Recently GT was incredibly proud to host an event attended by 35 female founders and leaders in technology at the impressive AllBright Club.
After a fantastic dinner, the inspirational female founder of multiple businesses, Debbie Wosskow, OBE gave a keynote and facilitated the group discussion covering challenges faced by female entrepreneurs and sharing experiences across the group.
There were some tough stories shared and it's clear that the playing field is still far from level and that women still face challenges that wouldn't be thrown in front of men.
But as a father of a 12-year-old daughter and mentor to a niece Millicent (Minnie) Lee who is making her way in business, I also took away a huge positive, I found it incredibly uplifting and optimistic hearing from so many smart, energetic and tenacious leaders. It is not a level playing field but just listening to the conversations, it's also clear that there are more role models and a more self-supportive network than ever before for female founders and business leaders.
One of the points that resonated most with me on the night was that nearly all of the myths of silicon valley are male-dominated - we all know about Jobs and Gates, and they started small without the best qualifications, but there is an imperative need to share the stories of the many many women who are trailblazing and create the new myths that will act as beacons and north stars for the current and future generation of females driving innovative businesses forward.
Perhaps a few of those myths that are yet to unfold are going to come from some of those present at the AllBright Club last week, I certainly hope so.
Thank you all for attending and sharing your thoughts and experiences. If my daughter decides to enter the business world and pursue entrepreneurial dreams in a few years time, hopefully, she will be stepping onto a playing field that is a little more level because of the trailblazing of today. And of course, don't be surprised if I come knocking on some of your doors in a couple of years asking for work experience opportunities for her!! :-))
John Harris,
CTO and Co-founder at GT