Before heading off on maternity leave to have her second child, our Director Jenny Martin sat down with Chloe Wallace from One Source HR to record an episode of the Yorkshire Business Podcast. What followed was a grounded and honest conversation about the barriers facing women in senior finance careers today – and the practical steps Yorkshire businesses can take to create lasting change.
What the Data Really Shows About Senior Finance Roles
Jenny has spent more than a decade recruiting for finance teams at every level, including numerous executive CFO and FD appointments. That experience means she sees first-hand what is happening in the market.
Although women now make up around 46% of qualified accountants, Jenny still finds that only about 10% of candidates for the most senior roles are usually female. In the podcast, she and Chloe unpack why that leadership gap persists. They talk through the long-standing systemic issues, including outdated family leave policies, the realities of the UK’s childcare structure, and the limited number of senior roles offered on a part-time or job-share basis.
What the UK Can Learn From Sweden
The discussion also looks at how other countries are tackling these challenges. Sweden’s approach, with its long period of shared parental leave (480 days, with 90 days reserved just for dads), gives both parents the space to balance work and home life in a different way. Jenny and Chloe explore what the UK could realistically take from that model, and Jenny reflects on the tax-free childcare scheme and the pressures that working parents face every day – often felt most strongly by mothers trying to manage career progression alongside family responsibilities.
Why Gender Balance at Senior Level Matters
A key theme throughout the podcast is the importance of genuine gender diversity at Board level in order to build better teams and better businesses. Jenny talks about the qualities she frequently sees women bring into executive roles – empathy, collaboration and a supportive leadership style – and why these strengths matter in modern finance teams.
Click here to listen to the full podcast on Spotify.
Or watch the full video interview on YouTube.
