Insurance giant director named as one of the UK’s top LGBT+ executives
A director at Manchester-based Swinton Insurance has been named as one of the UK’s most influential LGBT+ leader’s in the business and financial services sectors – for the fourth consecutive year.
Richard Beaven, distribution director at Swinton, has been recognised as one of 100 top executives in the OUTstanding LGBT+ Executives List, published annually by the Financial Times.
Beaven has been acknowledged for his work as a Stonewall Ambassador and campaigning to put diversity on the agenda of the British Insurance Brokers Association.
He is also a founding member of LINK, the LGBT insurance network, supported the Lord Mayor’s ‘Power of Diversity’ programme to develop a new charter for the City of London and is the founder of an LGBT+ supper club working with C-suite leaders across the insurance industry.
In his role at Swinton, Beaven has been a driving force behind making the business more visible and accessible to the LGBT+ community, including sponsoring Manchester Pride for the last two years and speaking at university careers events about opportunities in financial services for LGBT+ graduates.
The annual rankings celebrate commitment, both inside and outside the workplace, to diversity and inclusion.
Beaven said: “It’s a real honour to be recognised by OUTstanding, an organisation which does a huge amount of work to break down the barriers and celebrate diverse companies. Although there’s always more to do, I’m proud of the great strides that are being made, especially within insurance and financial services.”
Suki Sandhu, founder & CEO of OUTstanding, said: “These lists exist to challenge the assumption you cannot be out and successful in business, and to highlight the importance of role models in inspiring the next generation of business leaders. By recognising and celebrating those who are leading the charge, the lists demonstrate how far the quest for workplace equality has come. But there is always more to be done. Big business and the public sector have the power and influence to promote LGBT+ inclusion more widely, paving the way for real societal change around the world.”
Swinton Insurance is part of Swinton Group and headquartered at 101 Embankment in Manchester city centre.
