Like a prick at the proverbial lesbian commitment ceremony, I feel uncomfortable writing about women in grocery, the subject of this week's cover story in The Grocer. Picking the 35 most powerful and influential in the industry is a political nightmare even for the women on The Grocer who selected and interviewed our choices. But what do I know about glass ceilings?

The closest I get to a qualification is as a new father. It's hard enough just being a dad! For a working mother the emotional, physical, moral and time constraints must be an enormous barrier to a successful career as a senior executive, and while I take my hat off to all the women in this feature, a special mention must go to the mothers amongst them, with a passing mention also to the enlightened employees who supported them. They can by no means be described as universal.

Indeed, totting up, on the back of my trusty brown envelope, the representatives from the various corners of the grocery world, a number of injustices emerge. With 16 senior executives on the retailer side, for example, representation is far higher than it is among manufacturers, at only nine. The number of entrepreneurs on the list (six) also suggests manufacturing is a more stifling environment for women, though the appointment of Alison Cooper as the new CEO of Imperial Tobacco is a massive step in the right direction.

But comparisons cannot be black and white: while Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda boast a number of women in senior positions, for example, Morrisons and Waitrose have none at the highest level. The idea that Morrisons will abandon tradition and appoint a woman as its CEO seems unlikely under such circumstances, with Asda CFO Judith McKenna an outsider at 16-1 according to the latest odds. Then again, who predicted, three years ago, that Sir Ken would appoint not a grocer, nor a Yorkshireman, but a supplier, and a Dutchman?

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