Under the Spotlight with Katie – My women in tech inspiration

International Women’s Day on 8 March aims to “celebrate women’s achievement, raise awareness against bias, take action for equality”, which is exactly what we champion at Corecom Consulting.

It’s shocking that out of the 49% of workers that are women in the UK, that only 19% are in the tech industry. This is something that needs to change and, although the figures are improving, we need to keep the momentum behind it going.

We asked our Client Engagement Manager and Women in Technology Advocate, Katie Menzies, to share with us her experiences and views about women in the workplace and, more specifically, women in technology. Here’s what she had to say:

“So, years before I went to university, I always knew I wanted to do a Business Degree. I wasn’t sure what line of work I wanted to go down, but I told my dad that, when I do my dissertation, I wanted it to be on the global gender gap as it was something I was really passionate about. So much so, that when I was 16, my dad wrote it in his toolbox so he would see it every day and remember (it is still there now!).

Throughout my early career in IT Sales and IT Marketing, I had fantastic women managers and leaders; Sarah Merker, Marketing Director at Micros and Sarah Taylor, Global Marketing Director at Oracle. I worked with some fantastic women in the IT world which gave me the impression that women do exist within technology. Even moving into Recruitment, I have been fortunate enough to be surrounded by women in the industry; high achievers, directors, and really successful recruitment careers all held by women.

For me I want to see women in technology as a norm. Within my own personal IT network, I pride myself on having some of the best women in technology as my close contacts and friends! Continuing this for me is so important for women that may have not been as fortunate as me and are on the daily outnumbered by the opposite sex! The early parts of my career were shaped by women and anything I can do to support that and break the WIT stigma, I will do.”

 Looking up to women who are in senior positions is a powerful way to inspire those who do not feel confident in taking the leap into the world of tech. They’re a great example that being a woman doesn’t hold you back from reaching those senior positions or even making a success of yourself, have the confidence in your abilities to do the job and do it well.

Become more than a statistic and break the stigma around the tech industry being a man’s world.