London: JK Rowling, the creator of Harry Potter fantasy series, has been voted the "most inspirational and admired female role model" for businesswomen in Britain.
The 45-year-old author, who wrote the first Potter book as a struggling single mother in Edinburgh, was the firm favourite in a poll of 3,000 women in Britain, leading tabloid the 'Daily Express' reported.
Rowling is perhaps equally famous for her "rags to riches" life story, in which she progressed from living on benefits to multi-millionaire status within five years.
Her Potter series, the idea for which was conceived on a train trip from Manchester to London in 1990, have gained worldwide attention, won multiple awards, and reportedly sold more than 400 million copies.
As of March 2011, when its latest world billionaires list was published, 'Forbes' estimated Rowling's net worth to be US dollars one billion. The 2008 'Sunday Times' Rich List estimated her fortune at 560 million pounds, ranking her as the twelfth richest woman in Britain.
The Apprentice's Karren Brady, 42 -- Lord Alan Sugar's assistant in the TV show and vice-chairman of West Ham FC -- was the second most inspirational working woman in the survey while the late Dame Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop,
came third in the poll by Marie Claire magazine and business network Everywoman.
The list of 25 career-topping women included X Factor judge Cheryl Cole and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. But the poll also showed many think sexism
is still rife in the workplace with women regularly suffering disadvantages in terms of pay and promotion.
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