a fully qualified secondary headteacher. After taking a career break, I began some people development work and the creation of a people development culture with the (very small at that time) Brightstar team. As I had run my own training school, and therefore led on all aspects of training and development, many of the skills were fully transferable such as coaching, mentoring and goal setting.
FR: What achievement are you proudest of in your career to date?
Winning the ‘Sunday Times Best Small Company to Work for’ for the second consecutive year in 2020. For me, this award encapsulated our whole commitment to our people and our people development culture. A very close second, however, was being named Spokesperson of the Year at last year’s FRWRAs as I am immensely proud of what I have tried to do to further the Women in Finance agenda across the sector and for subsequently gaining recognition for this work.
FR: What’s the best piece of career advice you’ve ever been given?
Never been intimidated by anyone. Consider everyone to be your equal.
FR: If you had to sum up working in financial services in three words, what would they be?
'Work in progress'.
To nominate yourself or a woman in financial services for a Women’s Recognition Award, please visit www.frwra.co.uk.
