When Britt Meelby Jensen started as CEO at Zealand Pharma in March 2015, she was dubbed "the new biotech queen" by the media. However, the executive was not happy about the title – not because of challenges she experiences as a woman in her everyday life, but because it shows that society still has a long way to go, she says.

"I think it reflects where we are as a society. Men don't often get titles like that – you wouldn't call Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen [CEO of Novo Nordisk, ed.] the 'pharma king'. Unfortunately, I think it demonstrates how there are still few female top executives in Denmark," Meelby Jensen says.