Severn Trent becomes first FTSE 100 firm to have female chair, CEO and CFO
Boardroom history was made this morning as Severn Trent became the first and only FTSE 100 firm to appoint women to the company’s three top positions of chair, chief executive and chief financial officer.
The water company announced the news with the appointment of Helen Miles as the firm’s new CFO, previously the capital and commercial services director, to replace James Bowling, who is retiring.
Miles, who will formally start in new the role on 1 April, joins Liv Garfield as chief executive and Christine Hodgson as chair, in what is believed to be the first and only time all three senior positions have been held by women at listed-firm.
While welcoming the historic move, CEO Liv Garfield said: “I am truly sorry to see James retire”, saying he has been “instrumental in driving the success of Severn Trent since his appointment in 2015 and he leaves us well positioned for the future.”
“I am absolutely delighted that Helen will be his successor. Helen is a highly experienced and commercial CFO with a detailed understanding of the water sector and a proven track record of exceptional delivery,” she added.
Chair Christine Hodgson said Miles “is a CFO of exceptional calibre, possessing strong finance and regulatory accounting experience, gained over many years”
Following the news this morning, Severn Trent’s shares were marginally down, having slumped by one per cent in the past five days.
Anne Fairweather, head of government affairs and public policy at Hargreaves Lansdown said: “Many companies recognise the benefits of a diverse team and the Board room has been transformed through initiatives such as FTSE Women Leaders.
“Progress has been slower at an executive level compared to a non-executive level and it’s great to see another FTSE100 company appoint a female CFO. FTSE Women Leaders found just 16% of firms had a woman in this position last year.”
Hargreaves appointed Amy Stirling as our CFO on 21 February 2022.