MARY BIDDLECOMBE


EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TASIS


SUPPORTING THE NEXT GENERATION


Mary Biddlecombe, executive director – development and external relations, at TASIS, The American School in England, has forged a successful career across multiple sectors by connecting and leading people.


M


ary Biddlecombe has built


a


on breaking the glass ceiling. Moving


from HR to business development, Mary’s career


progression also


shows the transferability, value and relevance


of HR’s professional


certification in today’s workplace. Mary’s ambition, coupled with


strong leadership attributes spotted early on by employers, enabled Mary to help


organisations and


individuals grow. Today, Mary is supporting the next generation of globally minded leaders and their families by championing TASIS’s vibrant diversity, equity and inclusion programmes, STEAM subjects and innovation.


BLAZING A TRAIL TO SENIOR LEVELS Mary started her career in graduate roles in HR with SMEs in the electronics and mining sectors. “My very first graduate position was


70 career


with Racal Defence Electronics,” says Mary. “I remember going on an Outward-Bound course with a group of fellow graduates in Wales. I was terrified about how I was going to get through sleeping on a mountain top without access to cloakrooms and things, but it was fantastic!” Out of a cohort of 25 graduates,


Mary was one of only two females in the group. “It was very male dominated, but I didn’t pay much heed to it. I’ve always worked very hard and was lucky enough to be offered promotions.” From Racal Defence Electronics,


Mary’s next significant move was to a global mineral producer. Here, Mary was soon promoted to divisional director of HR and became the company’s first female director – something very remarkable at


the


time. “Twenty-five years ago, that was such a big deal,” says Mary. “Now it’s


just something that we don’t even dwell on. It’s completely


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