To mark Women’s History Month, we have invited people working at the BSB to offer their “Thoughts from the BSB on International Women’s Day.”
I am a senior leader at the BSB. I’m also an ethnic minority woman in my 40’s, a wife and mother to two small children. To me, IWD means recognising that I am all of these things and they all contribute to who I am as a leader.
31% of senior leadership roles are held by women and less than 10% of those by ethnic minority women. It’s well known that having more senior women leaders in a workplace improves performance, productivity, profit and well being. The reasons that glass (and sometimes concrete) ceilings continue to endure are well researched. Some of those reasons, and the ones I feel most strongly about, are empowering women, inclusive workplaces and role modelling. At the BSB I think we do a good job of empowering women and providing an inclusive workplace where women can balance work and home. As a senior leader, I aim to be a positive role model for women wanting to move up into management and leadership spaces. I want to empower women to do what they want on their terms, to be who they are and to have the opportunities to grow.
Saima Hirji, Interim Director of Regulatory Operations, BSB
