Award for trailblazer

Jun 15 2009 by Karen Dent, The Journal

A TYNESIDE-born high-flyer has scooped a prestigious award recognising her trailblazing role for women in business.

Paula Bell, who is originally from Whitley Bay and who began her career at the Port of Blyth, took the 2009 First Woman science and technology award.

Now group finance director for West Sussex-based technology and engineering group Ricardo, Ms Bell was recognised for her role as a pioneer for other women in business. Award organisers Real Business Magazine and the CBI, were impressed by her work helping the company to diversify into green issues and the reduction of the group’s large debt balance to zero.

She said: “It’s a tremendous honour and I sincerely hope that my efforts have helped to open doors for other women to follow, both in finance in general and the high technology sector in particular.”

At 26, she became the youngest appointed director at Rolls-Royce before moving to director-level posts with Anglian Water and Gatwick Airport. She returned to the technology sector whwn she joined Ricardo in 2006.

Ms Bell is now actively working to promote Ricardo’s programmes to encourage more young women to follow careers in science, technology and engineering.