Two of Wales' leading financial services companies have been named among the best places in the UK for women to work at.
Principality Building Society is ranked first and Admiral is ranked third in the listing.
Both companies are headed up by women in senior roles - chief executive Julie-Ann Haines at Principality and Milena Mondini de Focatiis, Group CEO at Admiral Insurance.
Read more: The best UK companies for women to work for in 2022
Principality Building Society is one of the first building societies to have both a female chief executive and chair of the board, with female representation at the executive committee rising from 25% in 2016 to 43% in 2022.
The company offers a flexible working policy, hybrid working, a menopause policy and the development of a GROW network to advocate for women in the workplace.
It ranked 9th in the Great Place to Work's UK Best Workplaces 2022 list in April and 8th in the Best Workplaces for Wellbeing 2022 listing in February.
Ms Haines said: "It’s encouraging that the women within our workforce feel that we’re taking steps in the right direction, slowly, step by step, to empower change and bridge the gap of gender inequalities felt across society. However, I know we still have a long way to go to keep progressing to achieve our ambitious goals. We must remain focused on becoming an even more inclusive business for our colleagues, to ensure that internally we are reflecting the diversity of our membership."
Admiral, which is Wales' only FTSE 100 firm, was recognised for its active Gender Diversity Working Group, which explores the different ways to support women progressing their careers and its introduction of menopause, fertility, and baby loss policies.
The company has a female chair and Group CEO, and 50% female representation at board level - one of the highest in the FTSE 100.
It has achieved its Women in Finance Charter target ahead of schedule and has 41% female representation at executive level.
Cristina Nestares, Chief executive of UK Insurance, said, “We’ve got a great culture at Admiral and know that being a diverse and inclusive workplace is good for business, good for customers and good for colleagues. I’m proud to work with so many talented women making a positive impact within our business and helping us build a working environment where everyone can thrive."
She added: "From our Get Discovered development programme that empowers women to put themselves forward for future leadership opportunities, to our support of the TechSheCan Charter and our ongoing partnership with Code First Girls, we’re committed to continuously improving our workplace and our local communities for all.”
Principality and Admiral were ranked in the Super Large Organisation List in the 2022 UK’s Best Workplaces for Women compiled by workplace culture organisation, Great Place to Work.
The list evaluated hundreds of employee surveys to draw up the rankings.
The results are based on what women have anonymously reported about their workplace experience - and how well represented they are in the workforce and management.
The best large business was tech firm Realise; SEO and content marketing agency Evolved Search took the top spot on the medium list; and talent management agency M&C Saatchi Merlin was named the best small firm.
Great Place to Work said the top businesses for women offered equality, representation and fairness - and had shone a spotlight on menopause support and the promotion of shared parental leave.
Great Place to Work managing director Benedict Gautrey said: "Our 2022 list showcases the largest collection of best workplaces for women that the UK has ever recognised. These results are based on what women themselves have anonymously reported to us about their workplace experience and how well represented they are in the workforce and management."
He added: Ensuring people aren’t discriminated against, placing positive value on our differences, creating fair access and advancement for all, and fostering a sense of value and empowerment in employees is what being a great place to work is all about. Only by first identifying the gaps in workers’ experiences can organisations truly take action to close them, which is why analysing employee experience is important."
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