“Diversity of every kind – age, gender and culture - is needed for LEPs to make the balanced, strategic decisions which will deliver successful futures for their regions.”

The first three people I met when I was introduced to Enterprise M3 in 2018 were chief executive Kathy Slack, then chair Dr Mike Short and the then leader of Basingstoke and Deane Council, Clive Sanders.

What a dynamic combination they made!  They were such a diverse bunch, from Mike’s national scientific knowledge to Kathy’s business experience and pragmatism and Clive’s local authority background - three strong personalities who were combining their different knowledge, perspectives and experience to work together effectively to deliver change for the better. Then, when I met the whole board, I was truly impressed by their experience and capability as well as their resolve to deliver for their communities.

As board members of a Local Enterprise Partnership, we have the privilege to represent a broad range of towns and places, which themselves have diverse communities.

Working across the private and public sector, representing local authorities and large and small companies, as well as the not-for-profit sector, our role is to determine the strategic investments which will support the growth of our economies to the greatest benefit of the people who live and work in our area.

We are making decisions now that may not have a full impact for another 10 or 20 years. Our role is to look at how industry is changing, consider what our future high streets will look like in an increasingly online world and about what kind of commercial space we need as workforces become more mobile and transient.

If we are to take on the responsibility of making those decisions, our boards should be fully representative. We need the broad diversity of views - across age, gender and culture -  all of which provide different perspectives on how people live and work in our area.

We need board members who are prepared to challenge the status quo, look at challenges from a range of different perspectives and combine our experiences and knowledge to create innovative solutions. If we don’t have people who can ask tricky questions, think differently and make strategic decisions, projects will be out of date before they’ve happened.

The current commitment to achieving gender balance is having a positive effect on the move towards greater diversity. Women make up 51% of the people in our area, and it is essential they are equally represented.

I started as an engineer in what was then a male-dominated industry and any woman who has thrived in a male dominated industry knows how to speak up and challenge. Successful women are strong personalities with views they are prepared to contribute.

And we do provide a different lens on life. I think the woman’s perspective can play a critical part in determining the best workplace strategies for the future. We know the workers of the future will be mobile, they may have 20-30 jobs during their career, they need to retrain, change careers and there will be increasing home-working and fewer final salary pension schemes.

Maybe women’s’ perspectives are helpful here because we have always had to be more adaptable. Women are more likely to be the main carer in a family and  we’ve always had to manage the challenges of multi-tasking, home-working, evening working and varying work patterns.

Gender diversity shouldn’t be our only ambition. If we are to address the challenges of the future and maximise our opportunities, we need as diverse a board as possible, incorporating age, gender and culture.