The purpose of International Women’s Day is to celebrate and recognize the achievements and position of women in society. According to the UN, the theme for 2023’s International Women’s Day is DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality. What better way to raise awareness for women in technology, than speaking to the incredible women at Indeed Flex? We spoke to 6 women in leadership to hear their thoughts on International Women’s Day and to hear their words of wisdom against the challenges women face every day.
Sarah Peck – Country Manager (UK)
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I’ve been at Indeed Flex (formerly Syft) for six years this week actually. In that time I’ve had six roles, starting as a Business Development Manager in Manchester in 2017 and more recently UK Sales Director in 2022. In my seventh year, I started my role as UK Country Manager. I’m absolutely thrilled and grateful to work alongside so many amazing people in the UK, with my focus and priorities being on driving revenue growth and client/Flexer retention, improving team productivity, and enhancing our already amazing company culture. Bring on 2023 and beyond!
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
On March 8th every year we celebrate International Women’s Day all over the world. For me, the day is incredibly important in celebrating women’s achievements in the social, economic, cultural, and political spheres and educating and raising awareness for women’s equality. Over 100 years on from the original Women’s Day, there’s still so much that needs to be changed and these are changes that we need now more than ever.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have been surrounded by so many inspiring and strong women from a young age who reinforced the belief system – that I’m able to achieve what I set out with hard work and persistence. At Flex, I continue to work alongside so many inspiring women every day, and I encourage each of them to elevate and champion those around them while also focusing on strengthening their own belief system:
Unapologetically loving themselves
Start by loving yourself without apologies. Overcoming this obstacle is key. Love yourself no matter your size, weight, shape, or anything else about yourself. You’re the only one to spend every day with yourself, so make sure you love yourself.
Supporting other women
Openly supporting other women will be a huge help when you want to inspire others. Champion women from all backgrounds and ages, and let people know why. Who do you admire? How have they inspired you?
Share your stories to inspire other women
Talk about your experiences with other people to inspire them and show them that anything is possible. Be honest and authentic, and speak nothing but your truth.
Go against the status quo
Do what is unexpected – as long as you want to. Cut your hair short. Avoid wearing makeup. Do whatever makes you happy and helps you to disrupt the norm a little bit. What feels right to you? Figure it out and do it, so long as no one is intentionally hurt by doing so.
Networking
Network with anybody and everybody. You never know who you might meet and who you may be able to team up with! You could be inspiring them, just as they do for you.
Continuing to grow as a person
Read books and listen to podcasts. Take courses. Improve your skills. Never stop learning and growing and encourage other women to do the same. Lastly, follow your heart, always – even if you don’t know where it might lead you to.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
Historically, the tech sector has been white, young, and male. Over the last two decades, the industry has worked hard to convince women to start and stick out careers in software engineering. Did you know there are only three female tech CEOs in the Fortune 500? What about the fact that less than 5% of total tech leadership positions are held by women? At Flex we are striving to be at the forefront of this change and have looked at the below areas to ensure we appeal to women in tech:
- Including women on interview panels
- Analyzing words in our job descriptions
- Actively look for female developers and ensure our female employees and senior leaders are visible
- Prioritizing and promoting benefits that appeal to women
- Caring about equal pay for equal work
- Ensuring a gender-neutral and inclusive tone, minimizing the perception of ‘bro culture’ environments. This will also ensure we support the next generation of women in tech.
At Flex, we have fantastic female representation, with more females than males in our global senior leadership roles, and we will continue to lead from the front in driving a change for the better.
Erica Sanchez – Senior Sales Operations Analyst (US)
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I have been with Indeed Flex for 20 months now in a Sr Sales Operations Analyst role.
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
International Women’s Day is important because it brings attention to the women who came before us and made it possible for women to advance past social and economic barriers. As a woman in tech, it’s important we celebrate the female leaders who came before us and bravely stepped into a field in which they were the minority (or underrepresented). It wasn’t until recently I was able to see women from various backgrounds smash the glass ceiling and really come to the forefront of this field. Growing up in a predominantly white community, I didn’t realize how important it was to embrace my Hispanic culture and family history. As an adult, I’m proud to call myself a Latina in tech.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
As a Latina in tech, I hope I’m able to show young girls that even though we are underrepresented in STEM careers, you can follow and achieve any career path you choose. Just simply try, and don’t be afraid to fail. As young girls, many of us were afraid to try something new because of the fear of failing. Failing at something is how you learn, grow, and then become skilled at it.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
I would tell employers to take a chance on more young women. The CEO of my first professional job, Joe Halloum, took a chance on me when he hired me. It was a retail tech start-up and in the interview, he asked me what I wanted to do for my career. My honest answer of ‘I’m not entirely sure’ got me the office manager position. He gave me the opportunity to work in every area of the business to, in his words “find out where I gravitate towards”. I worked in every department, ended up going into Marketing and when I left that company I was the Sales Enablement Manager. I would have never been able to get a job here at Indeed Flex as a Sales Ops Analyst if it wasn’t for Joe taking a chance on a young new hire. I will forever be grateful to him for providing me with so many opportunities and for being a great mentor.
Amanda Bird – Director of Client Relations (UK)
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I have been at Indeed Flex for three and a half years. My role is to make sure we meet our client contractual obligations and that our clients create a good working environment for our Flexers. As part of this, I have the pleasure of providing leadership to the account management team in the UK.
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
The day for me celebrates women and also highlights there is still work to be done, Worldwide. Women make up 70% of the world’s 1.3 billion people in poverty. Of those displaced by climate-related disasters, 80% are women and girls. The pandemic worsened things for women and girls. A recent study found that women experienced worse social and economic consequences than men. It will take a concentrated effort to reverse the effects. International Women’s Day is an opportunity to educate. It is not just about equality at work but all I’ve mentioned and more. I strive to do whatever I can to raise awareness and evoke change.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
Try to always believe in yourself, and be your authentic self. Surround yourself with good people who are willing to take risks on you, who will give you growth opportunities, and who are there to back you when things get tough. Don’t make assumptions, and don’t always assume you’ll be treated differently. If you are expecting a fight, chances are you’ll encounter one. Embrace what makes you different, this one took me a while and I would say I’m still mastering it. Conformity is overrated, and in the end, your core differentiators add to any interaction. Women do not need to be loud to be heard. Speak your truth and be mindful of others. A well-thought-out strategy/idea presented well will raise your profile in a positive light. Learn from mistakes. Mistakes or failures are only failures if lessons are not learned from them. Lastly, get a mentor; they’re invaluable throughout your life and career.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
Other than the obvious equal pay and removing gender bias, employers could improve their recruitment process. I read recently that if a man thinks he matches half of the job description, he will apply for the job, whereas if a woman doesn’t match 90%, she will not apply for the role. 45% of women say they lack technology skills. It’s important for employers to use language when recruiting that attracts both males and females. Debbie Foster, CEO of Tech Talent Charter, stated using bullet points in job descriptions led to a rapid decrease in women applying for the role. Food for thought!
Azu Kurihara – VP of Strategy (US)
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I have been at Indeed Flex for three and a half years. My role is VP of Strategy, based in the United States.
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
Changes always start from awareness. A diverse team is more innovative with more perspectives and ideas, and there are so many other benefits too.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
Don’t be trapped in imposter syndrome. If you are struggling with this, don’t be worried, loads of CEOs, including the male CEOs, have it. It is a sign of your sense of responsibility and ownership. Use that knowledge to overcome it.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
Respect people with differences and leverage the positive side to diversity within your company’s management team.
Leonie Heron – Channel Sales Manager (UK)
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I joined Flex in May 2019 and am coming up to my fourth year in the business. In my current role, I work closely with our partners at Indeed to work on our strategic partnership between Flex & Indeed Sales. In addition, I act as a sales support function for the UK & US Business Development teams working to increase the volume of Indeed referrals & converting these to spending accounts.
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
For me, it’s all about representation. Growing up, I never really saw women in senior positions in the workplace, and I have always asked where the representation is. Your gender should never be a barrier to success, and it’s crucial that young females understand this and do not see being a woman in business as a limitation. It’s so important that people see someone that they can relate to. It inspires you to push yourself and know that you CAN do it. For me having visible female role models just helps to remove that element of doubt; I can relate to their journeys and learnings, and celebrate their successes as if they were my own.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
I’d like to inspire women to be true to themselves and encourage them to let go of limiting beliefs. Stop saying we can’t do something and believe we can do it! Don’t take no for an answer and back yourself because you have a lot of value to add. More importantly, don’t change yourself, be you, believe in yourself, and you will succeed.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
Create a great culture that embodies diversity, equality, and inclusion. It’s important that a business doesn’t simply say they embody these qualities but that they show them.
Angela Tang – Chief marketing officer
How long have you been at Indeed Flex and what can you tell us about your role?
I have been with Indeed Flex since the Syft time in 2016. As the Chief Marketing Officer, I look after our marketing function and jobseeker recruitment function.
Why do you think it is important to celebrate International Women’s Day?
In many cultures, some women are still bounded by the stereotypes of their gender roles. International Women’s Day is an important day for us to recognize how far we have come as women, celebrate but also not to forget many still need progresses.
How would you like to inspire women to follow in your footsteps?
Challenge yourself constantly and don’t let your gender (or anyone!) set any limits on what on you can or cannot do. Dream big, plan ahead and keep going. You can have different roles in the family, at the workplace or in the society so don’t let any gender roles define who you can be.
What’s one piece of advice you would give to employers to encourage more women into the tech industry?
Set up a mentorship programme for women when available.
Thank you to all of these inspiring women for sharing their stories and advice.
