In an industry where women are still outnumbered, female tech leaders have a responsibility to be role models for other young women considering or pursuing a career in the tech space.
Much like any industry, there are particular challenges and opportunities women face in the world of work and it’s a priority for me to support and develop the extremely talented women in my team.
I enjoyed my first glimpse of the financial and technology sector when I took a summer job in a bank whilst waiting for results, to find out if I had my place at university to do a teaching degree. Ironically, I had never even considered a career in this industry and ended up falling into it accidentally. I loved the pace of the work and was excited about the opportunities it brought, so I decided to turn down my university offer to pursue a full-time role in finance, which became my new passion. Although my career path wasn’t planned, I’m glad I pursued the avenue I enjoyed rather than taking the safe route. If I hadn’t stumbled across this role, I would not be where I am today.
My first job was focussed on customer services, which gave me an insight into working with people. This is an aspect I loved, and I quickly realised that managing people was non-negotiable in my career moving forward. I then moved to become a project manager for global financial services firm, Citi, climbing to Vice President level for the last three years of my decade with the firm. This progression started to build my confidence and I discovered my natural leadership skills.
I was enjoying my career journey, but around this time I received valuable advice from a mentor – he said I needed to close the academic gap in order to reach my full potential and progress. It was always at the back of my mind and I didn’t want it to hinder me, so I joined University College Dublin and studied part-time to gain my MSc in Financial Services.
Studying later made me appreciate all the new learnings in college so much more. I soaked up everything, gave every assignment 100% and was always considering how to apply what I was learning in a practical way in my job, something I would not have done if I had gone to college straight after school. I had to become an expert in time management to juggle working full time and raising a young child whilst studying, as the days felt very short!
I progressed to become a project management trainer and consultant at leading Irish tech consultancy Aspira after graduating. Being around a team of people who encouraged my progression and bought into my leadership style really helped me to grow. My people skills meant that training also came naturally to me, and I progressed to head of training and then quickly up the rungs via Chief Commercial Officer and ultimately to Managing Director.
Just months after becoming MD, my business world expanded across the globe as Aspira joined with international business and IT consultancy emagine and I became the firm’s Country Manager in Ireland in 2023. Managing a business through such a big change is no easy task, it takes time and there are naturally kinks to iron out, but the positives significantly outweighed any challenges, and I am now thrilled to be able to offer our clients enhanced world-class services, and our internal team greater opportunities to develop and flourish. We’re fortunate in that we support many of our clients through major business transformations, so we had plenty of inhouse expertise! It has been a fantastic journey settling into this new environment with access to a wealth of expertise and support across the world. Having this support made me realise how crucial people are to an individual’s career journey and that’s what motivates me to see people on my team achieving their potential.
Having started out in financial services and now leading the Ireland branch of an international tech company, I’ve had my share of moments of being the only woman in the room, which used to be daunting. I am lucky to have worked with people that have always treated me equally, but I have worked hard to manage that slight feeling of being out of place that I felt earlier in my career. These days, if I’m struggling with confidence, I try to think about my career journey and how I have progressed to the position I am in today. Nobody knows all the answers and I think it’s a real strength to admit this.
Lack of self-belief can be debilitating professionally but it’s extremely common, particularly for women. It is down to tech leaders and managers like me to identify where this is happening and find ways to build that inner confidence. I believe that many women in tech need a different approach to career development and mentorship to help them thrive, and when that is harnessed, the business will benefit.
When I see an aspiring female tech professional, I always try my best to give them valuable advice to help them succeed. My advice would be to embrace uniqueness and recognise the value you bring to your role, as it’s likely different to what anyone else brings to the table. We should all remember our capabilities whilst maintaining an ambition to keep learning in the ever-changing tech landscape. Something we should all remember is that it’s important to fail. We need to embrace failure and use it as an opportunity to grow.
In all companies and at all levels, we need to strive to have a balance of male and female input, as well as representation from a diverse range of perspectives, as you cannot hope to reach the full potential audience or customer base without it.
