Most Influential Ladies in UK Tech: Pc Weekly’s Corridor of Fame

Amali de Alwis

Winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK Tech accolade in 2018, Amali De Alwis is at present a board member for a portfolio of companies, together with abrdn Charitable Basis, Ada, the Nationwide Faculty for Digital Expertise, and Cajigo, in addition to performing as a startup guide.

She has been a CEO for a number of firms up to now, together with local weather startup accelerator Subak, Founders Discussion board and coding coaching programme Code First: Women, which not solely goals to extend range within the tech sector, however in 2018 was educating extra girls within the UK to code than the UK’s college system.

She has beforehand additionally been UK managing director of Microsoft for Startups, and member of the variety and inclusion board on the Institute of Coding. She sits on the board of trustees for the Raspberry Pi Basis, and is a founding member of the Tech Expertise Constitution.

At present she heads up startups and enterprise capital enterprise improvement at AWS the place she focuses on enterprise capital, enterprise improvement, cloud and synthetic Intelligence (AI).

In 2019, she was awarded an MBE for providers to range and coaching within the tech {industry}.

Andrea Palmer

Andrea Palmer has had an extended profession in enterprise change and digital transformation, having held varied roles at vitality agency BP for over 15 years.

She is at present chair of BCS Ladies, and has beforehand sat on the BCS society board, and acted as a BCS council member.

In earlier years, she has served as one in all Pc Weekly’s knowledgeable judges for the Most Influential Ladies in UK Tech listing, dedicating plenty of time, each in and outdoors her work, to furthering the dialog round getting extra girls into the tech sector.

In 2021 she volunteered as a programme supervisor for iSAW Worldwide, and is at present principal guide for Infosys Consulting.

Anne Boden

Anne Boden based digital challenger financial institution Starling in 2014 to construct an organisation targeted on buyer expertise. She is at present an investor and a member of its board of administrators.

Previous to Starling, Boden was chief working officer at Allied Irish Financial institution and head of EMEA world transaction providers for RBS.

Her e book, The cash revolution, launched in 2019, goals to assist individuals handle their cash in a digitally pushed world.

Anne-Marie Imafidon

Anne-Marie Imafidon was initially named one in all Pc Weekly’s Rising Stars in 2014, occurring to win the title of Most Influential Lady in UK Tech in 2020. 

Her e book, She’s in CTRL, revealed in 2022, is geared toward serving to girls reclaim their place within the period of expertise.

Imafidon is CEO of Stemettes, which she based to encourage younger girls to think about careers in STEM.  

Outdoors of her work with Stemettes, she is a commissioner for the Hamilton Fee, an initiative arrange by racing driver Lewis Hamilton to handle the shortage of black individuals each in UK motorsport and within the STEM sectors.

She has appeared as a co-presenter on ITV’s Countdown, and can be a daily podcast host on the Night Customary’s Ladies Tech Cost podcast.

Imafidon can be a fellow of the RSA, a council member of Analysis England, chancellor for Glasgow Caledonian College, laptop science advisory board member at Durham College and is chair and trustee for the Institute for the Way forward for Work.

She has beforehand been a member of the Division for Digital, Tradition, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) Digital Expertise Partnership Board, and a visiting professor on the College of Sunderland.

Anne Marie Neatham

Anne Marie Neatham took on her present position at Ocado Group as chief options officer for Ocado Clever Automation in 2022. 

Previous to this, she was chief working officer at Kindred, the AI robotics agency acquired by the group.

She is a real believer that to get younger women into expertise careers, encouragement wants to begin early within the schooling system.

Beforehand, Neatham led Ocado Expertise’s groups targeted on robotics and automation in her position as business director for the workplace of the CTO at Ocado Expertise. She has been with Ocado since 2001, initially as a software program engineer, then head of Ocado Expertise in Poland in 2012, the place she arrange the agency’s Polish arm.

She turned chief working officer of Ocado Expertise in 2014, and has beforehand been a software program engineer in software program and retail companies world wide.

Carrie Anne Philbin

One other alumna of Pc Weekly’s 2016 Ladies in Tech Rising Stars, Carrie Philbin is at present a PHD Scholar conducting tutorial analysis on the Raspberry Pi Computing Training Analysis Centre.

Till the tail finish of 2024, she had a number of duties throughout the Institute of Creativeness, together with main technique, persevering with skilled improvement programmes and studying assets.

She is a fellow of the Python Software program Basis, a membership volunteer for Code Membership, and her varied experiences in board member and chair roles – together with her time as a board member for Computing at Faculty and her stint as chair of CAS #embrace – have all been geared toward making laptop science extra accessible for everybody.

She can be a YouTuber, author and secondary-level computing and ICT instructor, and over the previous couple of years has been creating {a magazine} and podcast in affiliation with the Raspberry Pi Basis geared toward these educating computing and digital topics.

Chi Onwurah

Chi Onwurah is the MP for Newcastle upon Tyne Central and chair of the federal government’s Science, Innovation and Expertise Committee.

Her parliamentary profession has been closely targeted on digital and expertise, having been shadow minister for digital, science and expertise; shadow minister for tradition and the digital financial system; shadow Cupboard Workplace minister main on cyber safety, social entrepreneurship, civil contingency, open authorities and transparency; and shadow minister for innovation, science and digital infrastructure.

Beforehand, Onwurah labored in a number of connectivity and telecoms-based companies, together with Ofcom, Teligent, and Cable & Wi-fi.

Cindy Rose

Rose began her present position as CEO of digital promoting company WPP in 2025, and has an extended profession spanning a number of expertise firms.

Throughout her nearly decade-long stint at Microsoft Rose has many roles – in 2020, Cindy Rose was appointed president of Western Europe for Microsoft, having served as CEO of Microsoft UK since 2016, the place she was chargeable for the agency’s product, service and assist providing throughout the area. In 2023 she then as a result of chief working officer for world enterprise gross sales on the firm earlier than transferring on in 2025. 

Beforehand, Rose labored in senior roles throughout the expertise and digital sectors at companies similar to Vodafone, Virgin Media and Disney’s Interactive Media Group.

In early 2019, she was awarded an OBE for providers to UK expertise, and is at present a non-executive director for communications agency WPP.

Clare Sutcliffe

A serial founder, advisor and angel investor, Clare Sutcliffe first appeared on Pc Weekly’s radar because the founding father of Code Membership, a nationwide community of free volunteer-led after-school coding golf equipment for youngsters aged 9–11.

Till early 2018, Sutcliffe was government director of communities and outreach for Raspberry Pi Basis following its merger with Code Membership, the place Sutcliffe was chargeable for introducing and creating a web-based studying platform to offer individuals entry to digital “making” initiatives utilizing Raspberry Pi expertise.

In 2015, Sutcliffe was awarded an MBE for her providers to expertise, and has been a co-founder of many organisations, together with She Wins and Neighborhood Execs of London.

She now helps different manufacturers develop companies which can be primarily based round harnessing the facility of neighborhood. She based the Cambridge Innovation Ecosystem earlier this 12 months to attach innovators, founders, and traders within the Cambridge space to advertise innovation.

Debbie Forster

Debbie Forster is an award-winning range, tech and schooling advocate with a longstanding profession targeted on driving range and equality within the expertise sector.

Initially a instructor, her facet step into tech got here from an schooling perspective, first as a part of Tech Partnership (previously e-skills UK) after which for 5 years she holding senior positions at organisation Apps for Good, geared toward encouraging younger individuals to achieve expertise in digital expertise and app improvement.

She based and was CEO of the Tech Expertise Constitution, an industry-led membership group of 700-plus signatories working to enhance range and inclusion within the tech ecosystem, till it was disbanded in 2024.

She obtained an MBE in 2017 for providers to digital expertise and tech improvement, and was named 2019’s Most Influential Lady in UK IT by Pc Weekly.

Forster has had an intensive portfolio of positions as non-executive director, chair and board member, having been an advisory board member for the Cash and Pensions Service Advisory Board, non-executive director of Temenos, member of the Nationwide Cyber Advisory Board, and board member the federal government’s Digital Economic system Council.

She at present chairs the Institute of Coding’s Variety Board, sits on the steering group of #TechSheCan, and is non government director and chair of nominations, remuneration and HR committee at The Lending Requirements Board.

Eileen Burbidge

Eileen Burbidge is director at reproductive healthcare organisation Fertifa, and is a founding companion at London-based enterprise capital agency Ardour Capital, the place she provides expertise gained from varied tech roles all through her profession.

Her profession in expertise has spanned 15 years and consists of roles at firms similar to Yahoo!, Skype, PalmSource, Openwave, Solar Microsystems and Apple.

Alongside her position at Ardour Capital, Burbidge is a non-executive director at Currys plc, and was a co-founder/startup angel and adviser for White Bear Yard.

Till 2020, she was chair of Tech Nation, and was beforehand a member of the prime minister’s enterprise advisory group, and a particular envoy for fintech for HM Treasury.

Elizabeth Denham

Till 2021, Elizabeth Denham was the UK’s info commissioner, main the workplace coping with the Information Safety Act 2018 – the UK’s implementation of the EU’s Basic Information Safety Regulation (GDPR).

Earlier than changing into info commissioner, Denham was the knowledge and privateness commissioner for British Columbia, Canada, chargeable for compliance with private and non-private sector privateness laws and entry to info legislation.

In 2018, she was awarded a CBE for providers to info safety.

Emma McGuigan

Till April 2024, Emma McGuigan was the group expertise officer chargeable for communications, media and expertise for Accenture. Previous to this, till March 2017, McGuigan ran Accenture’s UK and Eire expertise enterprise, which incorporates consulting and outsourcing for 70% of Accenture’s UK enterprise.

She joined Accenture in 1994 after graduating with a Grasp’s diploma in electronics from the College of Edinburgh. McGuigan additionally led Accenture’s work with Stemettes, a charity devoted to rising the variety of girls in STEM careers.

In 2012, she was the expertise class winner of Ladies within the Metropolis’s Lady of Achievement Awards, and in 2013 was made a fellow of BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT. McGuigan has beforehand been a board member of {industry} physique TechUK and treasurer of the Orchid Mission. 

She is at present an advisory board member of Coca-Cola Europacific Companions.

Flavilla Fongang

Pc Weekly’s 2022 most influential girl in UK tech, Flavilla Fongang, is a strategic model specialist aiming to assist expertise firms with model engagement. Till not too long ago, she was managing director of inventive company 3 Colors Rule, in addition to a branding, neuromarketing and social promoting course teacher for the company.

Now, she is CEO of Black Rise, a expertise community geared toward discovering enterprise alternatives for black professionals and entrepreneurs, and is on the technique steering board for the Metropolis of London Company.

She has beforehand acted as a model adviser on the BBC, a model specialist for Consilience Ventures and is at present an entrepreneurship knowledgeable with the Entrepreneurship Centre on the Saïd Enterprise Faculty on the College of Oxford.

She based the Tech London Advocates Black Ladies in Tech group, which goals to assist and speed up range and inclusion within the tech sector.

A podcaster, writer and influencer, Fongang goes above and past to make sure the inclusion of black girls within the expertise sector and past.

Gillian Arnold

Gillian Arnold is managing director of IT recruitment agency Tectre, which is aimed particularly at supporting girls in expertise roles.

Beforehand chair of BCSWomen, she is now president of the BCS, and a board member for the Industrial Advisory Board for the Faculty of Computing and Communications on the Open College.

In her 30-plus-year tech profession, Arnold has hung out as chair of the European Ladies in IT taskforce, geared toward creating finest practices and Europe-wide actions to extend the variety of girls within the tech {industry}.

In addition to having chaired a discussion board for IT commerce physique Mind (now TechUK), Arnold was a board member at Clever, which helps girls in STEM.

Hannah Dee

Dee is an info safety and databases lecturer at Aberystwyth College, the place she researches laptop imaginative and prescient, and can be a founding member of on-line STEM journal Scientists Are People.

She based the BCSWomen Lovelace Colloquium in 2008 as a convention for feminine undergraduates. Now deputy chair of the colloquium, Dee helped run the primary Ladies in Tech Cymru summer season convention in 2019.

She has gained awards in educating and obtained a Suffrage Science award in 2018.

Dee was on the committee of BCSWomen till 2023, and till 2020 was secretary of BCS Mid-Wales. She has had an extended profession in science and expertise.

Helen Milner

Helen Milner is founder and CEO of not-for-profit the Good Issues Basis (previously the Tinder Basis), having based the charity in 2011 to assist the digitally excluded change into snug utilizing digital and on-line applied sciences.

Most of her work is concentrated on constructing tech inclusion for digitally excluded individuals.

She is Chair of environmental charity Subak, and a non government director of the Division for Science, Innovation and Expertise.

She has been a board member of each FutureDotNow and the DCMS Digital Expertise Partnership Board, and is on the Advisory Group for the UK’s Cash and Pension Service.

Milner was beforehand a specialist authorities adviser of digital engagement for the Public Accounts Committee, was named Digital Chief of the 12 months in 2017, and was awarded an OBE in 2015 for providers to digital inclusion.

Jacqueline De Rojas

The 2015 winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady UK Tech, De Rojas insists that you simply “can have all of it” – she isn’t solely president of an organization and non-executive director of a number of extra, however can be married with three youngsters and two canines.

De Rojas is president of Digital Leaders, board member and former president of TechUK, co-chair of the governance board for the Institute of Coding, and non-executive director of Rightmove, IFS, Costain Group and FDM Group.

She acts as a enterprise adviser and mentor and was awarded a CBE in 2018 for providers to worldwide commerce in expertise.

Jane Moran

Jane Moran was the primary winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK IT when it was launched in 2012.

On the time, Moran was CIO at Thomson Reuters, the place she took half within the Thomson Reuters Ladies’s Community, Ladies in Expertise Worldwide and the Nationwide Centre for Ladies in Expertise.

Now she is the non-executive director of JP Morgan Europe, and chief info and digital officer at Mass Basic Brigham within the US, having stepped down as world CIO of Unilever, a place she held for nearly seven years.

Moran can be a non-executive director for JP Morgan Securities and was beforehand a non-executive director for Institutional Money Distributors.

She actively participates within the IT neighborhood, and is an advocate for management expertise and making certain extra girls take into account a profession in expertise.

In 2014, Moran was positioned first on the annual Pc Weekly UKTech50 listing, a showcase of the highest movers and shakers within the UK IT {industry}.

Janet Coyle

Janet Coyle has held a number of roles at London & Companions, together with principal adviser, director of commerce and progress, main the export and progress technique for the agency, and managing director of progress, earlier than being made managing director of enterprise progress in early 2021. 

She is at present a trustee and chair of Remco for Founders4Schools, and up to now, she was co-chair for the Tech London Advocates Scale Up Group, non-executive director for Rocketseed, managing director of Silicon Valley Involves the UK and an adviser for charity Founders4Schools.

Jo Twist

Jo Twist was CEO of UKIE, the video games {industry} commerce physique that goals to make the UK the chief in video games and interactive leisure, for 11 years, earlier than transferring on to be CEO of the British Phonographic Business in 2023.

Twist is vice-president of video games charity Particular Impact, and a patron of gaming psychological well being charity, Secure In Our World.

Twist was beforehand commissioning editor for schooling at Channel 4, deputy chair of the British Display screen Discussion board, chair of the video games committee at Bafta. and was multi-platform commissioner of leisure and Change for the BBC within the early 2000s.

In 2016, she obtained an OBE for her contribution to the inventive industries.

Joanna Shields

The 2013 winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK Tech, Joanna Shields is now founder and CEO of AI advisory agency Precognition, in addition to founder and administration board member of WeProtect World Alliance.

Till late 2023, she was CEO of synthetic intelligence firm BenevolentAI, which goals to coach computer systems to alter how medication is developed.

She was beforehand parliamentary under-secretary of state on the DCMS, and till early 2018 was UK minister for web security and safety.

From December 2016, Shields acted because the prime minister’s particular consultant on web crime and harms, driving a extra worldwide method to web security and safety.

Previously CEO of accelerator programme Tech Metropolis, Shields based not-for-profit WeProtect.org in 2013 to combat on-line youngster abuse and exploitation.

Previously European chief of Fb, Shields has had a number of roles as an adviser on digital. She believes the UK should deal with digital transformation correctly whether it is to stay a frontrunner in digital improvement.

June Angelides

June Angelides based, and till 2017 was CEO of, Mums in Tech when on maternity go away from Silicon Valley Financial institution, the place she held roles as an affiliate for accelerator progress and an affiliate for entrepreneur banking.

She’s at present a board observer for a lot of companies, together with Everpress, Aptitude and Jude, is an investor at Samos Investments and Ada Ventures, and is an honorary fellow on the Institute of Engineering and Expertise.

She has held many non-executive positions up to now, together with board adviser for Cajigo App and World App Testing, an Oxford Foundry mentor at Oxford College, and was a founding ambassador of the FiftyFiftyPledge, amongst many different non-executive positions.

Angelides was beforehand chosen as a Pc Weekly Rising Star, and was awarded an MBE in 2020.

Kate Russell

Kate Russell has been writing about expertise for the reason that mid-Nineties, and is seen as an issue knowledgeable with regards to the expertise sector. Earlier than her profession in TV presenting and journalism, she offered CD manufacturing to laptop sport firms.

Russell is a frequent occasions speaker and works with organisations that goal to extend the variety of younger individuals who pursue a job within the tech sector, similar to TeenTech.

Till 2021, she was a presenter on BBC expertise programme Click on, from which she stepped all the way down to create a Twitch channel devoted to rescued ferrets.

At present, she is the communications supervisor for the DiversIT Constitution, chargeable for social media technique to drive curiosity.

She has revealed many books, together with Working the cloud, Elite: largely innocent, and A bookkeeper’s information to sensible sorcery.

Kathryn Parsons

Kathryn Parsons based Decoded in East London in 2011 “with a bank card and a mission to show code in a day”. The coding college has taught individuals in companies worldwide in regards to the internal workings of applied sciences similar to code, knowledge, AI and cyber safety.

Parsons launched the Decoded Information Academy in 2018 and desires Decoded’s efforts to extend digital literacy in companies and authorities, and fill the information expertise hole.

Till early 2021, she was a non-executive board member for the Division for Enterprise, Power and Industrial Technique, and till 2020 sat on the enterprise advisory boards for the London mayor and 10 Downing Avenue.

Parsons was awarded an MBE in 2016 for her work in campaigning for code to be launched into the UK’s curriculum.

Kerensa Jennings

Kerensa Jennings is a author, government coach and sits on the boards of a number of firms and initiatives, together with as a board member for Founders for Faculties, an advisory board member for Digital Leaders, and a board advisor for the Institute for Coding.

Till 2024, Jennings headed up BT’s knowledge platforms, serving to to create new enterprise fashions utilizing knowledge and synthetic intelligence (AI). She led the BT Expertise for Tomorrow programme, serving to individuals throughout the UK use digital to their benefit. The programme helped 10 million individuals be taught digital expertise and achieve confidence with expertise.

She was beforehand director on the Royal Family, and chief government chargeable for technique and supply of iDEA CIC, the inspiring digital enterprise award, and earlier than that spent 15 years with the BBC in a wide range of roles, together with programme editor for Breakfast with Frost and government editor for BBC Information.

She spent two-and-a-half years as programme government for the BBC Academy, serving to develop a management programme for senior inventive leaders all through the company. Jennings has additionally held roles at main broadcast organisations ITN and Sky.

Lopa Patel

Lopa Patel has an intensive background in each range and STEM (science, expertise, engineering and maths), and at present holds a place as chair of equality charity Variety UK, which goals to assist create alternatives within the company, tech and public sectors for individuals from numerous backgrounds, the place she was beforehand CEO.

She can be at present a deputy chair and non-executive board member of NHS Devon, the place she is utilizing her expertise in digital transformation to assist form the way forward for the organisation.

She based Asians in Tech in 2015, which yearly showcases the highest 100 individuals from Asian backgrounds working within the expertise and digital sectors within the UK.

Beforehand in her profession, she held positions as non-executive director of UK IPO, founder and CEO of NewAsianPost, trustee of the Science Museum Group, chair of the Nationwide Science and Media Museum, and STEM ambassador at STEMNET.

Maggie Berry

Till 2024 Maggie Berry was the director of Coronary heart of the Metropolis, which works with small companies to assist them develop enterprise programmes geared toward selling range and supporting native communities, amongst different issues.

Previous to this, she was government director for Europe at WEConnect Worldwide, the place she helped the agency to develop its company and public sector assist, and develop its community of greater than 1,500 women-led companies to hook up with the company provide chain.

Berry beforehand ran the womenintechnology.co.uk on-line job board for recruitment and networking, and is an advocate for range within the tech {industry}. She was awarded an OBE in 2019 for her providers to girls in expertise and enterprise. She can be a committee member of the Walsworth Neighborhood Centre and, till early 2021, was a range advisory committee member for Founders4Schools.

At present, she’s the SME procurement lead at Enterprise Nation, and volunteers as liveryman of The Worshipful Firm of Data Technologists.

Maggie Philbin

The 2016 winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK Tech, Maggie Philbin is founding father of TeenTech and has spent greater than 30 years reporting on STEM topics for tv and radio.

She co-founded TeenTech with the goal of serving to younger individuals be impressed by – and search a future profession in – expertise through the use of it to resolve real-world issues.

An enormous advocate of range within the tech sector, Philbin has obtained eight honorary levels and an OBE to recognise her providers on this space – though she insists these honours belong to her “superb and devoted” group.

Margaret Ross

Initially on monitor to change into a secretary, Margaret Ross, a professor at Southampton Solent College, went on to achieve levels in arithmetic, which ultimately led her to programming and computing.

Though semi-retired, alongside her work at Southampton Solent, Ross is concerned in BCS and BCSWomen.

In 2009, she was awarded an MBE for providers to schooling.

Martha Lane Fox

Co-founder of Lastminute.com, serial entrepreneur Martha Lane Fox continues to advertise the reason for girls and variety within the IT {industry}.

She additionally works for digital expertise parity and believes extra needs to be performed to make sure the 12 million adults who can not use the web can obtain even probably the most fundamental duties concerned in a digital future.

Lane Fox intends her Doteveryone venture – which she launched throughout her speech on the 2015 Dimbleby Lecture – to behave as a platform to gas the dialogue round startups, governments, gender and expertise.

A agency believer that the web needs to be used as an enabler for change, Lane Fox has used her place as chancellor for the Open College and crossbench peer within the Home of Lords, to talk out about the necessity for range and digital enablement.

She is now president of the British Chambers of Commerce, a cross-bench peer, and was appointed a distinguished fellow by the BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, alongside Wendy Corridor.

She is at present additionally non government director of British Airways and Multiverse, and up to now did in depth work with the Authorities Digital Service.

Max Benson and Karen Gill

Benson and Gill launched Everywoman in 1999 to behave as a web-based neighborhood for ladies throughout the UK and supply a community, assist and assets for ladies wanting to begin their very own companies.

The community ultimately grew to assist not solely feminine entrepreneurs, but in addition girls in sectors similar to retail, journey, transport and logistics, and insurance coverage and threat.

In 2010, it expanded additional to cater to girls within the expertise sector, and Benson and Gill launched the Everywoman in Expertise Awards to showcase the sector’s position fashions and shine a light-weight on the several types of roles and careers within the sector.

As a part of Everywoman, the pair additionally launched the Tech Hub, which goals to offer girls within the tech sector entry to assets and connections that may assist them additional develop management expertise and advance their careers. 

Benson and Gill have been awarded MBEs in 2009 for providers to girls’s enterprise.

Melissa Di Donato

Melissa Di Donato stepped again from her position at SUSE in 2023 to concentrate on her basis Inside Wings, which she based in 2020 to offer younger women extra confidence and work in direction of worldwide gender equality.

At present, she can be a small and medium-sized enterprise digital adoption process pressure member for the Division for Enterprise and Commerce, and chair and CEO of economic analytics agency Kyriba, alongside different non government director and board positions.

Previous to her present roles, she was non government director on the Division for Science, Innovation and Expertise; chief income officer for ERP and cloud after which chief working officer for digital core at SAP; and spent six years at Salesforce, first as the realm vice-president of ISV and channel programmes for EMEA and Asia-Pacific, throughout which she chaired a European ISV Advisory Innovation Board, after which as space vice-president of Wave Analytics Cloud.

Di Donato is a board member and adviser to numerous expertise firms within the UK and Silicon Valley. She is a philanthropist, specializing in STEM initiatives and mentoring girls in enterprise.

Nicola Blackwood

Blackwood is chair of the board of Genomics England, is an advisory board member for Harwell Science and Innovation Campus and board trustee for the Alan Turing Institute.

Beforehand, she labored within the public sector, initially as the primary feminine MP for Oxford and extra not too long ago as minister for innovation within the Division of Well being and Social Care.

She has been a chair of the Human Tissue Authority, a board member for Oxford College Innovation, an advisory board member for Eagle Genomics, sat on the board of administrators for the Marketing campaign for Science and Engineering, was a mentor for the Inventive Destruction Lab, and was deputy chair of Public Coverage Initiatives.

Nicola Mendelsohn

Mendelsohn is head of the World Enterprise Group for Fb guardian firm Meta, and was beforehand vice-president of Europe, Center East and Africa (EMEA) operations at Fb, the place she targeted on progress areas within the area.

In addition to her position at Meta, Mendelsohn is a chairperson for the Follicular Lymphoma Basis, and co-president of charity Norwood.

Beforehand, she was {industry} chair of the Inventive Industries Council, non-executive director of client items agency Diageo, and a director of the Ladies’s Prize for Fiction.

Mendelsohn has had an extended profession in expertise, in addition to promoting and advertising and marketing in roles similar to government chairman and companion on the Karmarama promoting company.

In 2015, she was awarded a CBE for providers to the inventive {industry}.

Poppy Gustafsson

The 2021 winner of the title Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK Tech, Gustafsson is minister for funding for each the Division of Enterprise and Commerce and HM Treasury.

Previous to this, she was CEO of cyber synthetic intelligence (AI) agency Darktrace. As an organisation, Darktrace has excessive feminine illustration in comparison with the {industry} common, with girls making up 30-40% of workers.

Throughout her winner’s interview, Gustafsson identified that there are numerous completely different routes into the expertise sector, and that girls shouldn’t be “apologetic” about having non-traditional skillsets whereas making their method into tech roles.

Gustafsson studied arithmetic at Sheffield College, transferring on to change into an assistant supervisor at Deloitte, then a fund accountant at Amadeus Capital Companions.

She joined Darktrace as chief monetary officer (CFO) in 2013, then spent a while as chief working officer (COO) earlier than changing into CEO in 2016.

Gustafsson has been featured in lists such because the Administration As we speak 30 underneath 35 and was a winner within the Veuve Clicquot Enterprise Lady Awards in 2019.

Priya Guha

Guha is a serial adviser and non-executive director, and in 2021 obtained an MBE for providers to worldwide commerce and girls in innovation.

In 2019, she joined Merian Ventures as a enterprise companion, having beforehand been ecosystem basic supervisor for the London campus of Silicon Valley-born co-working area RocketSpace.

Guha additionally acts as an adviser for Tech London Advocates, in addition to being a member of the worldwide committee on the Royal Academy of Engineering and a earlier council member for InnovateUK.

Rav Bumbra

Bumbra based Structur3dpeople in 2015 to assist organisations to recruit a extra numerous workforce for expertise, digital and management roles, and remains to be director there.

Since then, she has based Instagram Reside chat present Ladies Speak Tech to showcase the experiences of ladies throughout several types of tech {industry} roles, and can be founding father of cellular studying platform Cajigo, which helps girls of all ages achieve the abilities they want for tech roles.

Bumbra was named a girls in tech Rising Star by Pc Weekly in 2018.

Rebecca George

Till spring 2021, George was the managing companion for presidency and public providers at Deloitte, main the agency’s public sector practices throughout Europe.

Beforehand, she was lead public sector companion at Deloitte, the place she was chargeable for initiatives similar to serving to the general public sector enhance effectivity and develop finest observe, and was a board member of the Metropolis Psychological Well being Alliance till 2024.

George is expertise advisor on the Division for Training, and in 2006 she was awarded an OBE for her work on sustainable communities.

Rioch Edwards-Brown

Rioch Edwards-Brown, entrepreneur and founding father of So You Wanna Be on TV?, is an advocate for range and has in depth media expertise.

She started So You Wanna Be on TV? as a neighborhood outreach programme after her son was shot and stabbed in school, and makes use of the platform to deal with the shortage of range and social mobility in TV by offering free employability expertise via partnerships between TV, manufacturers, firms and the neighborhood. Based mostly on her already profitable mannequin, she launched So You Wanna Be In Tech? in 2016.

Sarah Burnett

Till 2022, Burnett was a founding companion and non-executive director at administration guide agency Emergence Companions, the place she was head of expertise immersion and insights.

Earlier than this, she was an government vice-president and distinguished analyst at Everest Group, the place she used her expertise to guide the group on world service supply automation analysis and European observe throughout its world providers analysis areas.

Earlier than becoming a member of Everest Group, Burnett was vice-president of analysis at Nelson Corridor, masking areas similar to infrastructure, IT outsourcing, cloud and authorities enterprise course of outsourcing. Till 2024, she was chair of BCSWomen, and in 2017 launched the BCSWomen AI Accelerator.

Burnett is an industrial advisory board member for the Open College Faculty of Computing and Communications, and chief expertise evangelist for KYP.ai.

Sarah Luxford

Luxford is co-lead and co-founder of Tech London Advocates’ girls in tech group and was co-founder of Croydon Tech Metropolis. She is now a companion (digital, knowledge and expertise) at advisory agency GatenbySanderson and a fellow for the RSA.

Earlier than her present position, Luxford was director at recruitment firm World Resourcing, and as director at Nexec Leaders from 2015 to 2017, she labored with founders, traders and enterprise leaders to seek out the expertise they wanted.

She was named as one in all Pc Weekly’s Rising Stars in 2015.

Sarah Wooden

Wooden based world promoting market Unruly, the place she was CEO till 2015 when it was acquired by Information Corp.

Previously she has been non-executive director of Sign AI, senior impartial director of Tech Nation, and a enterprise mentor for The Hatchery at College Faculty London.

Wooden is writer of Stepping up: The way to speed up your management potential, which she describes as a profession handbook for the millennial technology.

In 2016, she was awarded an OBE for providers to expertise and innovation. 

Sharon Moore

Moore is at present technical director of the IBM Expertise Ecosystem.

Beforehand at IBM, she was world technical lead for presidency – the place she goals to make use of expertise to assist the federal government to develop higher outcomes for individuals throughout the UK – was chief expertise officer (CTO) for public sector at IBM UK and, previous to that, targeted on designing technical options for IBM’s shoppers within the journey and transportation {industry}, incorporating engagement, web of issues (IoT) and analytics applied sciences, in her position as {industry} technical chief for journey and transportation.

Moore has been closely concerned within the BCS over time, and till not too long ago was a justice and emergency providers administration committee member for TechUK.

In 2018 she was awarded an MBE for providers to girls in technology-based industries. 

Sheila Flavell

A member of the tech sector for 30 years, Flavell was appointed chief working officer of IT providers agency FDM Group in 2008, and is an government board director of the agency the place she spearheads FDM’s World Ladies in Tech marketing campaign and FDM’s Getting Again to Enterprise programme, geared toward offering alternatives for returners to work.

She is present president of TechUK, a council member for the Digital Expertise Council, and is steadily known as to advise authorities committees on varied points, particularly across the digital expertise hole.

She gained Chief of the 12 months on the Everywoman in Expertise Awards in 2012, and in 2019 was awarded a CBE for providers to gender equality in IT and the employment of graduates and returners.

Sherry Coutu

The 2017 winner of Pc Weekly’s Most Influential Lady in UK Tech title, Coutu is a serial entrepreneur, having based or co-founded firms similar to Founders4Schools, Workfinder, the Scaleup Institute and Silicon Valley Involves the UK.

She remains to be concerned with many of those firms, is an angel investor, and sits on the boards of a number of firms, charities and universities.

Coutu is an impartial non-executive director of Phoenix Group, Pearson and Raspberry Pi.

In 2013, she was awarded an OBE for providers to entrepreneurship.

Dame Stephanie ‘Steve’ Shirley

Initially from Germany, aged 5, Shirley – who on the time was named Vera Buchthal – was one of many hundreds of kids who got here to the UK on The Kindertransport earlier than the outbreak of the Second World Warfare.

She grew up together with her sister and foster dad and mom within the West Midlands, creating a background in expertise and arithmetic from a younger age, and after college, she obtained a job constructing computer systems and coding for the Publish Workplace Analysis Station in Dollis Hill.

After doing night time lessons to achieve a level in arithmetic, she then went on to get a job at one other expertise firm.

In 1962, Shirley developed a “software program home” for feminine freelance programmers, which ultimately employed greater than 8,000 individuals and paved the best way for versatile working.

When she launched the agency, she started signing her identify as “Steve” to beat male preconceptions about girls in enterprise.

Shirley seems in each the Bletchley Park and California computing museums, was the primary feminine president of the BCS, a grasp of the Worshipful Firm of Data Technologists, and co-founded the Oxford Web Institute in 2001.

Shirley handed away in August of 2025 on the age of 91.

Sue Black

In 2015, Black was awarded an OBE for her providers to expertise, and is an outspoken advocate for making certain extra girls and women take an curiosity in expertise.

She is founding father of the TechMums initiative, which goals to encourage extra youngsters into expertise by making certain moms achieve confidence and expertise in utilizing IT.

Black’s e book, Saving Bletchley Park, which particulars her marketing campaign to cease the historic Bletchley Park from falling into disrepair.

She is at present a keynote speaker and professor at a number of universities.

Sue Daley

Daley leads TechUK’s work on cloud, knowledge, analytics and AI, in addition to the organisation’s director of tech and innovation, and has been recognised within the UK Large Information 100 as a key influencer in driving ahead the large knowledge agenda.

She is co-chair of the Nationwide Information Technique Discussion board, which goals to put the UK on the forefront in knowledge, and has acted as a choose for a number of awards, such because the Loebner Prize in AI, UKtech50 and the Annual UK Cloud Awards.

Earlier than becoming a member of TechUK in January 2015, she was chargeable for Symantec’s authorities relations within the UK and Eire.

In 2016, Daley swam the English Channel.

Suki Fuller

Suki Fuller based Miribure in 2015. The corporate makes use of knowledge gathering and analytics to advertise strategic decision-making in companies.

At present, in addition to operating Miribure, Fuller is a fellow on the Council of Aggressive Intelligence Fellows, and is a part of the B2B community Group of People as an analytical storyteller and technique human.

She can be a founding ambassador of the FiftyFiftyPledge, an advisory board member of Tech London Advocates and Tech World Advocates, and the TLA Ladies in Tech co-lead.

Fuller co-founded, and till 2019 was CEO of, incubator and accelerator Salaam Ventures, which focuses on helping moral startups.

Fuller volunteers as a profession coach for world charity Gown For Success, which goals to assist girls from deprived backgrounds get on the profession ladder. She was voted as probably the most influential girl in UK expertise 2023.

Tabitha Goldstaub

An knowledgeable on synthetic intelligence (AI), Tabitha Goldstaub is finest often called the co-founder of CognitionX, a platform and community that helps to construct AI and data-driven techniques.

She is at present co-founder of consultancy LichenAI, and is performing as y, and he or she can be the writer of The way to speak to robots – a women’ information to a world dominated by AI.

She additionally acts as a choose for Teenagers in AI, is a board member for the Centre for Foundational AI at UCL, and is an advisory board member for the Marketing campaign for Science and Engineering.

Previously, she has been chair of the federal government’s AI Council, advertising and marketing counsel for Founders4Schools, adviser for The Prince’s Belief, government director of Innovate Cambridge to assist the area develop an inclusive and sustainable innovation strateg and was a co-founder of Future Lady Corp, an organisation that runs free occasions for future feminine CEOs.

Trudy Norris-Gray

Norris-Gray’s profession has been targeted on expertise and digital transformation throughout companies similar to BT, Solar Microsystems, Oracle and Eastman Kodak, the place she held senior government posts.

She now splits her time between the US and the UK and till not too long ago was chair of Clever (Ladies in Science, Engineering and Expertise), in addition to chair of the UCAS board of trustees.

Till 2019, Norris-Gray was world managing director of native regional authorities, good cities and related infrastructure for Microsoft in Seattle, US, adopted by a job as deputy CEO of enterprise and world partnerships at AXA.

Vanessa Vallely

In 2008, Vallely based WeAreTheCity, an organisation that gives working girls with assist and assets to assist their careers. The organisation has advanced to incorporate many branches, similar to WeAreTechWomen, GenderNetworks, WeAreVirtual and SheTalksTech.

She is CEO of WeAreTheCity, in addition to visiting lecturer on the College of Warwick Enterprise Faculty, a public speaker for Ladies Impressed Restricted and a companion of the Chartered Administration Institute.

Vallely has a background in expertise and finance, is writer of Heels of metal, co-author of the latest Lovelace report, and in 2018 was awarded an OBE for providers to girls and the financial system.

Wendy Corridor

Corridor holds a number of positions on the College of Southampton, together with professor of laptop science and affiliate vice-president (worldwide engagement), and is an government director of the college’s Internet Science Institute.

Corridor was named a Dame CBE in 2009, and is a fellow of the Royal Society.

She has held a number of distinguished positions within the STEM sector, together with president of the ACM and senior vice-president of the Royal Academy of Engineering.

In addition to having been a member of the UK prime minister’s Council for Science and Expertise, Corridor was co-chair of the UK authorities’s 2017 AI evaluation, and was introduced by the federal government as the primary expertise champion for AI within the UK

Wendy Tan White

Wendy Tan White is CEO of Intrinsic, an Alphabet firm targeted on AI and robotics, and previous to this, she was vice-president at X, Alphabet’s Moonshot Manufacturing facility, a bunch of traders and entrepreneurs aiming to make use of expertise to avoid wasting lives.

She additionally has a presence at Imperial Faculty London, the place for the previous ten years she has been on the advisory board for the Dyson Faculty of Design Engineering, and in was awarded an MBE in 2016 for providers to expertise and enterprise.

Tan White co-founded and was CEO of Moonfruit till 2015, a DIY web site and on-line store builder for small companies. She was a basic companion at Entrepreneur First, a programme and fund targeted on early-stage deep tech firms, and till 2018 was an advisory board member for the Authorities Digital Service.

She is now a member of the UK’s Digital Economic system Council which goals to develop the federal government’s technique for the event of a world-leading digital financial system.

She splits her time between the UK and San Francisco.