Mary Ann Sieghart Keynote Speaker

  • Broadcaster, journalist and author of award-winning and bestselling book, 'The Authority Gap' (2021)
  • Assistant Editor, The Times (1998-2007)
  • Highly versatile moderator and engaging speaker on gender bias

Mary Ann Sieghart's Biography

Mary Ann Sieghart is a highly regarded current affairs commentator, presenter and speaker. Her ground-breaking book ‘The Authority Gap’ looks at how we still don’t take women as seriously as men, and what we can do about it. Having examined all the research, she is full of ideas for how organisations can tackle gender bias and help more women reach the top.

Since ‘The Authority Gap’ was published in 2021, it has received widespread praise and won numerous awards.  It was named “best politics book of the year” (The Guardian), “best philosophy and ideas book of the year” (The Times) and “best political book of the year” (Waterstones).

Mary Ann spent 19 years at The Times as Assistant Editor, including as Arts Editor, Chief Political Leader-Writer, Op-Ed Editor and political and social columnist on Op-Eds and in Times2.  Prior to this she worked at the Financial Times as a Eurobond correspondent and Lex Columnist, and at the Today newspaper as the Business Editor.  From 2010 to 2012, she wrote a weekly column for The Independent on politics, economics and social affairs, and in 2008, she co-founded current affairs content aggregation website, The Browser.

From 2008-10, Mary Ann presented Newshour, the BBC World Service’s flagship news and current affairs programme.  She continues to present programmes on BBC Radio 4 including Start the Week, Fallout, Analysis, Profile, One to One, as well as several documentaries, and regularly appears on Question Time, Any Questions, Newsnight, Woman’s Hour, among other current affairs programmes.

She is a Visiting Professor at King’s College London, Non-Executive Director of the Guardian Media Group and Chair of the Investment Committee of The Scott Trust (owner of The Guardian and The Observer).  She is the Senior Independent Director of Pantheon International, a Non-Executive Director of The Merchants Trust and Senior Independent Trustee of the Kennedy Memorial Trust.

Mary Ann was Chair of the Judges for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2022, and chaired the Social Market Foundation think tank for ten years.  She has held several board member and advisory roles for organisations including the Ofcom Content Board, Henderson Smaller Companies Investment Trust, DLN Digital, and the Council of Tate Modern.

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Videos of Mary Ann Sieghart

TED | Why are women still taken less seriously than men?
TED | Why are women still taken less seriously than men?
 Mary Ann Sieghart | The Authority Gap: Why Women Are Still Taken Less Seriously Than Men....
Mary Ann Sieghart | The Authority Gap: Why Women Are Still Taken Less Seriously Than Men....
Nudgestock 2023 - Fighting the authority gap - Mary Ann Sieghart
Nudgestock 2023 - Fighting the authority gap - Mary Ann Sieghart
 Redefiners Podcast | Mary Ann Sieghart, Journalist and Author
Redefiners Podcast | Mary Ann Sieghart, Journalist and Author
Lloyd's of London | Mary Ann Sieghart on The Authority Gap: What can you do to address gender bias?
Lloyd's of London | Mary Ann Sieghart on The Authority Gap: What can you do to address gender bias?
Women in Defence UK Conference 2021 - The Authority Gap with Mary Ann Sieghart
Women in Defence UK Conference 2021 - The Authority Gap with Mary Ann Sieghart
The Institute of Art and Ideas | The gender authority gap | Mary Ann Seighart
The Institute of Art and Ideas | The gender authority gap | Mary Ann Seighart
Mary Ann Sieghart | Flimsy feminism: Examining your biases
Mary Ann Sieghart | Flimsy feminism: Examining your biases
On why Kensington and Chelsea is Britain's Monaco
On why Kensington and Chelsea is Britain's Monaco

Articles, Media & Podcasts

Books by Mary Ann Sieghart

Mary Ann Seighart book cover
The Authority Gap: Why women are still taken less seriously than men, and what we can do about it

Comments & Testimonials

“The session with Mary Ann Sieghart today was just amazing! I’ve worked in JPMorgan for 16 years and I don’t think I’ve ever had a webinar that resonated with me as much. An excellent session, really thought provoking.”
JP Morgan
“This was the most popular event Lloyd’s has had in the last two years. I was really struck by how much it resonated with many of our attendees and inspired much heartfelt conversation afterwards.”
Lloyd's of London
"A truly fantastic talk - we have already received a plethora of positive feedback remarking how informative and inspirational it was!"
Morgan Stanley
“We have been overwhelmed with the positive feedback received – with one manger commenting, ‘One of the best IDE events I have attended in all my years at KPMG.” We’ve received heaps of emphatic praise for her and for the content of her talk.  Everyone wants a book, too! Thanks again. It was truly a great experience for us."
KPMG
“The event went brilliantly this afternoon. We have had reports of lots of conversations taking place around our various offices and requests for additional copies of her book!”
Lockton
"We are deeply grateful for the time you spent with us last week. Our guests were effusive in their feedback. Yours is the right topic at the right time. We hope our guests’ heightened awareness of the authority gap and practical tools to overcome it will result in better decisions and better outcomes."
Cardano Risk Management 

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