Leaders from some of the North Westís leading business and cultural organisations will join James Purnell MP to drive forward the equal opportunities debate at a seminar being held at Manchester Art Gallery on Friday 30 March.
The debate, held by the Treasury-funded Cultural Leadership Programme in conjunction with Northwest Business Leadership Team, and Manchester International Festival, will focus on women at leadership level. The event will be opened by Virginia Tandy, director of Manchester City Galleries.
The facts on women in the workplace make for stark reading. A recent PWC report revealed a staggering 40% drop in senior female managers working in major UK businesses over the past five years, and in January the Equal Opportunities Commission calculated that nearly 6,000 women are ëmissingí from the 33,000 top spots in the public and private sectors.
The panel will debate current attitudes towards equal opportunities and discuss whether enough is being done to tackle the under-representation of women in leadership positions. What, if anything is holding women back? Are women up to the job?
The full panel is:
James Purnell MP, Minister of State for Pensions Reform and MP for Stalybridge and Hyde
Martin Beaumont, Group Chief Executive, the Co-operative Group
Hilary Carty, Director, Cultural Leadership Programme
Ruth Mackenzie, General Director, Manchester International Festival
Karen McCormick, Chief Executive, Cheshire Building Society
Women in Leadership: Equal Opportunities: Why Bother?
North West leaders from business and culture question whether enough is being done to increase women in leadership
