8 Ways to Support Other Women in Tech

I had the great opportunity today to speak at an Ada Lovelace Day event in Champaign, IL today. For those unfamiliar, Ada was a pioneer in computer science, and the day is used to showcase female talent in tech.

While my talk recapped twenty years of experience in startups to the biggest privately-owned company in the United States in innovation roles, I was happiest to close the session with 8 tips to rally women in the room to advocate for other women in tech.

These eight topics are lessons I've learned the hard way, or skills I've gone out of my way to arm other early-career women. In sharing of these tips, I hope they spark ideas on how we can all create women in tech communities locally to support each other.

#1 - No more imposter syndrome.

From interns to c-level executives, everyone feels stupid in tech. The tech landscape is constantly morphing at a rapid pace, and it is impossible to know everything. Make today the day that we stop feeling like an imposter. Instead, let's all lean into the fact that working in tech requires us to stay curious, keep learning and ask questions that others in the room might be too afraid to ask.

#2 - Keep showing up. Someone's watching.

For most of my career, I've been the only woman in the room. I've never had a female manager, and up until the last year, I had never had a female above me in an organizational chart.

When presented with the opportunity, show up. Representation matters. You may be surprised at who is in the room, and based upon your presence, they will see women in tech, leadership roles and as managers is normalized.

#3 - Build a tribe.

I'm deeply grateful for the female friendships I have, and they are a major source of inspiration and strength. Seek out ways to surround yourself with smart, compassionate, kind, smart women. Cheer each other on. Hug out the losses. Careers are more fun when shared with other women.

#4 - You're your own best manager.

Very rarely are managers good, let alone great. Yet, employees consistently have very high expectations from their managers to be inspiring, a career coach and someone thats a true mentor.

I encourage you to stop, and become your own best manager. Don't rely upon others to see and develop your talent, skills and career options. Take control, manage up and augment managers' deficiencies with external sources.

#5 - Redefine success at each career stage.

In my early 20's, having a job and free food at the office was "winning". By my late 20's, I wanted to work on the best brands and land a VP title before turning 30. Now, at age 40, success looks quite different and my focus is more on impact, building things that matter, being a good mentor and having work-life balance.

You can redefine success as often as you'd like to and need to. And remember to keep track of your "brags", as it helps you see your accomplishments over time.

#6 - Advocate for others.

Yes, even as a VP of Innovation, I've been patted on the head and asked if I was just an actress playing a role in a pitch meeting. And that's just a PG-rated story of half of the things I've seen.

Know your companies' HR policies, and hold it accountable. When you push back, you're setting standards that makes it easier for the next wave of women to come up through the ranks with less friction.

With your peers, you'll observe managerial approaches that are outdated and perspectives tainted by bias. Develop ways to meet them where they are, establish trust and provide candid peer feedback to help them evolve their skills.

And finally, if your company doesn't have resource groups for women, start one.

#7 - Share skills that help others get ahead.

Fine-tune your negotiation skills and teach it to a female peer. Offer to help draft or review counter offer letters. Draw peers' attention to the fact that data tells us if women don't meet ALL requirements for a role, they apply less often, whereas male counterparts apply if they only meet 50-60% of the criteria.

Over a career, these factors can add up to big earning losses. Think about women in your network today that are going throughout the interview process, and be a 'battle buddy' for them. Share skills that help us all get ahead.

#8 - Celebrate other women's success.

When I grew up, I was taught to compete against other women. This is a shame and is ridiculous. Especially considering in tech how underrepresented women are, if we keep up this competitive mindset, all of us lose.

A female peer's win, is not your loss. Cheer her on! Find ways to support each other, open doors. Celebrate women. Celebrate women in tech. Celebrate women in leadership roles.