Women in Tech Conference 2022 — An inspiring day!
“And once the storm is over, you won’t remember how you made it through, how you managed to survive. You won’t even be sure, whether the storm is really over. But one thing is certain. When you come out of the storm, you won’t be the same person who walked in. That’s what this storm’s all about.” — Haruki Murakami
We survived the COVID-19 storm and while the pandemic raged, so did the power of women to keep their homes, workspaces and this community thriving and growing. Fighting hard to close the gender gap and reaching to represent 33% of the technology workforce, up slightly more than two percentage points from the pre-pandemic year, actually. However, moving this needle has been difficult as even the most aggressive of campaigns have proven to be slow. It is partly up to us women to move that needle, and one such way is to have a strong community. A community such as Women in Tech, which, as of now, is 16000 members strong.
On May 13, 2022, 2500 of these community members, including me, gathered at the Waterfront Congress for the Women in Tech conference 2022. When I was entering the venue I saw a stream of women entering the forum and I could not stop myself from marvelling at just how many of us there are in tech. And I carried the same ‘wow’ feeling the entire day. It was so inspiring to be part of a gathering of brilliant women who are making waves by solving real user problems.
My very first encounter was with the most energetic host ever, Unn Swanström, who opened the conference with a very apt post-pandemic theme of ‘Level Up!’. And, Level Up we must; to bring the desired change in the tech industry. That very opening speech gave me goosebumps and I knew I was in for a mind-blowing experience today. The day was filled with awe-inspiring keynote talks, panel discussions and focus sessions followed by a mingle not to be missed. But, what left a mark on me was the keynote by Sarah Freiesleben. Sarah set the tone for a wonderful day of women supporting women and all of us valuing what we bring in our own unique way. With her immaculate storytelling, she beautifully put forth a point that so resonates with me. Innovation is very much like evolution and dwells on disruption, which comes with variety. And, we are that variety! So, women, Show Up! But, at the same time establish a synergistic relationship with the status quo.
She made another important point of how not all the discussions about technology need to be entirely technical. If we want to solve real problems, we must bring the human touch to these conversations. So, show up with your whole genuine self and bring your ethical compass to all these technical discussions you enter. Showing up creates waves you don’t even know about. So, show up and make some waves girls!
As if this was not inspiring enough! The keynote by the youngest of all speakers took my breath away. Wilma Emanuelsson, who at 18 years old, has created iTrack Reading for those with dyslexia. Her story gives me hope that the world will continue to be a beautiful place filled with smart and empathetic people. To be honest, her speech made me ask myself, ‘What have I done to make this world a better place?’ And, also what was I doing when I was 18? Probably just goofing around! I do find solace in the fact that I am part of a company that makes a positive impact in people’s lives.
Another motivating keynote that left a huge impact on me was by Sara McCracken. Sara is like so many women out there who have no technical experience, but are passionate about solving a problem en masse. I loved how she used digital technology as her vehicle to help her twins who were visually impaired since birth. She inspired me to look inside and follow through the commitment, which I believe is a sign of a true leader.
I then went on to a focus session crawl. If pub crawl can be a legitimate word, focus session crawl can be too. Anyway, amongst the few I managed to sneak into I spent the most time listening to a topic very close to my heart. And that was the session ‘Level up with Salesforce — How you build and empower your personal brand’. Four amazing women from diverse backgrounds shared their journey and inspired me to say yes to opportunities and embrace the ambiguity! I even got pumped enough to ask them a question on how they handled the impostor syndrome after saying ‘yes’. And, guess what was the response? That we should talk about it with fellow women and be open about it. They reinstated the importance and the power of community and I so wholeheartedly agree!
Another focus session that stood out to me was from our very own Agnieszka Lasyk who smoothly explained why happy teams are the effective ones. She went on to explain that it is actually the psychological safety that has the most significant influence on building happy and effective teams. And, the good news is that psychological safety can be improved by some guidelines she also shared in her talk. One that tops that list, and to which I totally agree is to be a role model and really engage with the team. She left me with a very interesting thought and that is, ‘Culture is everyone’s thing!’
Post the focus sessions, I listened to the scheduled keynote talks, and while most of them were engaging, the last note by Nargis Rahimi was quite powerful. She has created an entire program for parents to thrive with their children. Finally, someone acknowledged the mental load that comes with parenthood and reinstated that it takes a village to raise a child. Despite it being the last keynote talk, I didn’t lose my attention for a minute; such a powerful talk it was! And, it left me the feeling of ‘wow’ yet again.
I hope I have been able to bring you a slice of the ‘wow-ness’ of the amazing Women in Tech conference that completely blew my mind.
If you ever get the chance to attend this event (2,500 tickets sold out in 7 minutes so no mean feat) do not let it pass you by. And, if my experience has made you wish you could’ve been there too, you can still listen to all the gold over at womenintech.se.
Thanks for reading, cheers and have a good day! 🍻
PS: We’re hiring and have exciting positions in all our locations across the Nordics and Poland. Check out our open positions at https://schibsted.com/career/.
