Celebrating International Women’s Day: Accelerate Action at TH

Career Journeys

Leanne Law, Head of Operations and Quality at Taylor Hopkinson, began her journey seven years ago, diving into the fast-paced environment as an Operations Admin and PA. “I’ve been here for 7 years and it’s been great so far,’ she says. ”My first role was Operations Admin and PA to Tom Hopkinson at the time, which was an array of different things. Every day was completely different and you didn’t know what was going to happen from day to day, which was great because I learned so much in those years of doing that job. Now, going from Ops Admin and PA, to heading up Operations and Quality, it’s obviously been a tough journey and you learn a lot on the way.”

Jennifer Malcolm, who transitioned from a law firm to BayWa r.e., reflects on her career shift: “I started out working for a law firm, McGrigor’s, based in Scotland. It then merged into Pinsent Masons, and I stayed with that business for many years. BayWa r.e. was one of my clients when I worked at Pinsent Masons and an opportunity came up to join them when they were beginning their offshore wind business. So I stepped into that role four years ago, which was quite a big transition, moving from private practice into an in-house role. But it’s been fantastic, and it’s a fabulous industry to work in.”

Dove White’s story illustrates the rapid growth possible within Taylor Hopkinson, regardless of gender. “I joined Taylor Hopkinson in 2018. I joined as a Delivery Consultant, and then I developed to be a Consultant, Senior Consultant, and now Managing Consultant. I have been working at Taylor Hopkinson for over six years already. It didn’t really feel that long, but, you know, the whole journey, I’ve really enjoyed it, and I’m still enjoying it.”

Lucia Noble, Head of TH’s Offshore and Cables division, reflects on her progression: “When I first came in, I started, I was very, kind of…. new, so I was mostly doing candidate management as an Associate Consultant. And then after a year, I think it was, I moved into the Consultant role. Then moved into Lead and then Managing Consultant, and now I’m Head of the Offshore and Cables division, from this year. I’ve managed quite a few people over the last two years. But I’m now solely responsible for the Offshore and Cables division, and yeah, loving it!”

Support and Inclusion in the Workplace

A supportive and inclusive workplace is foundational for the success of women in the energy industry. Companies are increasingly recognising the importance of fostering environments where diverse voices are heard and valued.

Leanne emphasises the importance of collaboration and mentorship at TH. “It is an inclusive culture,” she says, “and I think what makes us quite unique, I would say, is that the women in this company, they listen to each other, they support each other, they challenge each other. And make sure that everyone has a say in whatever the situation is. I think together we come to a conclusion, making sure that it works, but we’ve done it as a team.”

Dove shares her approach to creating a supportive environment: “As a leader, I always try to, you know, consider from people’s perspective and try to show sympathy and understanding. A lot of times, people, especially team members, they might suffer from something, but they don’t know how to tell, who to tell. So we are the ones who can give them support and help as well.”

Lucia emphasises the importance of confidence and inclusiveness: “I’m always encouraging them to be confident and, you know, if somebody’s got a really good view to put across, it doesn’t matter who that person is. If somebody’s got a view or an idea, we all want to hear about it. It’s not just one voice, coming from one person. It’s collectively the full team.”

Jennifer highlights BayWa r.e.’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion: “As organisations are taking more heed of DEI, so diversity, equity and inclusion, I think that is really assisting with the transition into making it more of an open industry for women as well. It’s certainly something within our organisation where we are really putting huge efforts into broadening the DEI culture – really embedding it within the culture.”

Mentorship and Growth

Mentorship and growth opportunities are also essential for the development of women in the energy sector. Leanne highlights the value of mentorship: “There’s some really strong women in the company that I take a lot from. I’ve even had a mentor in the company, Vicki Moore, our Marketing Director, and she was my mentor for a long time. I really took a lot from that as well, when we had our discussions, which was great.”

Jennifer discusses how BayWa r.e. supported her career growth: “One of the things they’ve really supported me on is in developing my skills outside the purely legal role. So in developing my wider business knowledge and experience, and I think that is one area I’ve really benefited from. I’m really fortunate to now be involved in more of the commercial and strategic decisions, which without a doubt has broadened my skillset.”

Advice for Young Women

The journey to leadership is not without its challenges, and in a male-dominated industry it’s important for women in the sector to share advise for the those who’re just starting out. Jennifer emphasises the importance of resilience and self-belief: “I think it’s really important to be resilient and to be robust within yourself and also to demonstrate those qualities to others. I also think it’s really important to have self-belief. You need to believe that your own opinions, that your own views, that they matter and that they should be valued. And you need to believe in yourself that you deserve to have that seat at the table.”

Leanne advises young women to be authentic and professional: “I think I would go back to that authenticity, but do it with professionalism. Do it with respect. Have your say, make sure you’re heard, don’t be afraid to have your opinion on certain situations. And yeah, you’ll be listened to. Especially at Taylor Hopkinson!”

Dove encourages young women to focus on leadership skills: “It’s not really about gender sometimes. A good leader is always a leader, it’s not about ‘he or she is a woman or is a man’. You know, it’s about the leadership skills, it’s about the management skills, so just don’t be afraid. Try to be yourself all the time.”

Lucia advises young women to own their abilities and be confident: “I know I speak about it all the time, but literally just own what you’re saying. You know, people, I think, can have a little bit of imposter syndrome. Certainly there’s been times where that’s happened with myself, but I think that so long as you’re so confident in your abilities and what you can give to a company, then it’s almost wasted if you don’t vocalise it, put it forward, and, yeah, put your best foot forward!”

Taylor Hopkinson champions equality and partners with clients to build a diverse energy workforce. The experiences shared by Leanne, Dove, Lucia, and Jennifer show how collaboration can drive positive change. By providing mentorship, growth opportunities, and fostering strong client relationships, we are collectively paving the way for a more diverse and equitable energy industry.