Provide Mentorship and Guidance

Allies and advocates can support women transitioning into tech by offering mentorship. Sharing industry insights, career advice, and personal experiences helps new entrants navigate challenges and build confidence in their skills.

Allies and advocates can support women transitioning into tech by offering mentorship. Sharing industry insights, career advice, and personal experiences helps new entrants navigate challenges and build confidence in their skills.

Empowered by Artificial Intelligence and the women in tech community.
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Nikki Adjei
DevOps Engineer

WHY MENTORSHIP MATTERS FOR WOMEN IN TECH: WE NEED TO BE BOTH MENTORS AND MENTEES

When I began my career journey into tech, I had no role model.
I had no mentor.
And I had no female representative I could identify with.
I took a six-month intensive live online course. There were 30 of us at the beginning, and only five were women.
At the time, the low number of women felt normal to me.
I had become used to seeing very few women in IT.

So, I thought, it was okay.

Halfway through the course, we were down to 16 students, four of whom were women. We represented just one quarter of the group.
As one of the stronger students on the course, I found myself reaching out mainly to my male classmates when I needed support.
But something else happened.
I became a mentor to the other women.

We studied together. We checked in on each other. We encouraged each other throughout the course and even after we had finished.
Looking back, I realise how important that small support network was.

SOMETIMES, YOU BECOME THE MENTOR YOU ONCE NEEDED
Throughout my tech career, I have come to appreciate the value of mentorship even more.
As a mentor myself, I have seen how much a person can grow when they have someone who believes in them, encourages them and shares their experience.

But I am also a mentee.

I have people who mentor me, and I am forever grateful for their guidance.
I have been mentored in both my professional and personal life by people whose achievements I respect and whose experience I trust.
And something beautiful has happened along the way.
Some of my mentees are now mentoring me.
And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

For me, it is quite humbling.

One of my former mentees is now mentoring me in areas of her life where she has gone on to achieve things that I am now interested in exploring.
She has the experience.
She has learned things that I have not yet learned.
So I can learn from her.

At the same time, I can mentor her in areas where I have experience that she may not have.
That, to me, is what a strong mentoring relationship looks like.
It is not about who is more senior.
It is not about age.
It is not about having all the answers.
It is about recognising the value that each person brings.

When there is trust and respect, knowledge can move in both directions.
The mentor can become the mentee.
And the mentee can become the mentor.

WOMEN SHOULD NOT HAVE TO FEEL THAT THEY NEED 100% OF THE JOB DESCRIPTION
There is another area where I believe women in tech need encouragement: applying for jobs.
When looking for a new role, it can be difficult to know which positions to apply for.
There is a lot of advice around job descriptions, required skills and technology stacks.
But women can sometimes be more hesitant to apply when they don’t meet every requirement listed.
The reality is that no one person is likely to meet every single requirement.
There will always be something you don’t know.
Something you haven’t used before.
Something you will need to learn.

And that is okay.

One of the most important skills you can develop in a technology career is continuous learning.
Technology changes constantly. New tools emerge. New platforms develop. Existing technologies evolve.
You don’t need to know everything today.
You need to be willing to learn.
So when you see a role that interests you, don’t immediately count yourself out because you don’t meet every requirement.

Ask yourself:

Why does this role interest me?
Why do I think I would be a good fit?
What experience can I bring?
What transferable skills do I have?
What makes me different from the other applicants?
And most importantly:
What am I capable of learning?

SOMETIMES, ONE SENTENCE CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE
When I was applying for my current role, there was something in the job description that stood out to me.
It said:

“Don’t meet all the requirements?
We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all the criteria. Research indicates that women are often more hesitant to apply if they don’t feel they fulfil every requirement. We value diverse perspectives and welcome all qualified applicants.”

That statement motivated me to apply.

It made me feel that I didn’t have to be perfect before putting myself forward.
And it made me wonder:
If that statement hadn’t been included, would I have applied anyway?

Maybe.

But perhaps I would have hesitated.
This is why I believe companies have an important role to play in encouraging women to apply for technology roles.
Inclusive hiring is not only about who gets hired.
It starts much earlier.
It starts with who feels confident enough to apply.
A simple, honest statement in a job advertisement can sometimes give someone the encouragement they need to take that first step.

I would love to see more companies doing this.

WE NEED MORE WOMEN SUPPORTING WOMEN IN TECH
If we want more women to build careers in technology, we need more than recruitment campaigns.
We need mentorship.
We need women who are willing to share what they have learned.
We need people who will encourage someone when they are questioning whether they are good enough.
We need workplaces where women feel safe asking questions, learning new skills and making mistakes.
And we need to celebrate the achievements of women already working in technology so that others can see what is possible.

But mentorship should not be one-directional.
At every stage of a tech career, we can be both a mentor and a mentee.
There will always be someone we can learn from.
And there will always be someone who can learn from us.
I started my tech journey without a female role model I could identify with.

Today, I have the opportunity to be that person for someone else.
And perhaps that is one of the most meaningful parts of my journey into technology.
If you are a woman in tech, don’t be afraid to ask for a mentor.
If you are further along in your career, consider becoming one.
And if you are a company hiring women into technology, think about how your job descriptions and workplace culture can make someone feel encouraged to take that first step.
Because sometimes, all someone needs is to know:

“You belong here.”

#WomenInTech #TechCareers #Mentorship

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