Good afternoon, and welcome. Welcome to all women, who are still having doubts if the digital tech world is something for them.Thank you very much for giving me this opportunity to be here at the Women in Tech conference, which is this this time online. But nevertheless, I hope you are going to enjoy and to are going to listen to my story, which is approximately twenty five years of my experience in digital tech. I hope in this twenty five minutes, which we are going to spend together to reduce your doubts about, is tech something for me or not? I I try to really do it also on base of my own example, my business business journey for the twenty five years. But things who I am? My name is Anna Kundera.

I am, at this very moment, having the role of global ServiceNow go to market leader at but my whole life is approximately twenty five years of experience in sales, account management, presales, in in IT world. In IT world, I spent already twenty years, twenty twenty two years as time flies. And, I joined this, this fantastic sector in 02/2001, as one of the account managers at that moment, biggest company in The Netherlands, Gitronix, Pink Rockada. I served this as a for for our public sector clients. 02/2027 02/2007. Sorry. I joined Capgemini where I spent twelve years starting with account management and ending as a VP responsible for the cloud, business in the two regions, DACH and, the the Benelux. 02/2019, I also, spent two and three and a half years. I joined ServiceNow. ServiceNow is one of the platforms. I don't know if you are familiar with platform ServiceNow.

I will come back on this later on. 02/2021, I joined also for the global business with ServiceNow. Just very short what ServiceNow, but it's also because it's also my passion. ServiceNow is one of the platform connecting all the data together online. As I I call this as a it's a kind of glue connecting all the data from different platforms and applications together. So twenty years in IT. However, it's very important to mention here, I don't have any education in the IT. So I spent, I I, I am graduated from, from university in the direction of I graduated in the German language. German language is the in this case, it was just my my thing, but I didn't even think that I'm going to do anything in the area of, IT that time.

I supposed to be teacher. What didn't happen? So going on, very important here is, what we are going to do the next twenty twenty minutes, which, agenda I just, set up for for you. of all, I want to say something more about the global shortage in tech and digital business. Then I want to go for the stereotypes in tech, what's what's really generic, written, what we are talking about, what are the stereotypes, and how we are going to do something against it. I want to go, to say a little more about getting out of your comfort zone because it's also something what's important in our life. It's not for the women who are already in tech, however, also a little, but also for women who think this is not something what I'm going to do.

Getting out from your comfort zone is very important, issue, very important topic, which is just sometimes, really like the decision maker, in your life. And, of course, but but, last but absolutely not least, how to make it easier for women in work in tech. So this is also something where it's our community. We are the sisters in tech, so I think it will be just really good to check how we are going to collaborate. And altogether, not only women, I think collaboration altogether with all communities, with all, people together in tech that brings us to the big success. Going forward, what's about shortage under tech people, tech resources right now? So of all, I think it's really very important, issue important, sentence which I want to say. There is no any business without digital, which, without any tech. So I think twenty years ago, we still had a a kind of, tech business deviation.

Right now, at this very moment, there is not. If you see what's going to happen, what's happening right now on the, in the area of AI, agentic, GenAI, this is still more and more one big together together topic. This is just something what is just really composed of all the software platforms. Everything is just under one, topic. How we are going to use the technology, to use IT, to use the platforms, to get better business results. So this is just the shortage. We need to more and more we need to have more and more people in this area, in the area of AI, Agentic, GenAI, platforms. And the shortage is just really very, very big.

So what we see that the, shortage, the by 2030 and there are no the the data are just a few months old, more than 85,000,000 IT jobs might remain unfilled due to the shortage of skilled individuals. So this is just really, like, dramatic. I mean, this, number is growing every month. This is just a problem which we need to fulfill. That's the reason. I, I'm just saying we need to have more women on tech because at the same time, the percentage of women in IT is remaining at the same low level or is even decreasing. So we have here the data. Women make up only 2028% of the IT workforce in Europe, and in US, it's even worse. It's 26. So this is just the data which is not encouraging us, and, we still need more, and it's really less. So, additionally, research is also showing that diverse team perform better.

And this is just also the reason that really girls, women, we the future belongs to you, and we we need you. Now a little more about, We we are also at we are really sponsoring also more diverse team. So women are really more than welcome, and they are representing really a lot of, topics, competencies. They are leading a lot of competencies as well. I'm telling always women, men, altogether, we could just bring the best of our talent and bring the best results, towards our customers and the people who are working in the in the direct area. I'm just quoting here, our, global vice chair, from diverse equity inclusiveness, Karen Tornite, who is saying, and this is the quote, research shows that diverse perspectives drives better business outcomes and that when people feel a sense of belonging at work, they are healthier and more engaged.

And it's I couldn't agree more. And what I'm saying right now is very important. So diverse team perform better. That's what I said already before. And here are some, references which we collected from different sources like Gartner, like SG. And you'll see some, figures which are really important. So of all, 87% of the diverse teams, it's proof it's proven that, they are just, able to make better decision making. So it's not about, it's not about the quicker. It's not about time to market. But there are really, that one topic is just really approach from different, different corners, different corners of the business, different angles as well. So this is just something what's also proven.

It's better to include different kind of people together, women, men together to, make this decision much more healthier, much more stable, to do it quicker sometimes, but not always. 70% of diverse team capture, more markets. So, we are able to make better yeah, we could just really spread our, our our words in the different directions. We are just approaching not only not concentrating the focus only on one market, but diverse markets. Financial results, it's really important topic. 36% more. It means that high financial returns of all investment, all innovations, which are also they're represented, are really, done by the diverse team as well. It's the same like the financial performance. It's 25%. It's a lot. It's really, like, one quarter more. And I talked about, more innovations. So this is also a big proof that innovations, different approach on different topics are, located are coming from the diver teams.

Diver teams so, one approach is not only coming from the finance financial sector also by social aspect. Social aspects are also sometimes very important by resolving some business issues as well. And, of course, higher performance generic. They are just the figures only, but I think it's just really, what we see also in our, own organization. We see this those those targets. The the results versus targets are really absolutely telling us this is much better. The performance is much better, and this is the way how we are going to move forward. I'm just saying what is really better. So what is the good as a performance? What's good as a diverse teams? But now what is the reason?

What is the real reason why the women are still not represented, on the high level in our tech digital world? And, one of the topics which I want to want to to present right now is just really, like, what's stopping us as women, girls, even in the high school, even in the in the in the schools, in the university, why we are not choosing the technical, the digital tech world. And we are still staying by the humanistic approach, so more, more not really tech, really tech world. So I think there is a lot of, stereotypes. And, of course, we have just here a slogan, anyone can become a programmer. Correct? Of course. And I do agree. In my team, there are the women who are the best full stack developers, and that they are coming from the completely different world. One was just a a designer, a fashion designer, another was a a saleswoman. So this is just possible.

And, this is just really I will try to get you some proof why is that and what's possible or not. And it's really like the taken as a sentence that tech and digital jobs are only for men. Yeah. We we are more, yeah, for the for the more traditional women jobs like the the nurse, like the teacher, like the the, maybe, secretary, something like that. It's not really true. So coming back to my own story, maybe it's just really, like, the good to remain to to to to tell you what's what's about me. As I said already earlier, I studied German, literature and language, and I supposed to be teacher. After, I think, three, four months being at the university and having an internship at one of the schools, I knew it's not going to be.

This is this is not going to be a good story for me, for the pupils, and for the schools. So I knew that's not going to to be a job for me, but I didn't have any clue what's the next, what's the alternative. So what's the plan b? And I think this is just also something what's, I hear a lot of, women but also girls. I really don't know what I want to study. And believe me, I didn't I knew this is not what I'm studying, it's not what I want to do, but I didn't know what is going to be for me the best, approach of my business life. So I I finished my study German, but at the same time, I I took the internship. So I accepted internship, that time in The Netherlands working for the, Dutch Ministry of Justice, working with the Schengen.

So there was just completely something else, nothing to do with my job, with my study as a teacher of the language, German language. And this is what I'm talking about, going out from your comfort zone. And this is just something what, I will come back, later on in the next chapter. It's extremely important because it was just only one perspective, one possibility for me. Do you want to do this internship or not? And I said, yes. I I will I I will give it a try. I will give a try. I knew that was just a position of, nine, ten months, and I needed to just to see what's next. And I become a saleswoman. So I just really, I I I just wanted to do something in sales. I needed also the money with all respect.

So this is also something what I just said, okay. Let's give it a try. I started just to to sell the the clothes in the shop, just to to survive as a as a young intern after the study in in a in a foreign country. And I really like that, and I really like that. So I sent I just really did my story further. I, was saleswoman of everything, actually. So in this case, I just sold the the glasses. I sold the forklift trucks. I sold the software, everything till the moment that, one of the handhunters called me and said, hey. I have you are good in sales, but I have a great opportunity for you.

I want to I want you introduced by the biggest, IT company in The Netherlands that time. And I said, no. Because I said, I don't know anything about the, about the IT. And he called me once again, and he said, I really want to do it. I really want to ask you to come to interview because this is not about the selling bits and bytes. I don't need your, knowledge in IT. I need your I need you as a translator from business, and you know the business, into the IT, and you will get a team who's going to translate it for you in the IT language. But I need you to approach the CFO, CEOs, etcetera, because they are also not the tech guys. I went to the interview one second, and I was hired. So from this perspective, from today, it was 2,000, so it was '25 six twenty five years ago.

I could just say right now that was just probably the best decision of my life, business life, to step into the IT. This world is still fascinating. Still, I was on board. I didn't know what to do. I needed to take a lot of trainings on all areas of IT to get know what you are doing because it's really important. You need to have to know what you do, what you are selling. However, still, this world is not really, like, stay staying staying stative. You need to encourage yourself to put yourself still to and to to get new knowledge, to get new trainings, to, see what's going to to be next. Because you see, what we are implementing right now today, tomorrow is actually our our already the old stuff. That quick are going the things in the digital IT world.

So this is just really one of the examples. You don't need to have the education, IT education, to become even the programmer of the IT specialist or consultant. Another thing is traditional, division, social roles. What I said already, the the the the tech digital is for men, the the nurse teacher is for the women. This is not true because even right now, the the the the doctor, the medicine, the the students of the medicine, majority of the students are women. So this is just really passe, and I hope this will be the same in the tech digital world. However, this moment, at this very moment, it's still not the case. And another thing which is really important, tech language. I came in the 2000 in the tech world and was so many abbreviations. Seriously, I didn't know what to do with that.

And I think we need to make this for the newcomers much more easy. It's really over regulated, but it's complicated. It's not that complicated, but we we operate in the really very tech language, which we need to really ask, the people what does it mean. At the certain moment, I asked because I I didn't know what to do. And after the explanation, it seems to be not that complicated like it should be. I'm speeding up a little because we have only six, minutes left. But what I'm saying, very important, it's the coming out from your comfort zone. So create a sense of self worth. What is that? The moment you are going up and you are good and we want to be good at everything, we know. We are just really the the the mothers. We are the teachers. We are the, people who are working in the business. We want to be at the best.

But at a certain moment, I think it's really very important to say and to be assertive and saying no because the the the the what I would my experience, if you are always, executing the things right and good, you are getting even more and more work. And we need just to say sometimes, no. I'm not going to do it. There are other people in our team who are also able to execute. So we need just to say, yes. I am the good. I'm I'm able to do it, but at a certain moment, we could just also say no. Give it a try and take the risk. I think this is something what I just also explained on base of my own person. Yeah. Give it a try. I think that that the just trying something new, it's extremely important. If we are not going to do it, we are always staying the same pattern where we are, and we are just only thinking, should I, would I do at that time?

In order to avoid this, should I, I think we need to give it a try. And, you know, if it's not that's what we expect, so what? We could just try another time, something else. Be assertive and consistent. This is something what it's also create a sense of self worth. Just say sometimes no because we women are really used to work very hard, much more hours. Sometimes we just we need to say, no. This time, somebody else is able to do it as well. Very important. Last one, ask for support. I wouldn't be here at this moment of my career if I wouldn't have support of my family. So if you it's really take care for somebody in your house. Is this your your husband? Is this your parents' friends? That they are taking care also for that's what's happening at home.

Because what I said, we have double jobs, and at home, you have to be supported to make the career. It was my luck that I have really a great husband who is supporting me 150%, and he's taking care also for together we take care for our kids. I have two sons. They are grown up already, but ten years ago, it was really, like, a lot of work. And he's supporting me 101150%. And this is just really so important for us that we have this environment who is taking care for us also from from the private perspective. Closing. How we could encourage women, women to work in tech. So very important, I think it's really, like, broaden your network. I just recently, I joined the, hackathon. I am not a tech. I'm consultant. I could just sell a lot of IT, but I am not the digital tech.

However, I joined the hackathon just to check what's going on there. A lot of young people, but also people who are just, for example, 50, who just really want to solve the problems. They are just innovative innovative. They are just trying to solve the problems of the business by using the technology. Fascinating. Really fantastic talks, fantastic people. And I think I could just really encourage you to to join the hackathon. There are many on every corner almost. If you could just check what's going on there, it's really fascinating. What's really important as well to just, for the recruiters, adapt our job descriptions, make this much easier for, women, for for women for people who really want to join.

Sometimes it's just very complicated. I read a few as well, self, and I wouldn't go for the job because it's really sometimes maybe too technical, too complicated for me. I'm thinking, this is not something for me, so I'm not going to apply. Another thing is really also, stay adaptive, stay stay agile, because this industry evolves so rapidly. So what I said, we need just to staying updated on trends, learning new skills, and adapting new changes really important in our job. This is also something what's important if you are choosing the the tech world. That will be just something what will be just continuing process. You are never done with the digital. There is always something you will need what you need to adapt. And, what's the last of not least, but maybe for for the for the recruitment as well, we need to remove remove all the bias from the job disruptions.

So we need just to be very open for all people who are going to join because we are always going for one aim. We do we are going to choose for the best people who are going to be in our team, in our life, business life as well. I think this is something what and then with this sentence, I really want to end this, presentations. I I really encourage you to if you have any questions, please put this on the chat because it will be fantastic to see how, how you'll see this, what we are what I'm presenting here to you. I hope you enjoyed this session. I hope you are going to get some, to write some questions to me on the chat. I'm going to answer all of them via LinkedIn, via, chat in this, in this on this platform.

By this, I really want to thank you for this, for for being with me for the last thirty minutes, and I hope you'll see you again very, very soon. Thank you very much.