52 women in IT roundtable ... continued from previous page


Delahoussaye said she had felt the risk of changing jobs was “too big“ which was why she had chosen to ask for a pay rise instead.


Are there cultural factors working for a US technology company which affect your career?


Edmunds‘ experience was that having to juggle evening conference calls with US employers and the amount of travel usually involved was a reason why many women moved out of technology sales.


As a working mother, planning ahead for overnight stays is all about being very organised, said Rees.


“I worry about the toll travel takes in the future,“ said Braithwaite, who regularly puts her children to bed in Manchester and then drives to London, arriving at a hotel at 1am so she can be fresh for a business meeting at 9am.


“In sales it‘s expected that you will have to travel, every year we have kick off events and conferences and the expectation is you have to travel. I find it just means being organised and making sure you can accommodate it,“ said Delahoussaye.


Louise Delahoussaye


flexibility than some more desk-based jobs.


Who are your role models and who do you speak to about your career aspirations?


For Rebecca Sewell, it was Edmunds herself who, she said, had been excellent at providing vision, mentoring, motivation and support. As a parent whose own daughter has just gained a degree, she said she would be taking her daughter into Clarify for work experience, ensuring that she had exposure to the technology sector.


“We have a great flexible working environment at Clarify that works for families and single parents, male and female, and I feel as a woman that I am being heard and listened to.“


For Delahoussaye, her role model was her father, who she described as “amazing“ for working his way up in the corporate publishing sector. “If ever I want advice, he is the first person I go to,“ she said.


Within VMWare, she described one female colleague as “aspirational“ but said she had always struggled to approach her and welcomed any advice on how to do so.


Claire Edmunds


Thomas said the flexibility to arrange client meetings and associated travel to fit within time commitments in and out of work, plus the use of more virtual meeting facilities which are now common in organisations, helps ease some of the pressure of travel.


Their comments prompted Dr Janjuha- Jivraj to note that the discussion was moving away from being one of women and childcare to one about the ability to be really organised.


Everyone agreed that there was a really positive story to be told because the technology industry – and sales roles in particular – allowed more mobility and


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It was an opportunity for Lamb to talk about an internal programme they had run focusing on raising awareness and being more transparent around career progression in their business. “Often people feel overlooked if they are not ‘in the club‘; they don‘t know where to go to find the information that is there. The programme was about showing visibility across the company.“


She believed the key to career progression was to ask for business challenges, to talk to senior individuals and ask to help with projects. In her case, going to three different people for different scenarios had worked better than having one mentor and meant her name was known in wider circles.


Dr Janjuha-Jivraj brought up research by Catalyst which showed that women were more likely to be mentored, whereas men


were more likely to be sponsored, and it was the latter that tended to lead to promotion.


Delegates however, felt that for many women it came down to a feeling of trust as part of the relationship building process, knowing that you could talk to your line manager about the need for flexibility because of a home situation or how to deal with a difficult customer.


Edmunds said she liked Lamb‘s approach of not following a particular mentor scheme. She had actively sought a mentor outside the business, someone who could challenge her behaviours, and had then moved on to financial coaching. “It was about me as a person and what I needed at the time that would allow me to do more.“


That prompted Lamb to say that female graduates in particular would come into the business and immediately say they needed a mentor. “I always asked why, but they don‘t seem to know why they would and what a mentor would do,“ she said. “It‘s about taking a sensible approach and they should engage with their managers first to understand what they may need.“


Braithwaite said although she had never had a mentor, she had been championed by women she had worked with, adding: “The more you network and work alongside people, the more they get to know you and what you are capable of. I wouldn‘t know where to go and get a formal mentor but I would agree that for graduates coming in, it is something they would expect.“


Why isn‘t there a higher proportion of women in senior technology roles?


The question of children came back on the agenda, with Braithwaite saying that women were often successful in their careers until they had children, after which they returned to work part-time or in job shares, which seemed to “devalue“ them in the eyes of their employers, who may be less likely to promote them.


“Some people feel unless they can commit to going back full time, they are being hampered. It‘s almost as if their career is on hold,“ she said. “It is not about childcare, it‘s more about the perception of the job, if it requires a full-time position and whether the employer is prepared to change.“


Speaking from an employer‘s perspective, Edmunds said that in certain roles it can be difficult to accommodate people working a three-day week and said for those who chose to go that route it was more of a “lifestyle decision“.


Rees commented that there was “no such thing“ as a part-time sales person.


THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – SOLENT & SOUTH CENTRAL – JULY/AUGUST 2015


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