Ilse Howling wins Business Impact at MCV Women in Games Awards

We're delighted to celebrate that the Chair of our PLC Board of Directors and Non Executive Director Ilse Howling took home the Business Impact award at yesterday's 2026 MCV Women in Games Awards. 

The MCV Women in Games Awards celebrate the huge contribution of women to the UK games industry. Over the past 12 months, Ilse has played a pivotal role in guiding Frontier Developments through one of the most significant and successful periods of transformation in its recent history. As Chairman, she has provided exceptional strategic leadership, commercial oversight and governance during a period that has seen the company build on its strategic reset, strengthen financial performance and establish a clear platform for long-term growth. 

Ilse Howling, Chairman and Non Executive Director

"It's a great honour to receive this award and it celebrates an outstanding year for Frontier. It's incredibly rewarding to see just how much our players are loving our CMS games, our studio is thriving and we have a thrilling roadmap to come.

None of this would be possible without the incredible team at Frontier - this is their award right alongside me - and thank you to them for their creativity and love of what we do.

And it's brilliant to see so many women in leadership roles at Frontier - driven from the very top by our outstanding CEO Jo Cooke. Our Executive Board is 50% female-led and right across Frontier we have outstanding women who are experts in their disciplines, from art and animation, through to QA, production and facilities. It's an inspiration to work alongside them.

We are incredibly excited for the upcoming launch of Planet Zoo 2, which highlights the outstanding talent of our teams and the creativity of our players. It's wonderful to see the industry and the women who contribute to its successes continue to flourish."

Ilse joined Frontier's Board in March 2022 and became Chair in November 2023. She is an experienced chair and NED who has held roles across digital technology companies and charities, including serving as Chair of UNICEF UK and, currently, Chair of the Education Development Trust. Earlier in her career, she spent 12 years at the BBC and later helped to found Freeview, one of the UK’s biggest media joint ventures.