Jo Taylor is a keen advocate of Breaking the Bias and believes that it’s important to reflect, acknowledge and celebrate women in all corners of the world, for the contributions they make to society.
She started her career at British Home Stores (BHS), a high street clothing and home store, where she completed extensive training and rose to the role of regional catering manager.
Then she joined Barnsley Council in 1989 as their divisional manager for catering, progressing to become a Facilities Manager.
Appointed Head of Barnsley Norse in 2011, she has seen the company grow from 300 staff in 2011 to 750 in 2022, with 84% of those working now for the service being women.
“I am a keen advocate of developing from within the organisation, identifying potential and helping to develop it so those employees can take on more influential roles,” she says.
“I aim to Break the Bias every day by being the best I can be for Barnsley Norse and for my team. We employ more women than men, across all areas of the business, including in our Management and Support teams.
“On a broader scale, my approach is to bring a positive, female influence on the Norse senior teams and to my male peers through my business performance achievements.
“This actively demonstrates that women are capable of delivering a very profitable, compliant, sustainable and growing business offer that is valued by Norse Group and its customers.”
With women currently underrepresented at Operational Director level, Norse still has a distance to travel to achieve greater gender balance in senior positions, she acknowledges.
“That would allow increased gender balance of management direction and decision making,” she observes.
“Women have a unique ability to see the people in the organisations, so by increasing their representation, this will benefit the employees and business alike, as it is their people that make the real difference to organisations.”
For Jo, International Women’s Day is a chance to reflect, acknowledge and celebrate women in all corners of the world, for their contributions made to society.
“It is also about recognising and applauding the impressive work my female colleagues and friends do every day,” she adds.
Q: Is there a woman you particularly admire?
A: Rather than any one individual, I draw inspiration from individuals in all walks of life and take on board views and standards from all elements of society.
Q: What advice would you give to a young woman just starting out on her career?
A: Be bold, be strong, be confident and be committed – always employ the highest professional standard possible. This approach has rewarded me throughout my career.
