This International Women’s Day, we’re shining the spotlight on influential female entrepreneurs, CEOs, founders and educators leading the way in European industries and academic spaces.
From tech and finance to health and education, female leaders in Europe are setting the bar ever higher with their innovative, growth-oriented and pioneering approaches.
With this in mind, it’s important to acknowledge that we’re still a long way off when it comes to closing the gender gap, with salary discrepancies remaining at 13% in the EU, and a severe underrepresentation of female leadership in government and senior management positions.
What’s more, a report published this week by Female Foundry, a startup ecosystem that promotes women entrepreneurs in Europe, found that funding for women-led companies dropped 12% between 2023 and 2024.
So what can we do to help to create an inclusive and successful future for women in the workplace? By supporting policies such as the EU Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025 that promote equal pay, offering mentorship opportunities and supporting female-led businesses, we can begin to build a fairer and more diverse environment for females to thrive.
Check out our list of 15 female leaders to support and follow in 2025.
Ángela Álvarez, Founder & CEO, Agalia Capital & Action Monkey
As the founder and CEO of Agailia Capital and Action Monkey, Ángela Álvarez is passionate about blending technology and human-centric business models.
In 2024, she wrote a book entitled ‘Banks and Whales’ in which she explores the concepts of cryptoeconomics and tokenization for finance professionals and enthusiasts.
Álvarez has over 30 years of experience in global mergers and acquisitions, investment banking and restructuring across financial institutions, insurance, fund management, and more.
She holds numerous awards, and has been named among the Top Fintech Influencers, Top Women Leaders, Top CEOs, as well as featuring in the Elite League of Innovative Entrepreneurs.
Jas Schembri-Stothart, Co-Founder, luna
Jas Schembri-Stothart is the co-founder of luna, the first digital health companion for teenage girls.
Iuna is an AI-driven app designed to help break taboos around health and empower girls to make informed decisions about their bodies.
Schembri-Stothart co-created the app alongside her best friend, Jo Goodall, and currently leads the growth, community and marketing aspects of the business.
She has delivered a number of keynote speeches, as well as moderating panel discussions for large corporates including Apple and Pion.
She’s also given career talks and graduation speeches at prestigious schools including Girls’ Day School Trust, The Harris Academy and Ewell Castle.
Mila Smart Semeshkina, CEO, Lectera
Mila Smart Semeshkina is the CEO and founder of Lectera, an international education platform with over 3 million learners across 65 countries.
She is a thought leader in EdTech, women’s empowerment and personal growth, as well as a venture investor and the founder of the Women’s Empowerment Council, which today has over 30,000 members.
Mila holds numerous accolades and awards, including ‘CEO of the Year’ at the CEO Middle East Awards in 2023.
She was also a finalist in the Best Founder(s) / CEO of EdTech companies and the EdTech Leadership Awards 2024.
Jenny Sagström, CEO, Skona
With over 20 years of experience in the B2B space, Jenny Sagström is the CEO and co-founder of Skona, an award-winning full-service B2B agency focused on human-centred branding.
Skona has made a name for itself by servicing leading brands like Snowflake, Alteryx and VMware.
The agency has won awards at The Webby Awards, Awwwards, Muse Creative Awards and The American Advertising Awards.
Sagström has led Skona from a two-person operation to a flourishing business with 100+ B2B clients and over 80% female leadership.
Based between Stockholm and San Francisco, Sagström was earlier a consultant who helped major tech corporations like HP launch products in Europe.
She’s also a contributor to Fast Company and other publications where she writes about marketing and creative.
Sayara Thompson, Program Manager, University of Cambridge
Saraya Thompson is the programme manager for the Entrepreneurship Centre at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School, where she has worked for over 21 years.
She has experience in the academic, international and government spheres, as well as in the private sector.
Her career includes roles at the University of Essex, Médecins Sans Frontières, and the British Embassy in Uzbekistan, where she was involved in mentoring and collaborating with international partners to promote innovation and sustainability.
At Cambridge, Thompson also runs Ignite, an intensive, one-week entrepreneurship training programme for aspiring entrepreneurs from the Cambridge network.
The programme in includes practical teaching sessions, expert clinics, mentor sessions and advice and support from experienced entrepreneurs and innovators.
Emma Thomasson, Journalist & Media Consultant
With a career spanning 27 years, Emma Thomasson is a British journalist, consultant and leadership coach who has served as a correspondent and bureau chief in Germany, South Africa, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
She is an expert in newsroom leadership and organization, as well as European politics, business and economics.
Thomasson spent 14 years as a senior correspondent for Reuters in Germany, and was also the coordinator of the Reuters global mentoring scheme.
She is currently a media consultant, journalist and facilitator focusing on moderating events and leading workshops on business development, leadership, team building and gender equality.
Marie-Laure Vaes, Head of Marketing, Wooclap
Marie-Laure Vaes is the head of marketing at Wooclap, an educational app aimed at making classes and lectures more engaging and memorable.
Today, Wooclap is available in seven languages, and has a community of over 50 million users in top higher education institutions.
Vaes previously worked for L’Oréal, starting as a young graduate in marketing and progressing to Senior Brand Activation Manager of Skincare Brands.
Vaes has degrees from the Ichec Brussels Management School in Brussels and a Masters’s in Marketing from the University of California Marshall School of Business.
Yakun Wang, Head of Communications & Marketing, Ventech
Yakun Wang is the head of communications and marketing at Ventech, a global early-stage venture capital firm with a digital focus.
Ventech backs visionary tech entrepreneurs with big, bold ideas. The company has invested in a number of unicorns, including Vestiaire Collective, Veo Sport (Denmark) and Prewave (Austria).
Wang is an expert in corporate communications, brand strategy, PR and high-level management in sectors including private equity, venture capital and start-ups.
At Ventech, she leads the global brand strategy, content and thought leadership programs, internal communications and community building.
Laura González-Estéfani, Founder, TheVentureCity
As the founder and CEO of TheVentureCity, Laura González-Estéfan brings a wealth of experience in scaling global start ups.
TheVentureCity is an early-stage venture fund, backing companies in Europe, the USA and Latin America.
González-Estéfani previously worked as an early employee for Facebook, as well as in management positions for eBay and Siemens.
She also serves as a board member for Caixabank Payments and Consumer in Spain, and was named a Henry Crown Fellow by the Aspen Institute in 2022.
Gabriella Bussien, CEO, Trapets
Gabriella Bussien is the CEO of Trapets, a tech-first organization for fighting financial crime using Regulatory Technology (RegTech).
The company has been a Nordic market leader since 2000, and focuses on anti-money laundering (AML), customer due diligence (CDD) and market surveillance.
Bussein took the helm of the company in 2023 after serving as the Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Sales & Marketing before that.
With over 12 years of leadership roles under her belt, Bussein has helped big names like Refinitiv and Thomson Reuters to scale, leading teams to increase year-on-year revenue and quickly adapt to industry change.
Mary Hardie, Venture Builder Incubator, Edinburgh Innovations
Mary Hardie’s diverse career includes co-founding Triple H Media, managing social media for emerging companies such as Lotus Stone Productions and What’s On For Kids, and serving as an administrator at Queen Margaret University, supporting the RKEDU team in promoting entrepreneurship.
She is currently managing the Venture Builder Incubator for the The Bayes Centre at the University of Edinburgh.
The hybrid online and in-person program provides graduate students at the university with the knowledge and network to commercialize their data-driven innovations.
According to their website, since its inception in 2021, 131 founders and companies have participated in the Venture Builder Incubator. Founders have raised a total of £8.8 million through grants and investments.
Hardie has also volunteered for organizations like Empty Kitchens Full Hearts, and was a panel member for Children’s Hearings Scotland.
Ana Aguilar Pérez, Project Manager, <IMPACT> Accelerator
Ana Aguilar Pérez is the project manager at <IMPACT> Accelerator, the startup accelerator program from ISDI, Spain’s first business school for the digital age.
<IMPACT> Accelerator offers startups mentorship opportunities, as well as access to venture capital funding and access to a network of corporations and ecosystem supporters.
The accelerator has helped create venture-building programs for some of the world’s most recognizable organizations, including UNICEF, the European Commission, and Toyota Spain, and Acelera Startups from the EOI Business School, a public institution from the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism of Spain.
<IMPACT> has accelerated 377 startups and distributed over €80.5 million in funding since it began in 2014, and many startups have gone on to successful exits, including over €80.5 million in funding since its inception.
Aguilar Pérez currently manages communication and dissemination for the EU-funded RoboSAPIENS project, which aims to make robots safer and more trustworthy to work alongside humans.
Mélisande Mual, Managing Director, The Paypers
As the managing director and owner of The Paypers, Mélisande Mual is an expert in navigating and analysing the fast-paced global fintech and regtech sectors.
The Paypers is a leading platform for global payments news, with a focus on payment infrastructures, systems and behaviours, as well as Open Banking, B2B payments and cryptocurrency.
Mual’s most notable strengths include strategic selling at C-suit level, building and nurturing online communities, launching new services and creating premium pricing concepts.
She is also a subject matter expert on alternative payment methods, cross-border e-commerce, B2B payments, open banking and fraud prevention and detection.
Annick Janssens, Director of Entrepreneurship, IE Business School
As the director of Entrepreneurship at IE Business school, Annick Janssens leads entrepreneurship initiatives within the academic community.
She is an expert in entrepreneurship and innovation, and specializes in building ecosystems and driving growth for startups.
Janssens has played a crucial role in guiding startups through the Venture Lab, Area 31 and the Venture Network, by organizing events and workshops that connect startups with investors and industry experts.
She is a passionate change-maker who thrives on building ecosystems and structures from scratch.
Before joining academia, Janssens was the Chief Operating Officer at Fox Theory, a branding and marketing agency that focused on launching startups.
Veronica Diquattro, President of B2C & Supply, Omio
As the president of B2C&Supply for Omio in Europe, Veronica Diquattro is a prominent figure in the tech world.
She was recognized as one of Forbes’ Top 100 Managers in 2023, as well as one of the Top 50 Inspiring Women in Tech, and Best Leaders Under 40 in 2020.
Diquattro is a business angel, a board member at a variety of companies and a strong advocate for women-led organizations and start-ups.
Her leadership spans across the travel, innovation and social impact sectors.
She’s a member of Angels for Women, a business angel association aimed at supporting female-led startups.
Before joining Omio, Diquattro held senior marketing roles at companies like Google, Spotify and DAZN.
