The 8th of March is International Women’s Day, a global day celebrating the diverse achievements of women worldwide. But as the Women’s Day organisation point out themselves, “the day also marks a call to action for accelerating women’s equality.” One important mission is to improve the visibility of women working in Tech.
That’s a goal we fully support at Seenons. We also like to skip the fluff and cut straight to powerful actions. One of which is to increase gender equality in Tech roles.
So when we were asked to join the Equals Role Model campaign, our Chief of People & Culture, Tanya van Wilgenburgh, didn’t hesitate for a minute. She put forward our front-end developer Stéphanie as a female role model to boost the visibility of women working in Tech. Read on to get to know waste warrior Stephanie and the Equals campaign a bit better 👇
Why we need more female role models in Dutch tech (a little background first)
Did you know that only 18% of those working in the tech industry in the Netherlands are women?
We know we might seem such a progressive, forward-thinking, innovative country, but the reality is different! Even though Amsterdam has a vibrant startup ecosystem, only 8% of founders are female and 8% of investments go to startups led by women.
Luckily, there are great initiatives out there to improve gender equality in the Dutch tech ecosystem – like Equals. With their super powerful Role Models campaign, they aim to boost the visibility of inspiring women working in Tech.
Because like a wise woman – and another inspiring role model – once said: “You can’t be what you can’t see” (Marian Wright Edelman).
How we are striving towards more gender equality at Seenons
As part of their Role Model campaign, the Equals team interviewed our Chief of People & Culture Tanya van Wilgenburgh – about Seenons’ culture, and what initiatives we are taking to improve gender equality in our company.
To start with, ensuring a safe culture and work environment is a key goal for Tanya.
So why do gender equality, and diversity & inclusion in general matter to our company culture? Because it’s one of the elements contributing to a safe culture. “Further down the road, this will lead to the representation of multiple perspectives, better and more creative ideas,” Tanya explains. Even for a young and growing company like ours, she thinks it’s crucial to build up all teams equally, from business to boardroom.
That’s why we have incorporated equality in our company policy since the beginning of Seenons.
And these are some other concrete actions we’re taking for more diversity:
- We include our desired gender ratio as a factor in the hiring process, leading to 40% of our workforce consisting of women
- Our female colleagues participate in Tech conferences – also specific recruitment events for women
- English is our main language for internal communication
- We ensure that everyone in our company feels heard and is treated equally – e.g. by flat communication lines, a culture that encourages everyone to ask questions and share their opinion, and lots of out-of-work activities 😄
📰 Read the full Equals interview with Tanya here
Meet the role model: front-end developer Stéphanie
Time to meet our role model for the Equals Women in Tech campaign. Who is a waste warrior that embodies our equal company culture, as well as being a female power in Tech?
For us, it’s front-end developer Stéphanie Alix, who helps build our tool for circular waste management. According to Tanya, “Stephanie is a role model not only because she is a woman in a role that is usually more male-dominated, but also because she is highly mission-driven and culture-focused.” ❤️
So say hello to Stéphanie!
Stéphanie Alix, front-end developer
🇳🇱 Living in the Netherlands for 5 years, originally from France 🇫🇷
Salut Stéphanie, could you tell us a bit about yourself?
“My name is Stéphanie. I am from France and have been living in the Netherlands for 5 years now. I’m happy to say that at Seenons I’ve found a company where I can combine my passion for software development with my values.”
“I have always tried to find ways to reduce my own household waste – I even developed a personal website to help people reduce waste by moving from disposable to reusable products. Seenons aims to create a world without business waste, and through our platform we connect all the players in the waste chain to enable a circular economy. I’m really happy to now be able to contribute to zero waste on a larger scale!”
Who inspired you to pursue a career in software development?
“My father used to work as a network administrator, which meant I got a computer quite early on and have developed an interest in technology ever since I was a child! Besides that, I always liked mathematics and solving problems in school, so I ended up studying computer science. I honestly never really paid attention to the fact that there were fewer women in my field of study – I just aimed for what I liked and wanted to do.”
Why do you think it is important for Role Models to be visible?
“What I love about this campaign is that it highlights women from different backgrounds. It shows that education, gender, family situation, geographic location, or any other factor doesn’t limit your potential to achieve your goals. ‘If you believe in yourself anything is possible,’ I would say!”
“Be confident. Don’t underestimate yourself.”
Stephanie Alix, front-end developer
What qualities do you think are essential for success?
“Open communication is an important skill to begin with, as it builds trust and enables effective collaboration – even or especially in tech teams! And being proactive. That’s something I always try to do more of, because it pushes me to take initiative, keep improving, stay in control and prepare for problems.”
What advice would you give to your younger self?
“I think another key quality to have as a woman in tech is being resilient. If you want something, be persistent and don’t let anything bring you down!”
“To achieve that, I would say to my younger self – and all those other young girls out there: ‘Be confident. Don’t underestimate yourself. You are worth more than you think. Remember, you are the worst critic of yourself.”
Like to join our diverse team of waste warriors?
🦸♀️ 🦸🏽 Help us reach our mission for a waste-free world! Discover our job openings
(And an important note – even if we might not be hiring for the specific role you’re looking for, we encourage you to submit an open application and tell us why you’re a great fit for our company!)
