Gender diversity in the ICT industry is not where it should be, not internationally, and not locally. The phrase, ‘you can’t be what you can’t see’ is crucial when it comes to empowering women, in the workplace and elsewhere. Role models matter.
While there is some excellent work being undertaken in pockets, the gender equality imbalance in the South African ICT sector is not being redressed anywhere near quickly enough.
To alter this, there needs to be a change in attitudes. We need to show girls and young women that a career in technology and IT is not only possible, but also financially rewarding and fulfilling; that they have a place in the world of ICT, even if it seems like a hostile environment, dominated by men, mostly. To achieve this, they need to see role models they can look up to; they need to see more women succeeding in this field, especially women who look like them and come from similar backgrounds.
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WHAT
The Wired4Women Tech Forum is proud to be launching its own awards programme. Wired4Women is a strong supporter of improving the gender balance in the tech industry and growing female representation in the space and believes that an annual awards programme is a natural progression to celebrate and recognise female excellence and showcase the impact that women are having on the industry.
WHEN
May, we’ll be holding a prestigious awards ceremony recognising the many achievements of women in different fields across the industry – from CIOs to those leading tech companies to students about to embark on their careers.
WHY
The idea behind the Wired4Women awards is to identify excellence in the field and encourage greater participation, as well as provide role models for the future generations to look up to. The awards will be run with independence and integrity and include a varied judging panel, culminating in a prestigious gala event, where awards and prizes will be handed out. Eleven potential awards categories have been identified, around the technology areas of leadership, entrepreneurship, business and talent.
AWARD CATEGORIES
- Leader of the year (CIO, CTO, CISO)
- Tech entrepreneur
- Top tech innovator
- Tech 4 good
- IT business development executive
- Rising star (security)
- Rising star (cloud)
- Rising star (emerging technologies)
- Top tech student
- Mentor of the year
- Trailblazer
We’re incredibly excited...
and believe that this new programme will help to make a real difference in providing role models for the future generations to aspire to emulate. Together we can make a difference.
Sponsors
Tech entrepreneur award sponsor
Top Tech Innovator & Rising Star Cloud award sponsor
Tech4Good award sponsor
Rising Star Security award sponsor
Rising star – Coding/Emerging Technologies award sponsor
Mentor of the year award sponsor
Trailblazer award sponsors
