The determination that helped Kate break through the barriers

There are few women in business who have enjoyed the sort of high-profile career that Kate Swann has.

While the glass ceiling still remains an issue when it comes to gender diversity, Ms Swann has bucked that trend.

She is an exception to the norm, but then again you have to be in order to occupy some of the positions Ms Swann has in her career so far.

Chief executive of WHSmith and managing director of Argos are just two of the posts that Ms Swann has held in the past. Currently, she is the chief executive of SSP.

However, few may realise that the seeds of success were sown here in Yorkshire, at one of the region’s many great universities.

In 1986, Ms Swann graduated from Bradford University with a degree in business management.

“It was a long time ago,” recalls Ms Swann.

Bradford University was very different then to what it is now, she added.

“The university itself has had a huge amount of investment. The main Bradford city centre campus is completely different,” she said.

The high-flying retail executive has returned to her former university to take up the ceremonial role of Chancellor.

She said: “The role of chancellor is an interesting one. There’s no real power to the role. It’s sort of a figurehead role but you do have a lot of influence.”

Her great hope is to show the students that if she can go from doing exams in the hall at Bradford to running some of UK’s top quoted companies, then so can they.

“It’s really important for the students at Bradford to set their sights high,” she said.

Ms Swann was the first of her family to go to university and is grateful for the opportunities she was afforded that her mother’s generation wasn’t. She added that the opportunities for women in today’s society are “limitless”.

She said: “I feel very proud of what I’ve done in my career. I started from fairly humble beginnings. In my day business wasn’t a particularly popular degree – not like it is now.

“There were even fewer women in business. Hopefully, I’m a good example of what can be achieved and if I can do it there’s absolutely no reason why all of the Bradford students shouldn’t have the same ambitions in their field.”

Her advice to women looking to emulate her success in business is to work hard, show determination and not believe in their capabilities.

“The first thing is there’s no alternative but to work hard,” she says.

“I’m not sure who quoted it in the first instance but the old saying the harder I work the luckier I get is exactly right. You don’t achieve anything without hard work.

“As a woman it’s really important to believe in your capability and to be determined. It’s a great characteristic, to be determined.”

Ms Swann says that women shouldn’t be frightened of being determined and focused.

“It’s a good quality to have,” she added.

While many things at Bradford may have changed since Ms Swann’s days as a student, some things still invoke memories of the past.

“I was over at Emm Lane, a lot of the old buildings are exactly the same and it’s nice that they have got that heritage. But again there’s been a huge investment in facilities for students. I’d love to be going there now,” she said.

It’s hard to imagine a high-profile business leader thinking back to their days spent on the campus of a university in Yorkshire when making decisions.

But Ms Swann admitted to referring back “quite often” to the basics she learnt at university when in the world of work.

“I can still remember some elements of the marketing and the marketing four Ps from my degree. Quite often it’s helpful in business to go back to the first principles so that is quite useful,” she said.

The thing that Bradford University offers is good links with industry, she added. “You don’t just get an academic degree.

“It has really good links with industry and Bradford’s focus is making knowledge work and making a difference in today’s society.

“That’s one of the things that was really helpful for me. I didn’t just come out of Bradford with technical learning I came out with the capability to apply that learning in the world of work.”

Despite holding the top job at SSP, Ms Swann said she is confident of being able to juggle her duties as Chancellor at the university.

Although it’s a ceremonial role she wants to bring her retail attributes to Bradford University.

She said: “It’s a very immediate business retail. You can make decisions today that change things tomorrow and you can see the results. One of the things that I think retail is very good at is trialling and learning.”

Ms Swann wants to see the Bradford University team trial and learn more.

“If you’re capable, and the team at Bradford is very capable, you very often find that more things work than you think,” she added.

After a career in retail spanning over two and a half decades, Ms Swann has seen seismic changes in the industry and none more so than the internet.

“The advent of the internet probably is the biggest change I’ve seen in my career. That’s revolutionised the way that people shop across most retail sectors.”

Next time a student of Bradford University is sitting in the exam hall, they’ll be able to refer to a living example of what is possible with the education that they have gained at the university.

Capability main characteristic

Kate Swann believes in appointments based on merit and not gender. She said: “Recruiting for boards you look for capability. I’d rather have a capable man than a less capable woman and vice versa.”

When it comes to encouraging more women into the higher echelons of business, Ms Swann says we’re making “good progress”.

She added: “Certainly since when I first started in business there are many more women.

“It’s still a relatively small proportion.

“However, if you look at the number of women coming through the science, maths, business courses in universities – in some of those courses there are more women graduating than men.”