Over 360 women, from 30 different nations, applied to the 2017 StartHer Awards, an event hosted in Paris, aiming to showcase the top female tech start up founders in Europe.
In October 2017, I was fortunate enough to be nominated as one of the 10 finalists for the 2017 StartHer Awards. It was not an event of competition, but rather a unique opportunity to recognise and celebrate fellow women in technology (see the official video here).
I would like to thank all the sponsors of the event for the opportunity to present and meet all these remarkable individuals. The full list of finalists were:
Clémence Franc, Novagray
Aline Muylaert, CitizenLab (Belgium)
Tatyana Mitkova, ClaimCompass (Bulgaria)
Martina Arent, Contellio (Poland)
Elisa Romondia, Devoleum (Italy)
Sonal Rattan, Exate Technology (UK)
Ditte Strachotta, HelloMind (Denmark)
Miriam Schwab, Strattic (Israel)
Laura Medji, Tracktor (France)
Anne-Claude Pont, Wilov (France)
It was during this event, having met all these wonderful and incredibly talented women, that I began to wonder why are there not more women in technology today?
Why women are not in Tech:
In my experience, one of the fundamental deterrents from women taking technology roles is the underlying perception that technologists are not equally valued in the businesses – they are seen as an expense and are the first function to be off shored to a lower cost (and typically lower quality) location. To add to this, technologists are generally not given a fair seat at the table as a part of the decision-making process with respect to running the business. If you are a woman, it is even more difficult to get a seat at the table. A part of my journey is to try and get developers recognised as being a part of the business and not as a back-office function. Until technology roles are given greater value and recognition, it will not be an area that women will be drawn to.
Why should women be in Tech?
A simple reason, the industry would collapse if it were hit with "Man Flu"!!! More seriously, women think differently to men and there should be a fair and equal balance because technology affects us all. Plus, being a female developer - trust me - we are much better at that too!
Why work for us?
I am a strong believer in the balance of powers. As mentioned, a part of my journey is to get IT developers recognised for their significant roles in the business. The best way to do that is to lead by example and give IT the opportunity to shine. At Exate Technology, we are founded upon this principle. We are a true and equal partnership between Technology and the Business. If you are in IT, woman or man, feel free to contact me on LinkedIn and let's talk tech.
For more info on the 2017 StartHer Awards, see the following links:
