Starting with a clean slate

After joining in December to shake up Groupama's distribution strategy, Amanda Blanc talks to Richard Adams about the challenge and how being a woman has not hindered her rise to a role that had once been performed by two people

The fact that this interview was delayed by four and a half hours offers an insight into the routine of Amanda Blanc. Originally scheduled for 3 June, two months in advance, the interview date turned out to be the day UK air-traffic control wobbled - leaving Blanc stranded in Manchester, where she lives and commutes from most days of the week. After this mammoth commute, Blanc is then out on the road meeting seven or eight clients each week - a fact that demonstrates her hands-on approach.

But