‘Beta men’ keep women out of the boardroom

By Simon Duke and James Gillespie

Lynn Forester says women must believe they can be successful in business (Matt Writtle)

LYNN FORESTER has spent her life surrounded by powerful men. Her husband is Sir Evelyn de Rothschild, the British financier, and her father owned an aviation company.

Lady de Rothschild has also forged her own remarkable career and, in doing so, become one of the world’s most successful businesswomen.

Now, in outspoken comments to coincide with a call for more women company directors, she has accused large firms of settling for weaker “beta men” in the boardroom.

In an interview with The Sunday Times, de Rothschild says: “Corporations need to open their minds more to the qualifications and qualities that women bring.

“When thinking about a board, men will always think of Richard and William and then someone will say, ‘What about a woman?’ And the response will be, ‘How do we get Hillary Clinton?’ They want the superstar women yet are very happy to have beta men.