KU graduate in new ‘Wonder Women’ panel

A KU graduate has been named part of new ‘exciting’ panel targeted at young women and their careers.

Sofia Capel

KU graduate Louisa Hogarty is one of the members of the Telegraph’s new Wonder Women business panel.

The panel consists of seven experts offering tips and advice as a collective voice for women on how to get ahead in business, as well as reacting to the latest industry news.

“An honour”

“It’s an honour to be working on a panel with somebody like the Telegraph,” said Ms Hogarty, who called the new project “a very exciting new forum focusing on younger women.”

The topics that the panel have discussed so far are childcare tax and the stalling of getting women on boards.

“I think they are keen to do an article on the pay gap next and how to make sure you’re paid the right salary for your job,” she said.

Better companies with women

Ms Hogarty graduated from Kingston 2001 with a degree in music. While studying she also worked as a check out manager at a supermarket, which opened up her eyes to HR, so she returned to Kingston in 2004 to do a post graduate diploma in human resources management.

She is now Director of HR Operations at SSP, the Food Travel Experts.

About the latest Wonder Women discussion she said: “A McKinsey Women Matter report from 2007 proved that operations and shareholder performance were better in companies with at least 25 per cent women on the board.

“So I can’t understand why people wouldn’t want more women on the board, apart from the fact that they are very short-sighted and that women yet haven’t caught up.”

Read the full story about Ms Hogarty and the Telegraph’s Wonder Women panel in the next issue of The River out April 26.