Tesco Clubcard Creator and Founder of The Female Lead Edwina Dunn is a globally renowned Big Data pioneer. In this episode of Show Me the Way, the author of When She’s in the Room talks about using data science to unlock the spending power of women and believes knowing women better will release billions of pounds of new income.

We discuss her data-driven, not-for-profit, The Female Lead which encourages girls to increase their self confidence and self belief through inspiring role models. Edwina says in business, (and life), two is better than one and believes the greatest gift you can give a child is imagination. Her recommendation for Emmeline’s bookshelf is an inspiring and creative choice.

Edwina Dunn is a pioneering and successful leader in the data industry, known for delivering transformative business change. She co-founded Dunnhumby, which revolutionized the retail and consumer goods industry by pioneering Tesco Clubcard and other global loyalty programs. Her vision and work transformed the way retailers used customer data to drive their businesses, providing insights that had previously been unimaginable. The success of Dunnhumby has been replicated worldwide, becoming the industry standard for customer insights. Its strategic importance was underlined when it was acquired by Tesco in 2011.

Edwina has served on a number of government boards including HMRC (NED), The Geospatial Commission (Commissioner) and The Centre for Data Ethics and Innovation (Chair). She also invested in a new generation of data and predictive algorithms when she became Chair of Starcount. Her pioneering work has earned her numerous accolades, including an OBE for her services to data and business in 2019, honorary doctorates from a number of universities.

Today, Edwina is at the helm of The Female Lead which is an active community of 8 million women, underpinned by an educational foundation, and focused on celebrating the achievements and diversity of women who shape our world. Using data to understand the challenges women face, Edwina works with businesses and the government to create new, mutually beneficial models and policies for the workplace.

Books for Emmeline recommendation:
The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant
https://amzn.eu/d/bLPJb4k

Edwina Dunn’s Book:
When She’s in the Room
https://lnk.to/WSITREdwinaDunn

Resources:
The Fulfilment Finder

Engage with The Female Lead:
LinkedIn - thefemalelead

Instagram @the_female_lead

Tik Tok - @thefemalelead

Journalist Josie Cox is a leading authority on the relationship between economics, business and gender. In this episode of Show Me the Way, the author of "Women, Money, Power: The Rise and Fall of Economic Equality" talks about the history of women’s fight for economic emancipation and the barriers to gender equality that still exist today.

We discuss the untold stories of female financial pioneers, sexism in the workplace and how Covid has impacted the gender pay gap. Despite the harrowing reality of the data, Josie’s book is a call to action to unite in collective effort against gender inequality and create a fairer, better workplace for us and for future generations. As she tells me, “the book I wrote is called ‘Women, Money, Power’- but it’s not a book that is for women, it is a book that is for everyone".

About Josie: Josie Cox is a journalist, editor and broadcaster covering business, economics, and gender equality. She has worked for the Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, The Independent, The Guardian and Forbes among others and is a regular guest on the BBC. Josie is an Associate Instructor at Columbia and her book ‘Women, Money, Power’ is out now in March 2024.

Link to Josie’s new book: Women, Money, Power: The Rise and Fall of Economic Equality.

For Emmeline's bookshelf Josie recommends:

Pauli Murray: The Life of a Pioneering Feminist and Civil Rights Activist by Rosita Stevens-Holsey and Terry Catasús Jennings

Proud Shoes by Pauli Murray

Other links:

In my conversation with Josie I reference the Harvard Implicit Association Test. You can take a test here.

Sociologist and University of London Fellow Dr. Louise Ashley is a leading authority on social class, its effect on career progression and access to elite professions. In this episode of Show Me the Way, the author of “ Highly Discriminating: Why the City Isn’t Fair and Diversity Doesn’t Work” talks about what needs to be done to make the City less exclusive. She believes as well as focusing on diversity and recruitment, it needs to think about its impact on society at large.
.
We discuss that book title (and why she doesn’t like it now), social mobility, “fitting in” and why “confidence is often confused with competence”. As well as her recommendation for Emmeline’s bookshelf. It’s a good one!

Dr Louise Ashley is a senior lecturer at Queen Mary University of London, and a Fellow of its Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences. A Sociologist studying how social class affects access to the elite professions, and subsequent career progression. Dr Ashley has published articles in leading academic journals and her research has been widely covered in media, both in the UK and internationally. She specialises in researching diversity and inclusion in large multinational organisations and ‘elite’ occupations with a particular focus on social mobility and social class. She has led teams appointed by the government’s Social Mobility Commission to understand barriers to entry on the basis of socio-economic background, in law, accountancy and investment banking.

Dr Ashley is a member of advisory boards including the social mobility charity UpReach and is a Research Fellow for the Bridge Group. She is also a working group member on the City of London Socioeconomic Diversity Taskforce.

Books for Emmeline recommendation:
The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper https://amzn.eu/d/h04sDhg
Feel the Fear and do it Anyway by Susan Jeffers https://amzn.eu/d/iHGBiHB

Dr Louise Ashley’s Book: Highly Discriminating: Why the City Isn’t Fair and Diversity Doesn’t Work
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Highly-Discriminating-City-Diversity-Doesnt/dp/1529227674