At Headstar, we’ve always been driven to go beyond traditional recruitment – we want to play a role in shaping the future of finance. That’s why we created HerFinance Circle, a peer-led community for senior female finance leaders and aspiring CFOs in Yorkshire that aims to help more women reach the very top in finance.
Building Momentum
Since its launch, HerFinance Circle has been gaining traction across the region and has recently been featured in Yahoo News, Global Woman Leader, the Yorkshire Post, the Yorkshire Times, the Yorkshire Evening Post and the York Press – highlighting the urgent need to address gender imbalance at the top of finance.
Our second official event takes place on Monday 22nd September (8:30–11:00am) at Box in Leeds. Attendees will hear a keynote speech on AI and Automation from Pippa Booth (Tax Partner, Unity Advisory), Claire Tisch (Senior Manager, Unity Advisory) and Alice Fee (Associate, Faculty). Before that there will be a live panel discussion featuring experienced CFOs and FDs from private equity. There will also be time for networking and knowledge-sharing among peers.
There are still a few tickets available, so click here to bag yourself a spot for just £10pp.
How the Community Began
HerFinance Circle was the brainchild of Headstar director Jenny Martin, and was launched in response to the stark gender imbalance in senior finance roles.
Despite progress in recent years, women remain significantly underrepresented in the most senior positions. Just 24% of the top boardroom roles, including the position of chief financial officer, in FTSE 150 companies are held by women. Fewer than one in five of the top 1% of earners in finance and professional services are women, and the sector’s gender pay gap remains around 22% – nearly double the UK average.
Jenny Martin said the idea was born from a moment of reflection in her own role as a recruiter:
“I was shortlisting for a £150k CFO role, and my list was overwhelmingly male. Despite excellent representation of women at financial controller level, there’s still a sharp drop-off when it comes to CFO and finance director positions, with C-suite finance roles still very male dominated. At Headstar, we’re proud that 50% of our board is female, but we also saw the urgent need to strengthen the pipeline of women stepping into top finance leadership.
That’s why we launched HerFinance Circle, a peer-led community for female CFOs, finance directors and aspiring leaders in Yorkshire. It gives women a chance to come together, share experiences, build confidence and connections, and support each other.”
Join the Circle
HerFinance Circle is free to join and already has more than 100 women involved. Members can connect through a programme of regular events designed to provide mentoring, peer-to-peer advice, and honest conversations about navigating female leadership in finance.
In addition, there is also a member-only dedicated WhatsApp community – complete with sector-specific sub-groups such as CFOs-only, Women in Manufacturing, Women in Retail, and Women in Private Equity.
For updates and to join the community, email info@headstar.co.uk
