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E.ON is one of the world's largest power and gas companies and every day tens of millions of people across the world depend on us for safe, affordable and reliable energy. The challenges we face to secure the UK's energy future mean it's ever more vital that we can attract the very best people in the market, whatever their circumstances.

Not only are we keen to build a team that's as diverse as our customer base – we also strongly believe that gender balance at all levels leads to better performance and smarter decisions. While the UK average is just 11%, just under 40% of E.ON UK's board is female; 41% of our entire workforce, and in the graduate intake, 40%. We're also always thinking of ways that we can raise the profile of engineering as a career choice for young women. There's still work to be done, but in an industry that's been traditionally male dominated, we're pretty pleased that we're clearly doing lots of things right.

The right support, at the right time

We're really proud that we've created an environment that attracts and retains so much female talent – so how have we made that happen?

Maternity is clearly a key issue for many. We offer a generous package – 18 weeks of leave at full pay, with leave entitlement up to 12 months and a further 12-month career break.

Flexible working has a big part to play too – and there are no limits on working patterns that will be considered, and no limits on who can apply. All suggestions will be considered – we'll always think about how we can make it work. We've even recently started our first female executive job share, showing that a need for flexibility will never stand in the way of the career opportunities that will be open to you or the progress you can make with us.

Clearly though, it's not all about maternity leave and flexibility. Just as important is the way talented women are nurtured and given opportunities to progress. The personal development process at E.ON is designed to do just this. People with leadership potential are invited to attend senior management meetings, meet business leaders over informal lunches, and have bespoke training.

And perhaps most importantly, our gender diversity champion is sponsoring the growth of a women's network across the business – seeing this as a key way of making sure our women are heard and E.ON continues to be a great place for them to work in the future.

Find out more at www.eon-uk.com/careers/

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