Several months ago, I pledged to write a post on an inspiring woman in technology for Ada Lovelace Day. Suw Charman-Anderson created the pledge, as she felt that now is the right time to draw attention to women excelling in technology. As she says herself:

“Women's contributions often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned, their faces rarely recognised. We want you to tell the world about these unsung heroines. Whatever she does, whether she is a sysadmin or a tech entrepreneur, a programmer or a designer, developing software or hardware, a tech journalist or a tech consultant, we want to celebrate her achievements.”

The day has come, and it's time to put virtual pen to paper. But first, a little about Ada. She was one of the world's first computer programmers, and one of the first people to see computers as more than just a machine for doing sums. She wrote programmes for Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine, a general-purpose computing machine, despite the fact that it was never built. She also wrote the very first description of a computer and of software.

I never intended to end up working in technology. I was lucky enough to have been raised with it playing an integral part of my life and as such, interacted with the space as a hobby. After studying, I found myself considering it as more of a viable career and since then, I’ve found every day engaging, challenging and a really exciting industry to be involved with.

Today, there are more smart and accomplished women involved with tech than ever before, but as Suw has mentioned above, it's sometimes a little frustrating to still be so outnumbered. It’s much like attempting to promote men working within the cosmetics industry; not entirely impossible, but a difficult stereotype to overcome all the same.

I’m of the opinion that women shouldn’t be singled out and treated as a separate group, but instead should be judged on the quality of their work. By celebrating someone’s achievements within the single sex group, this defeats the object for me, as I’d like to see thought leaders celebrated overall – with men and women on the same playing field.

For me, I’d like to see women like Marissa Mayer, Vice President of Search, Product and User Experience at Google (who will have had her hands on almost every single product the company produces), Jen Grenz from Shozu or Zarine Kharas from Justgiving.com, given a little more applause. These are the women behind the enabling products & services that help shape the tech space, rather than those who use technology to speak from. Both are valid, but the former tends to be overlooked in my experience.

Here’s to supporting change.

If you would like to comment please send me an email vikki [dot] chowney [at] sixdegreespr.com