Reflecting on My Journey
As a Women in Tech Global Awards 2025 winner, what does this recognition mean to you, and how does it reflect your journey and impact in tech?
As a Women in Tech Global Awards 2025 winner, this recognition is not just about one project or one moment in my career – it reflects an entire life journey. It carries the stories of the people, places, and experiences that shaped my choices and encouraged me to use technology and partnerships in service of society and the future.
In life and in our careers, we all go through bumpy roads. What matters most to me is that our resilience stays both healthy and ethical – and that is one of the hardest things to sustain. We make mistakes, we learn, we course-correct. For me, this award is a reminder that when we keep trying to do the right thing and focus on building bridges rather than walls, there can be meaningful recognition at the end of the tunnel.
I don’t see this award as a tool to shine for myself, but as a way to signal to others – especially underrepresented voices – that their values, integrity, and long, often unseen effort matter. There is light at the end of the tunnel, and there is space in tech for impact that is human, ethical, and future-focused.
Tech Industry's Most Rewarding Aspects
In your experience, what is the most rewarding aspect of working in the tech industry, and how has it influenced your career path?
For me, the most rewarding aspect of working in tech is seeing how diverse skills can come together to create real impact. It’s a highly competitive environment: innovation cycles are fast, expectations are high, and teams are often distributed across countries and time zone, but that also means there is space for many different profiles to contribute.
My strengths are not in coding or engineering; they are in community building, partnership building, strategy, social impact, cross-cultural communication, and storytelling.
Working in tech has shown me that you don’t have to fit a narrow definition of a “tech person” to belong here. If your skills help build bridges, between teams, sectors, or cultures – they are needed.
The key is to be willing to learn quickly, think creatively about where you can add value, and accept that you will sometimes fall, learn, and get back up again. That mindset has shaped my career path and keeps me committed to using tech as a lever for social impact.
My Tech Career Milestone
Could you share a defining moment or a key achievement in your tech career that has been particularly impactful or meaningful to you?
One defining moment for me is the story that opens my book Social-Impact-Global. It was a conversation with three country directors of a large international organisation who were struggling to align on a complex, tech-enabled social impact programme. On paper, everything looked coordinated; in reality, some of the most basic questions had been skipped—not because they were inefficient, but because everyone was so focused on results that crucial foundations were overlooked.
My role was to help them build the bridge between their vision and concrete results. I began asking questions from three angles: the people affected ( Social), what meaningful change would look like ( Impact), and how global dynamics and expectations were shaping the potential outcomes and challenges ( Global). That shift in perspective moved the conversation from tension to co-design and ultimately became the foundation of the SIG framework, which I developed over many years. It was the moment I understood that my contribution in tech is to create frameworks and partnerships that help people turn complex projects into something human, ethical, and workable.
Empowering Women in Tech: Real Stories, Career Advice, and Tips
From your experience, what essential advice and practical tips would you offer to women aspiring to establish a successful career in tech?
One essential piece of advice I would offer is: never take “no” as the end of the story.
In one of my tech roles, I had a boss who used to describe me as “the one who would go through the chimney if she had to.” He would say: “If she can’t get through the front door, she’ll try the back door. If that doesn’t work, she’ll try the window. And if she can’t get through the window, she’ll come down the chimney.”
That metaphor has stayed with me. In tech, doors will close: opportunities, roles, projects, funding, or ideas will be rejected. The key is not to give up at the first “no,” but to look for another way in, another team, another angle, another conversation, another timing, without compromising your values.
So my advice to aspiring women in tech is simple: when the obvious door is closed, don’t assume it’s the end. Stay curious, keep your integrity, and find that chimney.
Who would you recommend to join the WomenTech Network, and why?
I would recommend WomenTech Network to two kinds of people.
First, to anyone who is still looking for that “chimney” – the women who feel that the front doors and back doors keep closing, but who are still determined to find a way through. You don’t have to do it alone. Being part of a community where others understand the struggle and share their experience makes it much easier to achieve success.
Second, to every woman who is in a position to lift others up. Making a difference in another woman’s life almost always changes your own in a positive way. The power of giving – time, support, knowledge, visibility – is far greater than simply taking, even if it can sometimes feel challenging.
As I’ve said, there is light at the end of the tunnel. WomenTech Network is a place where you can learn, grow, collaborate, or help out, depending on where you are in your journey. Either way, you are part of a community that believes in not giving up and in building bridges for those who come after us.