Foreword

Utility Week is immensely proud to have launched the Women in Utilities Awards this year, in partnership with Womens Utilities Network (WUN).

The demonstrable talent, passion and leadership of women working in this sector has shone through in entries to our inaugural awards scheme and deserves to be celebrated in style, as does the championing of women by forward-thinking individuals and organisations in the sector.

However, as our research shows, there is still more work to be done to break down barriers to inclusion in the utilities sector to allow all talent to thrive. Shaped by over 100 individuals working in energy and water utilities and their critical supply chain, our research suggests that equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) approaches are rated as fairly middle-of-the-road by those working in the sector.

A few telling insights from the research include:

• Educational outreach and promotion of sector careers to girls and women – often cited as critical – is given a lacklustre rating of 2.8 out of 5
• There is strong agreement that more lip service than action is being demonstrated overall when it comes to EDI, and that unconscious bias is still a significant limiting factor for women seeking to progress in the energy and water sector
• There is clear room for improvement in ‘walking the walk’ on allyship, with the majority of respondents saying allyship is not openly talked about or identified with by male leaders in their organisations

Findings like these should not be taken amiss. To keep moving forward, we must continue to soul-search, recognise shortcomings, and view them as opportunities for improvement. Utility Week hopes that our research will be embraced in this spirit, and we look forward to working with the sector as it continues on this journey.

Thank you to all who shared their views and experiences to help shape our research. And thank you to all who submitted entries to our first Women in Utilities Awards: your endeavours and achievements have been truly inspiring to learn about.