100 Women in Insurance

Summary
Thank you to BCH for sponsoring this episode.

In this episode, Sandra speaks with Zoe Davenport, Head of Customer and Brand at BCH, about the question many women still quietly navigate:

Why are women still hesitating to talk about ambition and family at work?

Zoe shares her unexpected journey into insurance, from qualifying as a quantity surveyor during the 2009 financial crisis to building a 14-year career that evolved from surveying into marketing and customer leadership. Her story is a reminder that career paths are rarely linear and that transferable skills often matter more than we realise.

Together, Sandra and Zoe explore the tension many women feel between career progression and family planning. They discuss the unspoken calculations that happen in your late twenties and early thirties, the fear of being “written off” before anything has even happened, and why open conversations still feel risky for many.

Zoe reflects candidly on pregnancy, returning to work, nursery chaos, and the emotional reality behind what looks like a seamless transition on LinkedIn. They examine how return-to-work programmes are only as effective as the culture behind them and why genuine support cannot simply live on paper.

The conversation also dives into networking dynamics, from golf days to manicure meetings, and challenges the idea that you must emulate existing norms to earn your seat at the table.

This is an honest discussion about ambition, authenticity, culture, and building a workplace where women do not feel they have to shrink, hide or pre-emptively slow down their careers.

Key Takeaways

Career paths evolve, and transferable skills are often underestimated.

It is easy to climb a ladder you never consciously chose.

Many women still self-edit ambition when family planning becomes part of the picture.

Open conversations require cultural safety, not just policy.

Return-to-work support depends on manager mindset and company ethos.

You do not have to change who you are to build influence.

Networking can (and should) evolve beyond traditional formats.

Culture is experienced through people, not just written in handbooks.

Insurance offers diverse, fascinating career opportunities that many women have yet to fully see.

About the Guest
Connect with Zoe Davenport on LinkedIn.

Zoe is Head of Customer and Brand at BCH, a leading provider of reinstatement cost assessments, and a passionate advocate for equity, inclusion and sustainable career progression within insurance and construction.

About the Sponsor
BCH is a multidisciplinary Chartered Building Consultantancy.

Visit the website.

Follow on LinkedIn.

About the Host
Connect with Sandra Lewin on LinkedIn.

Sign up to the ‘Coffee with Sandra’ newsletter to stay up to date on all things 100 Women in Insurance.

Join ‘The Pink Book’ Collective, a private LinkedIn community connecting women in insurance to find mentors, speaking opportunities and much more.

100 Women in Insurance Summit 26th March 2026

A day and evening event to celebrate 100th podcast episode. Expect plenty of learning, networking and celebrating opportunities.

Get your tickets here.

Thanks to this episode sponsor Avencia Talent Solutions

In this episode, Sandra Lewin speaks with Liz Charlesworth, Managing Partner at Avencia Talent Solutions , about accidental exposure, intentional visibility, and why assumptions are quietly holding female talent back.

Together, they unpack what really happens behind senior hiring conversations, especially long before a job is even advertised.

They explore the concept of “accidental exposure”, which can be challenging in a remote working environments, and how to increase it.

Visibility is intentional. Relationships should be nurtured before you even need them. And your value can be articulated clearly without ego and arrogance.

Sandra and Liz also challenge one of the biggest barriers to progression:

Assumptions.

Assumptions about ambition.

Assumptions about flexibility.

Assumptions about parental responsibilities.

Assumptions about who is “ready.”

And in doing so, they arrive at something simple but powerful:

If organisations stopped assuming and started asking, the pipeline would change.

Flexibility, they argue, does not mean less ambition. It means rethinking how and when work gets done so careers are sustainable.

This is a conversation about risk, visibility, advocacy, and building leadership pipelines intentionally, not accidentally.

Key takeaways:

Accidental exposure has reduced in remote environments, so visibility must now be intentional.

Hard work that is not seen is often mistaken for silence.

Visibility is not ego it is clarity about your value.

Reactive hiring often defaults to familiar networks, narrowing diversity.

Flexibility does not equal reduced ambition. It is about sustainability.

Assumptions are one of the biggest blockers to female progression.

Transparent policies remove the need for uncomfortable conversations.

About the guest

Connect with Liz Charlesworth (Liz Langford Archer) on LinkedIn.

About the sponsor

Avencia Talent Solutions a strategic talen solutions that evolve with your business . Connect on LinkedIn

About the host

Connect with Sandra Lewin on LinkedIn

Sign up to ‘Coffee with Sandra’ newsletter to stay up to date on all 100 Women In Insurance and more.

Join ‘The Pink Book’ Collective — a private LinkedIn group connecting women in insurance to find mentors, speaking opportunities and much more.

100 Women in Insurance Summit 26th March 2026

A day and evening event to celebrate 100th podcast episode. Expect plenty of learning, networking and celebrating opportunities.

Get your tickets here.

Thanks to this episode sponsor AdvantageGo.

Summary

In this episode, Sandra speaks with Kirat Kaur Nandra about what it really means to take up space in rooms you were never expected to enter.

Kirat shares how she fell into insurance by accident and how that unexpected start turned into a successful career defined by hard work, mentoring, and legacy.

They explore the quiet work that often goes unseen, such as hundreds of Lloyd’s tours, the mentoring of young people from underrepresented backgrounds, and the belief that impact does not need applause to matter.

Kirat also opens up about becoming the first women of colour to have her portrait displayed in the historic Old Library at Lloyd’s. She shares the deeply personal story behind the pink dress in the painting and what that moment meant for her and her family.

Sandra and Kirat reflect on grief, caring responsibilities and how legacy can be shaped through resilience.

The conversation also introduces a phrase that now lives beyond this episode:

“Walk like a peacock.”

A message from Kirat’s late father about standing tall, owning your presence, and carrying confidence into every room.

This is a conversation about confidence, heritage, mentorship, and achieving what once felt impossible.

Key Takeaways

You do not need an audience for your impact to matter.

Mentoring is about listening first, advising second.

Younger generations bring courage and values led leadership that we can learn from.

Confidence is not arrogance, it is grounded self-belief.

Taking up space authentically is an act of leadership.

Your background does not define your ceiling.

Walking like a peacock means standing tall with dignity, not ego.

About the Guest
Connect with Kirat Kaur Nandra on LinkedIn.

About the Host
Connect with Sandra Lewin on LinkedIn

Sign up to ‘Coffee with Sandra’ newsletter to stay up to date on all things 100 Women In Insurance and more.

Join ‘The Pink Book’ Collective — a private LinkedIn group connecting women in insurance to find mentors, speaking opportunities and much more

100 Women in Insurance Summit 26th March 2026

A day and evening event to celebrate 100th podcast episode. Expect plenty of learning, networking and celebrating opportunities.

Get your tickets here.

Summary

In this episode, Sandra speaks with Donna Robertson about what it really means to trust yourself when the timing feels inconvenient and the decision is uncomfortable.

Donna shares a moment many women will recognise. On paper, everything looked great. Seniority, experience, strong results. But while pregnant with her second child, she realised that waiting for circumstances to improve felt harder than being honest. The timing was far from ideal, yet staying silent no longer felt sustainable. Instead of waiting for certainty or the “right time,” Donna chose transparency, handed in her notice at eight months pregnant, and trusted her gut.

Together, they explore why so many women slow down mid-career, particularly after having children. Not because ambition fades or capability is lost, but because the perceived cost of getting it wrong increases. Donna challenges the way maternity leave is often treated as a career risk, despite being a predictable, manageable event.

The episode closes with what Donna chose to build instead. A brokerage shaped by values rather than volume, where trust, transparency and long-term relationships matter more than commission or incentives. She talks about leadership, flexible working and why selling does not need pressure to work when it is rooted in clarity and doing the right thing. This is a conversation about backing yourself before everything feels ready, and choosing alignment when certainty never quite arrives.

Takeaways

When the internal resistance becomes louder than the external risk, it is often a signal to reassess rather than push through

Transparency early on can save time and emotional energy later on

Waiting for certainty can keep you aligned to roles that no longer reflect who you are becoming

Values-led businesses create stronger loyalty than incentive-led models

Selling works best when it is rooted in trust, education, and long-term relationships

Flexible working succeeds when outcomes matter more than optics

Being open early on, helps see which environments are genuinely supportive, and which are simply familiar

Choosing alignment may feel uncomfortable in the short term, but it creates far more sustainable careers over time

About the Guest

Connect with Donna Robertson on LinkedIn.

Find out more about Squared Insurance Brokers. 

About the host

Connect with Sandra Lewin on LinkedIn

Sign up to ‘Coffee with Sandra’ newsletter to stay up to date on all 100 Women In Insurance and more.

Join ‘The Pink Book’ Collective, private LinkedIn Group connecting women in insurance to find mentors, speaking opportunities and much more.

100 Women in Insurance Summit 26th March 2026

A day and evening event to celebrate 100th podcast episode. Expect plenty of learning, networking and celebrating opportunities.

Get your tickets here.

Summary

In this episode, Sandra speaks with Katherine Bryant, CEO of The Progress Partnership and founder of the Insurance Breakfast Club, about what happens when a career is going well on paper, but no longer feels right in practice.

Katherine shares why insurance was a clear career choice from the start, how stepping into leadership roles sparked her interest in people and performance, and how a serious health crisis forced her to stop and rethink how she was working. That moment became a turning point, changing how she thought about success, sustainability, and what good leadership really looks like.

Together, they explore a point many women reach mid-career, when the job looks good from the outside but no longer fits. They talk about the guilt that can come with wanting change, the difference between choosing something new and feeling pushed out, and why retaining women is less about ‘fixing confidence’ and more about having honest conversations.

The episode closes with how the Insurance Breakfast Club began, and why panel training has become such a practical route to stronger visibility, not just on stage, but in meetings, client conversations, and leadership rooms.

Takeaways

If you are considering a change, get clear on your “why” first, then test the options that could solve it

Visibility grows when you talk about impact, shifting how colleagues see your contribution and potential

Build networks across the organisation, not just within your team, it changes your influence and access

Don’t assume you cannot do a role because of travel, hours, or visibility demands, propose a different model

Create your own room if you cannot see yourself in the existing ones

Listening to health and burnout signals early matters, because ignoring them can force a much harder stop later on

Coaching can turn “I have no options” into choices, helping you align work with your values, purpose and long‑term wellbeing

Flexibility does not always mean leaving corporate life; reshaping roles, expectations and ways of working can keep women in the industry in a way that also works for their lives

About the Guest

Connect with Katherine Bryant on LinkedIn.

About the host

Connect with Sandra Lewin on LinkedIn

Sign up to ‘Coffee with Sandra’ newsletter to stay up to date on all 100 Women In Insurance and more.

Join ‘The Pink Book’ Collective, private LinkedIn Group connecting women in insurance to find mentors, speaking opportunities and much more.