Hayley Monks, WUN Board Member talks openly with Jo Dow from Business Stream on her recent win at the Women in Utilities Awards 2024.

Jo talks about her pride that Business Stream won three awards &  “ how unexpected it was,  hugely proud & very humbled by it “her career -time as CEO, as she has led the successful delivery of the company’s ambitious growth strategy.

Jo talks about creating an inclusive environment & is passionate about driving positive change for the environment and society as a whole. This belief led her to introduce the business’ purpose-led vision.

Jo qualified as a chartered accountant while working in private practice. She joined the Finance team at Scottish and Southern Energy in 1998, before moving to join Scottish Water in 2002. In 2006, she was seconded to Business Stream to create the governance framework, funding structure and strategy for the new business in preparation for the retail market opening to competition.  Jo became Finance Director of Business Stream in 2006 and was appointed Chief Executive in October 2014.

During Jo’s time as CEO, she has led the successful delivery of the company’s ambitious growth strategy, helping cement Business Stream as one of the leading players in the UK water market. This has included two acquisitions of scale and securing a number of high profile, multi-million pound contracts. Jo has also held various external Board and senior level positions helping to drive market improvements for business customers, including sitting on the Strategic Panel which was set up to provide strategic direction to improve non-household customer outcomes, and being appointed as a Non-Executive Director for both the market operator (MOSL) in England and the Central Market Agency (CMA) in Scotland.

Jo is passionate about driving positive change for the environment and society as a whole. This belief led her to introduce the business’ purpose-led vision to make a positive difference to its customers, its people, the environment and local communities in 2019. Since then, the company has achieved a Gold rating from global sustainability assessors, EcoVadis, and become the first water retailer to join the United Nations (UN) Global Compact to support the delivery of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. To support others to achieve their responsible business goals, Jo sits on the Business in the Community (BiTC) Scotland Advisory Board, a business-led membership organisation dedicated to promoting sustainable business practices by inspiring members to build thriving communities in which they live and work and to make a positive difference to the environment.

Find out more about the Women in Utilities Awards 2025