Fiorela Imerai is an SEO Account Director at Wildcat Digital, a UK-based digital marketing agency specialising in SEO, PPC and Digital PR.
She works with brands across SEO, Digital PR and digital strategy, helping them grow their organic visibility through clear, user-focused and commercially effective campaigns. She is passionate about inclusive workplaces, clear communication and supporting more women to build confidence in digital and tech careers. She holds an MA in International Political Economy from the University of Sheffield.
When you’re looking for a new role, it’s easy to focus on the obvious things first: salary, benefits, job title, flexibility and whether the role sounds exciting on paper.
But for women in tech, especially those earlier in their careers, there’s another question that matters just as much: will this company actually be a place where I can grow, be heard and feel supported?
Stronger signals might include transparent progression stories, visible women in leadership or technical roles, clear policies around flexible working and parental leave, mentoring or training opportunities, and content that reflects different voices across the team.
Most career pages now mention diversity, culture and belonging in some form. The real question is: how do you spot whether that commitment is genuine before you apply?
Look beyond the careers page
A good place to start is the company’s website and social channels. Look beyond the polished ‘life at’ page and pay attention to who is being represented.
Are women visible across the business, or only in certain roles? Are there women in leadership, technical and strategic positions? Are employee stories specific and real, or do they feel like generic culture statements?
In my role as an SEO Account Director at Wildcat Digital, I spend a lot of time looking at how brands present themselves online and you can often tell a lot from the detail. If a company talks about inclusion but doesn’t show any evidence of it, that’s worth noticing.
‘’In my role, I’ve been given a real opportunity to get involved in technical areas outside my existing skillset, supported through dedicated upskilling time and access to courses in HTML, CSS and Python. That encouragement to explore and innovate has given me the confidence to implement a new process for how we approach dynamic schema across the agency.’’
Kezia Humphries, SEO Account Manager at Wildcat Digital
Stronger signals might include transparent progression stories, visible women in leadership or technical roles, clear policies around flexible working and parental leave, mentoring or training opportunities, and content that reflects different voices across the team.
Read the job description carefully
The job description itself can also tell you a lot. Inclusive companies tend to write roles in a way that feels clear, realistic and welcoming.
They avoid unnecessary jargon, overly aggressive language or impossible wish lists of skills. They’re usually clearer about what is essential, what can be learned and what support will be available.
That matters, because women are still more likely to self-select out of applying if they don’t feel they meet every requirement listed. – Tiny change, but “statistically” adds authority and “listed” closes the loop with job descriptions.
It’s also worth looking at how the company talks about growth. Do they mention training, mentorship, career development or progression pathways? Do they explain how people are supported once they join, not just how exciting the role is?
Inclusion is not only about hiring diverse talent – it’s about creating an environment where people can stay, develop and succeed.
A useful sign is whether the company talks about retention as well as recruitment. Do they share examples of people who have grown with the business over time? Are there clear development frameworks, regular 1:1s, annual reviews, check-ins, mentoring opportunities or spaces where people can build confidence outside their core role?
You can also look for signs that learning and contribution are open to everyone, not just senior people – things like brainstorms, upskill sessions, mentoring schemes or opportunities to get involved in projects outside your usual day-to-day role.
This matters because confidence and support have a real impact on progression, especially for women earlier in their careers who are still building their voice in the industry.
Inclusive companies do not just hire people into the room; they create the conditions for them to contribute, learn, speak up and move forward.
Use the interview to spot the real culture
If you get to interview stage, treat it as a two-way conversation. Ask questions that go beyond the role itself, such as: “How does the team support career development?”, “What does flexibility look like in practice?” or “How do you make sure different voices are heard in decision-making?”
It is also worth paying attention to what you can see and feel during the process, especially if you are invited into the office. Who is interviewing you? Who seems to be in the room, or visible across the wider team? Do people seem comfortable, engaged and able to speak openly? Are you meeting a mix of people, or does the culture feel very one-dimensional?
You can also ask who you’ll be working with day to day, how feedback is given and what success looks like in the first few months. Inclusive teams are usually able to explain expectations clearly.
If everything feels vague, rushed or one-sided, that might be a sign to dig deeper.
Another useful step is to look outside the company’s own channels. Employee reviews, LinkedIn posts, industry events, podcasts and speaker panels can all give you a broader sense of the culture.
No company will be perfect, but patterns matter. If people seem genuinely proud to work there, stay for a long time and progress internally, that’s usually a positive sign.
For women entering or growing in tech, the goal isn’t to find a company that says all the right things.
It’s to find one that shows you, consistently, that inclusion is built into how they hire, communicate, manage and promote people.
A genuinely inclusive company won’t expect you to mold yourself into the culture to succeed. It will create an environment where different perspectives are valued, development is supported and people are able to grow with confidence over time.
