International Women’s Day – and its theme of ‘Give to Gain’ – offers a powerful lens through which to explore leadership. Bringing together perspectives from finance and elite sport, Jane Niles, CEO of Investec Channel Islands, was recently joined by Julia Chapman of Northampton Saints and Andrea Pinchen of Leicester Tigers to reflect on the realities of leading in highly competitive and traditionally male-dominated environments, the lessons learned from early challenges, and how they now support others to build momentum in their own careers.
How did the early challenges you faced shape your CEO role?
Julia: During the COVID-19 lockdowns, when there was no blueprint for what we were facing, I had to return to first principles. What that experience taught me is that fear and uncertainty don’t have to prevent performance, you can acknowledge them and still move forward. I’ve felt that same sense of apprehension many times in this role since, but the lesson has stayed with me: recognise the fear, and push through it.
Andrea: As leaders, we’re often conditioned to project certainty, to maintain a polished front that suggests we have all the answers. Very early on, however, I learned that effective leadership is rooted not in perfection, but in transparency and honesty. Like Julia, I believe that navigating the challenges of the COVID-19 lockdown ultimately left us stronger, both as leaders and as organisations.
What pressures have you felt when leading in a male-dominated sport?
Andrea: When I became CEO and stepped into a more male-dominated part of the business, quite different from the commercial side, where the team is more evenly balanced, I was conscious of the traditions that came with the role. Our previous CEO would routinely go into the changing room after full time to congratulate the players and acknowledge their effort. I said to our coach that I’d like to do the same, but I was mindful of not making anyone uncomfortable in what is, naturally, quite a small and personal space. He reassured me: “Come in for five or ten minutes, celebrate with them or commiserate – they’re professionals.” And that’s exactly how it’s been. The players have always been entirely respectful, and it’s become a meaningful way to share those moments with the team.
Julia: It was similar for me. I wasn’t sure about how welcome I would be in that environment, not so much because I was female but because it was a high performance space. But it was very much a case of, “Come in, see what we do, come to the team meetings, come into the changing room,” because ultimately you can't fully understand a club unless you see it up close and are part of it.
The data tells us that the rugby audience is still predominantly white, middle-class and male. But I’ve never felt diminished or excluded, nor have I ever felt that my voice wasn’t welcome. I’ve always been able to contribute my perspective and be heard.
Does being a leader require you to give up control and allow others to come to the fore?
Julia: One thing I had to do was to step away from the chief finance officer role, give that to someone else, and not think that everything has to be done my way. One of the most important things I think we do in our role is recruit great people. And there's no point doing that if you're then not going to trust them to do a good job.
Andrea: That really resonates with me, because we’re all operating at such pace. We’re constantly busy, and it’s so easy to stay in motion without ever pausing. When that happens, it becomes harder to look up, take a breath and ask, “How could I be more effective?” Those moments of reflection are just as important as the work itself.
Have you made mistakes – and have you learned from them?
Julia: I've made tons of mistakes, and I think that's actually a positive thing. You should never feel like you can't make mistakes. An example I learned quite early on was about communicating better with people, which I need to continuously work on, because I'm the sort of person who can become quite introverted when I'm under pressure. Don’t assume that because you’ve said something once means it’s been heard, understood, and acted upon. Check in often and reinforce the messaging.
Andrea: As a public-facing organisation, people will always have opinions and criticisms about you. What I've learned is that constructive criticism from those who want to help and assist and push you or the business forward is absolutely worth your while, but criticism from people who don’t have an informed opinion can be detracting – that’s why I’m not on social media anymore.
What barriers to female leadership do you think will remain in five years’ time?
Jane: There are life stages where the working community has a higher rate of attrition of women. For example, having a family, caring for elderly parents or when children go off to university. Supporting people through moments like that means that you can build long tenured relationships with your people and benefit from their experience in your business.
Andrea: We invest so much in each individual and if they take a career break, for whatever reason, when they come back and they’ve still got those skills and abilities. Why wouldn't you welcome them back with open arms?
Julia: At the stages in women’s careers where attrition spikes, change isn’t happening fast enough organically - policy regulation, and legislation need to step in and drive it.
How do you sustain your energy in a high performance role?
Andrea: I’m a trustee for a local hospice, which gives me a different perspective and makes me think, “This is just rugby”. I understand the sport is people's livelihoods, but it's not people's lives.
Julia: I've stopped feeling guilty if I'm going to take a brief time-out to recharge the batteries during the Monday-to-Friday, nine- to-five routine, because the job is one where you never switch off. It’s also important to lean into the things about the job that bring you joy and to remember to look after yourself.
Jane: I think that for all three of us, the one thing that we all have in common is that we are passionate about what we do, and that is a source of joy. There are moments when you recognise the privilege of the role, and you recognise the joy that you're getting from doing it every day.
The theme of International Women’s Day 2026 is Give to Gain. How have you tried to create an environment that supports others?
Andrea: I take pleasure in seeing other people grow and evolve around me, so I try and empower others to have the courage to do something outside their comfort zone. It’s about encouraging collaboration, so people can grow.
Julia: In leadership, you must be willing to be vulnerable. You don't have to be the person who is always right and always knows all the answers. You must be able to say, “I don't know how to do this”, or “I got that wrong”. If you lead with that willingness to be vulnerable, other people are more likely to follow, and then they're more likely to be their own authentic selves. One of my favourite parts of the role is debating with people with different perspectives and reaching a better answer than I could have done alone.
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