Founder Q&A with Sian Penwarden

We sat down with our Co-Founder Sian Penwarden to learn why she wanted to set up Potentia and what she hopes our networking group will achieve.

Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your background?

I have been with Altum Group for nearly eight years – joining in 2016, when the Group was just three years old and employed only eight people. It has been amazing to be part of the ongoing success story.

In my role as Partner at Azura Search (part of Altum Group), I manage all international search mandates within consumer areas, with the help of a brilliant research team. I partner with CEO’s and Board level executives to find the best solutions to drive their business forward. I am a founding member of the Altum Group Equality, Diversity and Inclusion team, with a specific focus on Azura’s processes and ways of working. I am also responsible for ongoing training and development of the research team.

Through my time in London I have created and developed an amazing network of inspiring women, be these friends, family, clients, colleagues or candidates, who champion, support and encourage one and another. Conversations over the years have highlighted how important it is to me to be able to inspire and enable others to be able to reach their potential and have the continued support of a community around them.

What inspired you to create Potentia?

I feel very fortunate to have developed my career in an environment that has encouraged me to create my own style and way of working. The culture in Altum Group is very inclusive and from day one I knew that if I wanted it, I could get a seat at the table if delivered the right results.

From speaking to my network within the finance sector it is obvious that many felt that this was not the case for their organisations, especially within a function where traditional requirements look for a certain level of degree, qualification and tenure and are quite inflexible with their working styles. I see Potentia as a response to this, we are in a privileged position where we can help to impact change. Our aim is to increase the representation of women in board position across the FTSE 350 to 50% by 2030.

How does Potentia differ from other networking opportunities?

There are other networking groups covering similar areas and Potentia isn’t set up to compete but to collaborate. We created up Potentia to add to the incredible work these other networking groups are doing, there is a long way to go to achieve equal representation of women in the boardroom and in leadership positions within finance. It is going to take a whole movement from individuals, organisations and networking groups to achieve the change we all want to see.

We are excited to be playing a part in this and this is why lobbying and advocacy are important pillars in our long term strategy by leveraging our relationships to drive this from within organisations and challenge peoples thinking around their hiring strategies.

In addition, our mentoring scheme offers a formalised commitment across the year which will help mentees in their early career plan each move to reach their long-term goals and develop the soft skills needed for the modern boardroom.

How do you envision the future of Potentia?

I see a global community of talented and passionate people as members, a community of male advocates who will help support to drive organisational change across industry.

How do you measure the impact of Potentia?

We will track our impact through member engagement, the success stories from our mentoring relationships and the feedback and testimonials from our members and the influence we've had on their professional journeys.

Is there anything else you'd like to share about Potentia?

Potentia is more than just a networking group; it's a vibrant community of passionate, innovative, collaborative, talented female leaders who are keen to support one another. We welcome anyone who shares our vision to join us on this exciting journey.