WeAreTheCity, together with Royal Bank of Canada, are proud to announce the winners of their 2023 Rising Star Awards!
Our sister company, WeAreTheCity has proudly announced the winners of their Rising Star Awards – dedicated to outstanding women who have demonstrated exceptional talent and expertise in their respective fields.
Now in their ninth year, the Rising Star Awards are the first to focus on the UK’s female talent pipeline below management level. Through these awards, we celebrate 100 individual female contributors that represent the leaders and role models of tomorrow.
Recognising excellence across a diverse range of industries, the Rising Star Awards celebrate the achievements of women who have made a significant impact and overcome hurdles, inspiring others to follow in their footsteps. This year’s winners are shining examples of courage, resilience and innovation, and we are honoured to acknowledge their extraordinary contributions.
A huge congratulations to all our 2023 winners, and well done to everyone who was shortlisted and nominated for this year’s awards.
Our Rising Stars across all categories…
This year’s list of winners showcases remarkable women within the UK from across 20 categories representing different industries and professions. Those highlighted include Dr Pearl Jarrett, who has invented an Air-To-Water machine, powered by solar panels, to help farmers in some of the most off grid places in the world. Zoe Henley, in our Science and Engineering category, utilised her synthetic and medicinal chemistry skills to enable the identification of potential drug candidates, one of which reached Phase 2 clinical trials in patients. Graeme Fox, Chartered Engineer and Director of Technical at the BESA Group, wins for his unerring commitment to raising standards and his tireless work on to implement the United Nations Environment Programme. The Rising Stars Global Award for achievement goes to Ayesha Afzal a researcher at Erlangen National High Performance Computing Center Germany, who picks up her accolade for inclusive technology and training new scientists in mentorship.
Congratulations to all of our tech winners!
Our amazing tech winners come from all sectors and are making a positive contribution in global tech companies, through pharmaceuticals right down to start-ups and single entrepreneurs. Read about their individual journeys to becoming a Rising Star, below.
See our digital winners…
- Emily Carlson | Digital Accessibility Manager | KPMG UK
- Georgia Shaw | Project Manager | ATOS
- Hannah Crompton | Data Scientist and Project Advisor to EVP Innovation and Engineering | BP
- Jessie Chan | Cx And Communications Graduate | ATOS
- Mei-Shiang Shen | Business Consultant | IBM
See our technology winners…
- Asia Sharif | Software Engineer | Natwest And Chainverse
- Holly Boothroyd | Software Engineer 2 | Microsoft
- Karen Medhat | Customer Success Manager | IBM
- Kirstin Kadé | Product Manager | Zoe
- Theresa Yurkewich Hoffmann | Policy & Sustainability Lead Specialist | Microsoft
See our science and engineering winners…
- Alalea Kia | Research Fellow | Imperial College London
- Anne Okafor | Planner | Cruden Building (Scotland)
- Samantha Hunt | Engineering Infrastructure Manager | In-Space Missions Ltd
- Victoria Ollerenshaw | Contracts Support and Spares Manager | Carter Synergy Ltd
- Zoe Henley | Team Leader | GlaxoSmithKline
WeAreTheCity also announced their five Editor’s Choice winners.
The Editor’s Choice award winners are specifically selected by the leadership team at WeAreTheCity and one independent judge. This award recognises their outstanding contribution and tireless efforts towards gender equality, both in the workplace and across wider society.
Winners include Jodie Evans, Defence Digital, Strategic Command and Defence Women’s network lead for her incredible work forming the Defence Women’s network. We are also highlighting the achievements of our youngest ever Rising Star award winner, Emily Olivia who is just six years old and dedicates all of her spare time inspiring and empowering children to learn STEM.
The awards were entered by over 1,445 individuals and were judged by a panel of over 40 independent judges. Over 16,000 public votes of support were received for the 200 shortlisted nominees from across 115 countries.
The 2023 awards are headline sponsored by Royal Bank of Canada. Category sponsors include an array of leading FTSE 100 companies and industry leaders: 3M, Accenture, Barclays, Bloomberg, BAE Systems, Citi, CMI Women, Funding Circle, Highways Sector Council, HSBC, Lloyd’s, London Stock Exchange Group, Marie Claire, National Grid, Northern Trust, Oliver Wyman, IHG, Reed Smith, Warwick Business School, Refuge and Wellbeing of Women.
Once again, we would like to congratulate all of our winners and extend a sincere thanks to everyone who supported Rising Stars during 2023.
The Rising Star Awards not only celebrate these extraordinary women and girls but also serve as a powerful reminder that gender should never be a barrier to success. As we honour the achievements of these trailblazers, let us continue to strive for a world where every woman has equal opportunities to excel, where their contributions are valued and recognised, and where their dreams know no bounds.
Congratulations to all the winners of the Rising Star Awards! May your journeys continue to inspire and empower generations to come.
Our Rising Star winners will be celebrated at a prestigious ceremony on 12 July at the Intercontinental Hotel, Park Lane.
