Tech Up For Women is a collaborative hub with the goal of assisting women in “teching up” and furthering growth for women within the technological field. The International Tech Up For Women, IFA Berlin Conference 2021 was its first virtual conference. The topics ran the gauntlet on everything from brand building to women in the space industry, to pioneering women’s health through AI with everything in between.
Faye Holland of Cofinitive kicked off the event by discussing the world’s reliance and our inextricable link to technology and the internet. There are 4.66 billion active internet users – 59.5 percent of the global population. Most are using a smart device, and what are they using the internet for? Holland pulled out the data for us; Amazon has one hundred million Prime users, Facebook has 1.6 billion daily users, Twitter 125 million daily users and all overshadowed by WeChat which is now at 1 billion daily users. Holland brought up the time before the internet and the consumer technological advancements of that period. We have come so far in just 40 years!
Where is the future of technology going? Self-driving cars, flights to the moon, more AI, medical advancements – the possibilities are endless. Holland laid out the perfect transition into the vibe and topics for the rest of the conference.
“We won’t be going back to the way things were. We’re going forward. And we’ll need women who recognize the power and potential of technology to help us shape the future,” said CEO and President of Siemens, Barbara Humpton, who spoke directly to every woman attending the event. She not only spoke of the advances of Siemens but of the future of the company and how we all need to be involved in creating the future that we want.
The event was close to 6 hours with 33 topics and more than 40 speakers. The overall feel of the presentations revolved around how vital it is to ensure that the continuing growth of technology involve a diverse group of leaders, thinkers, and creators. For technology to work for everyone, it needs to be created with the diversity of our population – this includes women – to eliminate the biases we see now. This group of speakers challenges us to rise up to the challenge, move into the technology spaces and create the technology that we want to see. Khadija Mustafa of Microsoft challenged listeners to get educated in technology and discover what gets you excited. Figure out what you are passionate about, how you can be a part of creating the solution, updating technology and find a way to make a difference. She also spoke of the importance of the work life balance; decide on the life you want and build your career around that. With all the opportunities in technology right now ,we have the option to build a work/life balance that works for us.
Tech Up for Women’s website is a resource for anything needed to help advance or begin a career in technology in any sector. A glance shows career opportunities, technology trends, educational recourses, webinars, podcasts, and social hub allowing the community a place to communicate. Check out their website at https://techupforwomen.com/
