Women in Sheffield have been talking about their careers and their own experiences in technology to encourage girls to consider working in the digital world, as part of International Women’s Day (IWD).
IWD is celebrated on 8 March every year, celebrating the achievements of women. The day attempts to promote awareness and intends to encourage a positive change for women’s equality.
The theme for this year’s day is “DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality”. Aligning its message with the upcoming 67th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-67), “Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls”.
This year Sheffield organisers are celebrating the achievements of local women who are achieving greatness and paving the way within the digital world.
Mai Mai Lam is Director of Community Programs at WANdisco International – a ‘Data-activation’ software company, based in Sheffield.
She studied German and Linguistics, and after graduating spent some time in various temporary jobs, before finding a job as a Project Manager in a translation & software company. She loves everything about Sheffield, the people, the friendliness, the proximity to the Peak District, and the fantastic food scene.
Her advice to girls/women is to not be put off by any stereotypes! Tech/digital has such a wide variety of jobs for a huge range of skill sets. It’s a really supportive, interesting, and exciting space to be in. Mai Mai is always happy to have a chat with anyone considering a career in tech / digital. “Find me on LinkedIn!”
Lottie Rugg is a Junior Software Engineer also at WANdisco, a software company that develops products to move data at scale.
She decided to do something different after being a charity fundraiser for several years and did the EyUp tech skills academy (a 16-week full-stack coding course). After completing the course in July 2022, she was offered a job at WANdisco.
Rugg emphasised her love for the city and how she believes it to rival other bigger cities in terms of companies. “The quality of life is so much better. As a Londoner being close to the Peak District is amazing, Sheffield just feels like home.”
Although you have to be really brave to make the decision to switch careers, Rugg advised to find support by taking part in a tech skills academy like EyUp. She said her trainer was brilliant, offering guidance on the completely new world of the tech industry, tech tests, interviews, and career advice.
