“Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult.” These are the words of Charlotte Whitton, who in the 1950s became the first woman mayor of a major city in Canada. The woman quoting her is Fiona Marston, the CEO of Absynth Biologics, an organisation that addresses people’s growing immunity to antibiotics. Fiona and the other five women featured in this article were photographed by British photographer Amelia Troubridge for a collaborative project (and exhibition, details below) between Getty Images and Innovate UK, who are working to address the abhorrently low number of women in the STEM industries (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) – estimated to be just 14%.
While Getty searches for “female business executive” (guilty) have increased 350% over the last few years, the overall proportion of female entrepreneurs in Britain is still 50% less than men. Why? Well, history, childcare, unconscious gender bias and a distinct lack of role models are just a few of the reasons the women photographed came up with when we put the question to them. We also took the opportunity to ask these founders and CEOs of successful startups – in sustainability, air pollution solutions, medical physics and drones – what gets them out of bed in the morning, who inspires them on a daily basis, and what innovation means to them. Click through for inspirational words from aspirational women with seriously cool jobs, and head to the exhibition at Getty Images Gallery, 46 Eastcastle St, Fitzrovia, London W1W 8DX to see more.
The #infocus women in innovation exhibition runs until 29th July, admission is free.
If you're an entrepreneur or innovator, visit Innovate UK to find out more about upcoming funding opportunities.
Anna is pictured in a spacesuit, in front of her ultimate inspiration; the planet.
Anna Hill is an artist, designer, innovator and entrepreneur. She’s motivated by the constructive, creative use of space technology and how it can solve some of our biggest environmental problems. As the cofounder of the River Cycleway Consortium Ltd, Anna is responsible for the Thames Deckway, a floating cycle and pedestrian path.
During her time living close to the river in Rotherhithe, Anna was inspired by the Thames and how greater use of the river could help London to deal with its growing congestion, pollution and cycling safety issues. With support from Innovate UK, floating cycle paths will create a unique, high-impact civil engineering project for smart cities that aims to provide safe, green transport infrastructure.
What does innovation mean to you?
Innovation is central to everything I do. During my career working in space agency innovation, bringing space to Earth, and now establishing and developing the Thames Deckway project has always involved bringing creative disruption and change to sectors that are often quite conservative in the way they operate. Being bold, being a game-changer and standing up to the status quo is the only way we can move societies forward.
What are the biggest challenges facing women (young and old) in the workplace today?
While ambition in men is publicly admired and praised in the technology, sciences and sports fields, ambitious and intelligent strong girls and women are often unconsciously undermined by social stereotypes that don’t approve of their ambition and creativity or affirm their appetite for success as a virtue.
To overcome this challenge, I think it's important that unconscious bias becomes a thing of the past. This can be done by creating strong mentor relationships in which women that have broken through societal barriers pass on a torch of courage for the next generation to run with. We also need to help each other more and encourage and celebrate other women's success.
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
Getting a good work placement in an organisation that encourages you to develop and test your ideas is always a good first move. Learning how to confront people with a conservative mindset on a woman’s place in the workforce is the next step. These attitudes may also come from friends and family, so follow your own heart and goals. There will always be those who question your legitimacy and right to have a voice so it's important to keep your determination and creativity alive. Attend network events and public lectures, especially if it is showcasing successful women. Learn from them, listen to the lives and career experiences of others and it will help you to stay inspired and feel connected to a larger social movement. Finally, value and be kind to yourself, value your friends and have faith in the universe. What I mean by this is identify your goals, set yourself on the less-trodden path to achieving them (accidents and surprises can be useful), be original and be yourself – unexpected support will always come your way. Prioritise your own health – your mental and physical well-being is important because with a positive mindset and health, you can realise your ambitions, although it may not always be easy... your journey may become more significant than the destination.
What or who continues to inspire you?
Dame Steve Shirley is a big inspiration. She's an innovation pioneer, businesswoman and philanthropist. As a child refugee brought to England through the Kindertransport in WW2, she's overcome huge adversity in her life that she’s channelled into incredible achievements. Her advice to other young women is to “be themselves”. That was also my mother’s advice. She told me, “I just want you to be yourself” and it goes without saying that my own mother remains a strong inspiration to me. Being authentic to who you are as an individual and allowing yourself to grow into your own skin comfortably at your own pace is important.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
A love of life, an awe and respect for nature, a passion to contribute in a positive way socially and to instigate change with a more conscious approach to tackling our global challenges.
Elena is pictured in her lab in Imperial College London, the site of much of her and the team’s work.
Elena Dieckmann grew up in Nuremberg, Germany. After a brief foray into the working world in international management in Russia and the Middle East, she returned to academia to study at the Dyson School of Design Engineering and the Royal College of Art. Mother to a young daughter, Elena feels hyper-aware of the impact our society will have on future generations. It is this awareness that led her to cofound AEROPOWDER, a startup turning waste feathers from the poultry industry into innovative materials.
With support from Innovate UK, AEROPOWDER’s feather-based products use a waste byproduct in a novel way and are sustainable in creation, use and disposal.
What does innovation mean to you?
Solving a problem in a new and unexpected way.
What are the biggest challenges facing women (young and old) in the workplace today?
Childcare. Though we feel and think we’re living in modern times, it seems – especially in urban hubs – that the topic of childcare is becoming increasingly difficult. There are many initiatives from global governments that seek to solve this issue and support mothers and families – such as the 15-hour free childcare model – but I haven’t come across a scheme that looks like it offers proper support or a workable solution. This is compounded if you are a student parent – it’s really tough, there is no maternity leave or support and you don’t have an income. In my case I found it incredibly hard as my family also lived abroad. We need to support mothers and fathers with maternity and paternity leave, as well as childcare.
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
In addition to being a woman, a big hurdle is being young. Most of the manufacturing industries (worldwide) are dominated by older generations; they are predominately male and often very hierarchical. It’s really tough to start a manufacturing business from scratch, you can only hope you are lucky to find the right partners, established players that are willing to support your cause. You have to identify the right incentive structure for them to join in and support the project! As a woman, in the absence of many role models, it’s often about seeking guidance and support from outside your sphere; my work with Innovate has helped remind me that I am a part of a bigger network of women in STEM.
What or who continues to inspire you?
I am inspired by other industries and the kind of problems that can be solved with technology; I am always on the lookout for some sort of transferability to tackle my own challenges. There is not really a person that inspires my daily routine – however, Christiana Figueres, who was responsible for the UNFCCC and the 2015 Paris Agreement is an incredible person. I admire her drive and she gave the most amazing talk about the state of this planet that I have ever seen. She is very impressive and I wish that we could all be a bit more like her! Many problems would be solved.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
Feathers! Obviously.
Fanzi sits inside Hotel Chocolat, where her moulding techniques are put to work creating exquisite and intricate chocolates.
Fanzi Down is the mother of a 4-going-on-14-year-old daughter, wife to a British husband, daughter to Chinese parents and, increasingly, an innovator. Fanzi runs the confectionery division at DPS Designs and is a cofounder of Picnic for Peace, an initiative to promote tolerance and multiculturalism.
The innovations developed at DPS Designs are used in both chocolate moulds and aerospace tooling. Her current project is designing a method where chocolate moulds can be used in creating much more intricate products.
With the help of the funding from Innovate UK, DPS Designs plan to develop this technology further and commercialise it.
What does innovation mean to you?
Innovation is the lifeblood of any business. While everyone would be excited about a groundbreaking idea, one of the things I am really passionate about is process innovation. It might not be as glamorous, but process innovations have changed the world just as much as the iPhone has. In fact, the iPhone wouldn’t have existed if it were not for process innovation. It can be technology-based or workflow-based. So for instance, on a more day-to-day level, it can be a process improvement idea that would reduce the running cost of a particular department within the company. I really feel that innovation should be celebrated and promoted within business, however small.
What are the biggest challenges facing women (young and old) in the workplace today?
From my experience, one of the biggest challenges women face is how they are seen after they start a family. Women often are perceived as being in the default position of taking care of family duties such as housekeeping and childcare. It is often assumed that they would automatically lose the eagerness to learn and progress in their profession. This unfairly discriminates women who would like to continue their development.
Although there are a lot of companies nowadays who offer flexible working, I still see many that have fallen short, and I’ve had experience of that myself after returning to work. Although I was as motivated as ever, I had different constraints and this wasn’t recognised by the employer. This ultimately resulted in me having to leave somewhere that I had been very happy. Although I had a great support network around me and other career options, many aren’t as lucky and it’s a real problem, not least because it also loses talent from the workplace.
There's also a lack of women role models in senior positions at companies. In one company that I worked in, around 80% of the staff were women but only a handful on the senior management team.
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
Engineering and the engineering design industry are completely underrated; they have so many more options than people might think. At DPS Designs, engineering and design can mean anything from hand-sculpting a new Easter bunny, to modelling a penguin on the computer from a 2D sketch. From making chocolate samples to test out how well the design worked, to playing with 3D printer or laser machines to get the right finish. Or it might be creating tooling for aerospace parts, designing a tool path for a CNC programme to work out what is the best way to cut the metal…
Be brave, don’t just think the engineering world is full of men – there is A LOT more brains needed than brawn. Don’t be afraid to try and explore different opportunities. Find the areas you enjoy the most that utilise your competencies and further develop your skills on the job. You are more likely to excel at something that you really enjoy.
You also need to be resilient. There is no substitute for hard work. Be strong and don’t be afraid of different voices.
What or who continues to inspire you?
For me, inspiration could come from anywhere – a walk in the woods, a pebble on the beach, visits to the galleries, a gift shop or images on Instagram. I enjoy taking inspiration from unusual places and creating chocolates that stand out from others. We once took a branch from a fallen tree, scanned it into 3D environment and created the Hotel Chocolat Yule Log.
Some of the retailers I work with inspire me because of their focus and understanding of their own customers. I often find everyday people inspire and influence me the most. For example, I watched a documentary about a young woman living in a small farming village in Wales who was transitioning. I found her quiet courage and determination, and how strong her relationships with her parents and friends were, so inspiring.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
My daughter gets me out of my bed in the morning, both physically and mentally. Actually it tends to be my husband who gets me out of bed, as he tends to do the mornings – but don’t tell him I said that! My family are so important to me but I’m also very driven to be successful professionally.
I want to grow the family business with the people at DPS. We try to be a really good local employer and to offer people opportunities that may not be easy to get elsewhere. We have exciting plans and Women in Innovation is a really important step on that journey. But I also try to be a good role model for my daughter, whose mum is hardworking, creative and passionate about her business and her family.
Fiona is pictured within The Biohub at Alderley Park in Cheshire, where her lab is located.
Fiona Marston, a passionate innovator in all aspects of her life, was inspired to follow a career in medical research by her mother’s battle with a rare degenerative illness. If she were here, her mother would say that Fiona was born self-motivated. It’s what’s driven her 25 years’ experience in healthcare, biotechnology and venture capital, and on to become CEO of Absynth Biologics, an organisation that addresses people’s growing immunity to antibiotics.
The strategic support Fiona has received though Innovate UK’s infocus women in innovation initiative is already having a positive effect on Absynth, and competitive grants have enabled the team to further support their focus on R&D.
What does innovation mean to you?
To me, innovation is finding creative routes to solve problems and reach goals. In biotechnology we often are trying to achieve technology or product goals that are new and without precedent. There may be many unforeseen technical hurdles to get over, which require original and imaginative solutions. This is what we do best in biotechnology SMEs!!
What are the biggest challenges facing women (young and old) in the workplace today?
Without a doubt unconscious bias continues to be the biggest challenge faced by women (young and old) in the workplace today. We often find ourselves interviewed and assessed by men at all stages of our career, many of whom unintentionally judge us unfavourably relative to our male counterparts.
In life sciences there are more women undergraduates than men, yet by the time we reach professorial level in academia or board level in industry, women are very much in the minority. It is particularly challenging to stay true to yourself, to have the resilience to be yourself in the way that you manage people and business. It is fantastic to see the first female, Emma Walmsley appointed as CEO of Glaxo this year – though of course at 75% of the salary of her male predecessor. However, as Charlotte Whitton said: "Whatever women do they must do twice as well as men to be thought half as good. Luckily, this is not difficult."
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
Whatever career choice you make, choose to do what you enjoy because it will be more fulfilling and as a result you will do the best job possible. The life science industry offers a vast array of career choices but they do require a degree to provide the broadest opportunities. If you choose to start in a lab-based research role, then inquisitiveness and resilience are as important as intellect. It can be frustrating that most experiments lead you to define the next experiment, but when you do reach a final conclusion it is very rewarding! As we are a knowledge-based industry, both research and commercial roles will require a lot of time and effort initially to build that knowhow. The best thing about the life science industry is that you are learning all the time, at whatever stage of your career.
What or who continues to inspire you?
My parents, and in particular my mother, are my inspiration. Diagnosed with a degenerative disease at the age of 20, my mother came to the UK on her own in 1948 to seek treatment from the Oxford neurologist who diagnosed her condition while in the RAF in India. Throughout her short life she inspired me to be independent, hardworking, ambitious but considerate of others. So I may have a lot of drive and resilience but while my career has progressed, I have gained many friends in my personal and business life.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
I enjoy what I do!! However, when times are tough I do hide under the duvet for a short while until I have set out my plans for tackling the challenges of the day.
Natwilai is pictured inside the Enterprise Lab, a hub for innovative startups at Imperial College London.
Natwilai Utoomprurkporn grew up and studied in Bangkok before receiving a scholarship to study global innovation design at Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art. This is where her fascination with drones began, and the seed was planted for her startup, TRIK.
Natwilai describes TRIK as "Google Maps for large structure inspection" where drones are used to scan structures and create interactive 3D maps. Manual inspection using traditional scaffolding or rope access takes days or weeks to complete, and can cost thousands of pounds. With Innovate UK’s funding and support, TRIK is developing software that allows this process to be completed in a few hours, at a fraction of the cost.
What does innovation mean to you?
For me, innovation is something that disrupts people’s current behaviour or creates new business value. Innovation is when you come up with a different way to solve the same problem. It doesn’t always mean you need to invent a new product or technology, it could just be a clever way to combine existing solutions or technologies in a way nobody’s thought of before. Most importantly, it needs to change people’s behaviour or create a new business value. If it can’t make money or make people's lives better then, for me, it’s just another good idea, it’s not innovation.
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
Dream big, be passionate, start talking to people and don’t be afraid to ask for help! You never know your full potential until you try.
What or who continues to inspire you?
Recently, the person who inspires me and who has had the biggest impact on me is Beth Marcus, a series entrepreneur who currently leads Amazon Robotics. I find the common way people run a tech startup quite tiring; being extremely confident and giving a great speech to raise millions in funding, in order to hire a big dream team, is an alien thought to me.
I have a big vision for my company, TRIK. I believe that TRIK will forever change the way people capture, manage and make use of 3D data, in structural inspection and also in other industries. However, unless I have a working technology that has been used and tested (which we now have – please visit www.gettrik.com!), I’m less comfortable giving those 'great speeches’. That is just not how I do things. Beth has taught me how to balance my focus between technology development and selling the dream, as well as work and life.
Beth is a very friendly lady with a long history of success (as well as failure) throughout her career. (She really values her failures.) She is visionary, direct and she can build robots (!), but she is also very humble and has a great work-life balance! Her journey and advice teach me how I can be different and run the company in my own way.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
The unknown. I never know what might happen today. Yesterday I could have been having the best day of my life, with five potential major clients, but today everything could go south. Or today I might end up with a technology breakthrough that will make a big difference to our company. For me, 'the unknown' makes every day exciting. I enjoy both the good and the bad that come into my life. It makes my life colourful and worth living.
This picture was taken at the University of Surrey, where Shakar received her PhD in medical physics and is a visiting research fellow.
Shakar Jafari was born in Afghanistan but she and her family were forced to move following the outbreak of war and loss of their home when she was just 6 years old. After six months of travelling, they arrived in Iran as refugees. It was here that Shakar discovered her passion for nuclear physics, radiation and the science behind its medical applications.
This passion was truly put to the test when Shakar’s father was diagnosed with cancer. During the months before his death, Shakar promised him that she would try to make a difference to the lives of other people with his condition. Shakar is now the founder and CTO of Trueinvivo Limited, which with support from Innovate UK has developed a radiation detection system for cancer care that aims to save lives and money, and offer a better quality of life to patients.
What does innovation mean to you?
For me it means not accepting the limitations of current practice and thinking about how to improve the situation – no matter how odd or unlikely it might seem at the beginning!
What are the biggest challenges facing women (young and old) in the workplace today?
The main challenges from my point of view are the mindsets of my male colleagues, and their stereotyped thinking about women. I’ve always had to work harder to prove myself and in a way it’s also affected my confidence.
What advice would you give to young women wanting to get into your industry?
I would encourage them to get into the world of medical physics, but only if they have a huge passion. To succeed in this field takes a lot of passion, hard work and sacrifice! I would also advise them to speak to other women and, more importantly, to a mentor who has already paved the way; it helps a lot to see there is someone who understands the situation and all the challenges.
What or who continues to inspire you?
When my father was passing away due to cancer, I made a promise to try to help others in his situation. That motivated me to look forward and to try anything I can. He would be very happy to know that other people suffering from cancer could be helped by my innovation.
What gets you out of bed in the morning?
I have an action plan and objectives to achieve every day, week and month, so if I don’t get out of bed I know I will lag behind. The willpower of achieving the set objectives gets me out!
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