Gender Equality

Championing Gender Equality and Inclusion 

At Haymarket, 53% of our global workforce are women, and we are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can thrive. We know that this work is ongoing, and we will continue to build on our progress to ensure that every employee feels supported, valued, and able to succeed. 

Inclusive recruitment

To attract and hire diverse talent, we use targeted content and social media marketing, as well as standardised interview questions, in a bid to reduce the influence of unconscious bias in hiring decisions. We have invested in the applicant tracking system iCIMS. The platform highlights potentially gender-biased language in job descriptions, encouraging the use of neutral language to broaden our pool of applicants and attract more women to roles traditionally seen as male dominated. We anonymise applications by removing names and other identifying details, ensuring recruiting managers focus solely on skills and qualifications. 

We’re pleased this approach is working: last year 64% of all our new joiners globally were female.

The system also provides diversity analytics, enabling us to track representation and identify potential gender disparities at each stage of the hiring process. These insights allow us to implement targeted interventions where necessary. 

Empowering women in leadership

We are proud that each of our seven UK-based female board colleagues has grown her career with Haymarket. Globally, women now make up 40% of our executive leadership team and Group & divisional Boards. Of our seven operating divisions, three are led by women, and we also have a female Deputy Managing Director. These achievements reflect our ongoing commitment to redressing gender imbalance, particularly at senior leadership levels. 

Hannah Routledge, Commercial and Partnerships Manager, Hey Girls, said: "We continue to be so grateful for our partnership with Haymarket Media Group, which has made a tangible difference in the lives of those we support. Through your purchases, more than 3,162 individual period products have been donated to our UK Community Partner Network helping to ensure that more people have access to essential items with dignity and care."

Learning, development, and mentorship

Haymarket continues to invest heavily in the learning and development of all employees. Women are strongly represented across all opportunities and all employees are required to complete our mandatory DEI and Sexual Harassment training. Coaching and mentoring programmes are also in place, and many of our female leaders across the business have taken advantage of these initiatives to further their careers.

Supporting work-life balance

We recognise that women often juggle responsibilities outside of work, and we strive to foster a culture where open conversations about work-life balance are encouraged. We offer a range of flexible working arrangements, enhanced parental leave policies, and tailored support for employees returning to work. 

Kay Bessant, Lead Project Manager at Content Labs and member of Haymarket’s Balance Network, said: “The Balance Network provides an important space within Haymarket for people to talk - to make change, to represent, and to shine a light on sometimes forgotten or hard subjects. It is with the latter in mind that we tackled first International Men's Day and then International Women's day via powerful employee videos.

It really was a joy to be part of the process, people were so open and honest, and above all human. I felt privileged to be able to listen in on stuff where the lid seldom gets lifted. It felt like we succeeded in shedding a little light on men's mental health, and how far women have come in the workplace, and how much further both still need and have to go.”