Ms Frankland's appointment means that the manufacturer is now led by a diverse board of directors, where 50 percent of positions are held by women - a first for company in its 150-year history.

Following its continued success and recent rebrand, Mansfield Pollard has welcomed Ms Frankland to the leadership team, whose members are delivering substantial change across all areas of the business, including encouraging a more gender diverse workplace. With only 9 percent of the UK’s current workforce in this sector being female, the manufacturing company is spearheading a campaign to attract more women and hopes that other companies will follow.

Mansfield Pollard is led by managing director, Joanna Robinson, who believes that a diverse and inclusive workforce is crucial to encouraging different perspectives and ideas that drive innovation. Results have continued to improve with the business growing at record levels in the last 12 months, recording significant increases in both profitability and net worth. This growth has been based on the company’s ability to respond to its customer’s needs and continue to provide new products and service offerings.

Ms Frankland’s appointment at Mansfield Pollard is a key role and reflects the business’s strategic agenda for commercial growth, which will enable the firm to focus on adding value for its customers and extend the reach of the brand internationally.

Ms Frankland has a distinguished track record of driving growth, having spent 16 years in specification sales within the industrial/commercial lighting industry, where she swiftly moved up through the business from the sales department to head of sales and marketing, and finally sales director in 2011. Her role was to develop the vision and implementation of the company’s sales and marketing strategy, which ensured healthy profit and growth. 

Ms Frankland's role at Mansfield Pollard is will be extensive, but her immediate priorities are to develop the sales structure across the different business divisions, implement key strategies to develop short-term business and deliver long-term growth via strong specification routes.

An important part of her role will entail the promotion of the manufacturing industry in schools and to young people more generally, and to explain that the profession works with cutting-edge technologies and has excellent career prospects in an expanding market, for men and women alike. 

Joanna Robinson, managing director at Mansfield Pollard said: “Diversity matters, and companies are 15 percent more likely to perform better if they are gender diverse. The different ways women approach issues add to the flexibility and resourcefulness of an organisation. 

“As one of the few women in the industry, I believe that I have a responsibility to promote career opportunities for both sexes and in particular I hope that my example inspires other women to pursue careers within the industry.

“We are delighted to welcome Lou to the team and shine a light on gender diversity within our industry, but there is no room for complacency. If our sector is to thrive we need to be looking at the entire talent pool and that means ensuring that women have the right skills and opportunities, and are shown that a career in this sector is diverse, exciting and can provide equal opportunities for all.”

Ms Frankland added: “The role provides an opportunity to build on the strong foundations already in place, working with a great team of people who understand what the business is here to deliver. My experience in specification sales should assist in the future growth of the business, and with some focus in key export markets, I believe we have the perfect combination for a successful future.

“Supporting Joanna on her quest to promote the industry is really exciting, and I am looking forward to helping spread the message to women and girls that engineering offers fantastic career prospects and the opportunity to improve society by contributing to ground-breaking projects that will really make a difference.”