![Gemma Benbow - Inspiring Automotive Woman of the Year, 2026 [photograph]](https://www.automotive30club.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/Gemma-Benbow-IAWOTY-winner-with-her-award-3-2.webp "Gemma Benbow – Inspiring Automotive Woman of the Year, 2026")
The Auto30Club Inspiring Automotive Women Of The Year of 2026 is described by her company President as a transformative leader whose strategic vision and unwavering commitment to diversity and inclusion has reshaped the culture of the organisation.
A passionate advocate for gender equity, her voice is one of progress – encouraging the industry to think differently, act boldly, and lead with empathy. She exemplifies the spirit of this award: a visionary leader, a people-first strategist, and a role model for future generations of women in automotive. She is the first and only female director at her company, and has been a real inspiration to all the women there.
One of her nominators said:
“She inspires me to push myself in my career and shows that the directors roles aren’t just for men!”
![Gemma Benbow receives her award from Julia Muir [photograph]](https://www.automotive30club.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Gemma-Benbow-and-Julia-IAWOTY-Award-3-2.webp "Gemma Benbow receives her award from Julia Muir")
Her leadership is characterized by her ability to embed inclusion into every facet of the employee experience, while championing equity and representation at all levels. Her impact is felt across the business—from recruitment and leadership development to external partnerships and cultural celebrations—making her a truly inspiring automotive woman.
She led the development and execution of the company Inclusion Plan when she joined the business in 2022. She also influenced wider change in the European parent company including initiatives such as the Aspiring Manager Programme and Female Leadership Apprenticeships, integrating unconscious bias training, inclusive recruitment guides, and succession planning with a gender equity lens.
Under her leadership, the company launched Inclusive Recruitment Manager Training, Inclusive Leadership training, Dignity at Work training and online inclusion modules. These initiatives upskilled managers and employees on inclusive practices and unconscious bias.
Our winner is an active participant at Auto30Club meetings and has also expanded engagement with other networks including Women’s Automotive Network, Careers After Babies, Fertility Matters and Inclusive Companies. This has resulted in her company being shortlisted for the Women’s Automotive Network Culture Award this year and being recognized in the Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers list. She has also undertaken school and university outreach activities, and engaged with external mentoring programs such as Mission Gender Equity and Mission Include.
She has coordinated multiple internal campaigns and toolkits and has promoted inclusive events with speakers, to foster dialogue and awareness across the organization. She brings awareness to key topics on a weekly basis via the management meetings.
She has ensured D&I is embedded across the employee lifecycle, integrating inclusive practices into recruitment, onboarding, and performance management. She advocated for fair pay and transparent progression, including gender pay gap monitoring, pay transparency, and policy upgrades for maternity, paternity, carers, pregnancy loss, fertility, and neonatal care.
The inclusive cultural change that our winner has driven across the business is reflected in the fact that the company women’s network has been renamed, from Strive to Thrive.
Our winner spearheaded the launch of a collaborative strategic initiative across the company and its dealer network, to drive inclusive change. She facilitated best practice sharing across the network to identify barriers and implement solutions, including an Inclusive Recruitment Manager Guide, and an Inclusive Leadership module that is integrated into the Leadership Development Programme. She has shared insights and resources with external automotive partners in the UK to promote cross-industry learning. This has led to increased awareness and engagement in inclusive practices across the dealer network.
The impact of the inclusion work led by our winner has been tracked using engagement scores on the Great Place to Work Survey, with both female and male scores increasing, and the difference between male and females reducing from 4 percentage points to 1. Her company has been recognised as a Best Workplace for Women, ranking 34th on this year’s UK’s Best Workplaces for Women™ list, up 51 places since their initial ranking in 2023.
Our winner says:
“On a personal level, I feel I have experienced some challenges being a female in the workplace and I’d love to be able to help make changes that can remove barriers for others now and hopefully for the future, particularly within the automotive industry. I am determined to work hard and be a successful role model for my daughter.”
She was recently asked to state In one word, what the opportunity is for women in automotive. Her reply was “impact.”
Well, our winner has certainly delivered impact at her company, Kia UK.