Joni Ferns, Acting CEO and Chief Operating Officer at Police Now, has been named in Management Today’s 35 Women Under 35.

Now in its 20th year, Management Today’s 35 Women Under 35 is the country’s longest-running, most prestigious list of young, female business talent.

Joni has a passion for growing and transforming businesses that push the boundaries of societal potential and is working towards a world where anyone from any background can thrive.

Joni started at Police Now in May 2019 and since then has helped the organisation double in size and grow its impact significantly. She oversees the strategy, HR, finance, commercial sustainability, IT, research and impact analysis, diversity and inclusion, alumni programmes, and governance of the organisation.

She works closely with the Board of Trustees, government officials and senior stakeholders to deliver Police Now’s mission to ‘transform communities, reduce crime and anti-social behaviour, and increase the public’s confidence in the police service by recruiting, developing and inspiring outstanding and diverse individuals to be leaders in society and on the policing frontline.’ Furthermore, Joni is an expert in diversity and inclusion and has supported Police Now to become award-winning across multiple industries for its diversity and inclusion strategy.

Joni Ferns said: “It is a huge honour to be recognised in this year’s Management Today 35 Women Under 35 Awards. I have been working for Police Now for over three years and it has been a wonderful and distinctly formative journey to support and lead the organisation from strength to strength, as well as solve problems and challenges, as we recruit, train and develop outstanding and diverse leaders in policing and society. None of it would be possible without the support of my incredible colleagues across Police Now, the Home Office and our partner forces.

“I am passionate about supporting the representation, development and success of people from under-represented backgrounds, particularly women and ethnic minorities, and have really enjoyed speaking at a number of events to offer my perspective and expertise and share my experiences, as well as learn from other brilliant colleagues in this space. I also care deeply about leading with integrity; my aim is to foster authentic and direct leadership and build a culture which empowers those around me to grow individually and collectively, and to challenge the status quo.”

Joni started her career in management consulting with PwC and gained further consulting experience in technology and boutique firms, where she specialised in large-scale transformation programmes and creating and scaling new businesses and social enterprises ranging from £1m to £100m+ per annum. She has recently taken up a Board position with Kite International – a growing youth-led international development charity -with the aim of supporting them to develop their operating model and source funding.

She is currently in her final year of studying for an MBA at London Business School, where she has been awarded the Laidlaw Women’s Leadership Scholarship – which supports exceptional women with leadership and entrepreneurship potential from low socio-economic backgrounds to access top tier education and secure investment, to develop a new generation of ethical leaders and businesses.

Management Today’s Women in Business Awards are judged by a panel of top industry professionals and recognise the country’s remarkable, talented, visionary and ground-breaking businesswomen across all sectors, and those companies and colleagues that are helping them to succeed.