Since 2005, Sapphire Partners has been leading the conversation on gender diversity in leadership positions across sectors and industries.
Our outreach programme has helped us put diversity top of the agenda, and includes initiatives for a range of activities that are 'shifting the dial'.
Sapphire Partners promotes diversity across our search mandates and campaigns for change across executive search and beyond…
We were one of the first signatories of the Voluntary Code that promotes diversity in executive search firms. We have helped develop the code itself to make it more impactful as well as the accreditation process for search firms supporting it.
Sapphire Partners is one of the few executive search firms qualified under the Enhanced Code of Conduct for our work promoting gender balance, and the only boutique search firm to receive top-level accreditation.
We were one of the first signatories of the CBI’s Change the Race Ratio campaign, promoting the representation of ethnic minorities in executive teams and boardrooms.
We have given evidence on improving the gender balance on boards and executive pipelines to committees in the House of Lords, House of Commons, European Union, Treasury Select Committee and the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
Since setting up the Senior Women in Fund Management network in 2016, we have held over 24 successful round-table dinners to discuss industry issues and goals. The network now embraces over 160 women across 94 firms.
We have marked our commitment to achieving a net carbon zero future by joining Chapter Zero, to help ensure the organisations we work with hire climate competent executive and non-executive directors to their boards.
Launched in April 2021 by Yetunde Hofmann, this innovative programme aims to develop high potential, black women for executive roles. Sapphire Partners is collaborating with Solaris through mentoring, coaching and sponsoring individual women, to help build and strengthen the pipeline of black female leaders.
Visit the website here.
Every quarter we invite senior women to attend a networking breakfast hosted by the Chair of a FTSE company. The aim is to raise the profile of senior female talent with FTSE Chairs as well as promote networking and sharing experiences on women’s careers in leadership roles.
Sapphire Partners supports the Cranfield School of Management’s Gender, Leadership and Inclusion Centre. We help the centre identify candidates for its annual 100 Women to Watch list and have hosted Women to Watch receptions at the House of Commons, London Stock Exchange and Royal Mail Head Office.
Sapphire's founder, Kate Grussing, is an advisory board member at Rare Recruitment, aiming to increase the proportion of black and ethnic minority graduates entering the UK’s public and private sector talent pipeline. By doing so, we are able to identify and mentor young black and minority talent.
We participate in a variety of events as keynote speakers and panellists on an ongoing basis, working with The Diversity Project, The 30% Club, Saïd Business School at Oxford, McKinsey, London Business School, INSEAD, 100 Women in Finance, City Women Network, Women in Banking and Finance, the International Women’s Forum, the ICAEW and the Chartered Management Institute.
Meet us on social media
Follow our news, initiatives, successes and more...