We are, We Want, We Can – Woman in the IT Industry!

What attracted me to step into the IT industry was the potential of technology, that with technology we can solve big and small problems on a daily basis. Being a part of this technical trip was a great driving force for me.

Today, I work as .NET developer at Infozone where I work closely with my colleagues, team leaders and customers. We work in teams with different projects and everyone is equally involved in development, design and meeting the customer’s needs. Part of my tasks are the development of user interfaces, creating and using database structures as well as understanding and meeting the customer’s needs and wishes. Very exciting and instructive to participate in all parts of the project.

The business environment and the opportunities for development!

What makes me feel the best at Infozone is the climate and the team feeling that are so incredibly important and here we help each other. It’s an inclusive work environment with a wonderful mix of easy-going, nice and especially competent colleagues.

As an individual, I feel a great deal of confidence from my colleagues and manager, mainly in terms of responsibility. I participate in projects from start to finish and take equal responsibility for the projects as remaining project members. Last but not least, we have a lot of fun together! I look at my development opportunities as very positive, at the time of writing, I am studying for my first Microsoft certification. Every day I evolve in my role and learn new things. The career opportunities are big here!

Infozone is very positive and supportive of my commitment to gender equality in the IT industry and that I am active in DataTjej. It makes me strengthen my commitment and belief in a more equal culture. I have the opportunity to participate in Women in Tech conferences and other events for women in IT during working hours, and I am pleased to see all the many good initiatives to increase the proportion of women in the companies and in the industry.

When I first started as a .NET developer at Infozone, I thought that the atmosphere would be a bit “manly”, but it was quickly proven that I was wrong when the environment is included, and we are all as valuable.

3 quick questions to Anna regarding the industry

Can you see a clear change in the industry that more women choose IT?

Since I started studying IT 4 years ago, I have seen a positive change. I believe that more education institutions and companies are more targeted towards women, and that there are many good initiatives going on around the country today. Programming courses for children, initiatives by and for women who want change and business who want to travel. Today, more and more are talking and writing about IT, especially Tech and Women.

In my role as business manager for Stockholm at the DataTjej association, I meet many driven, female students and juniors in the industry and today we have over 2000 members!

We all share the same technical interest and I think it’s easier to bring more women to the industry by working together. The development I saw in DataTjej and our cooperation with industries gives me a great hope of the future’s gender equality culture in IT!

What do you think would attract more women to get an education within IT?

We must visualize and inform at an early age that it is a future career path and how many different opportunities there are in the IT industry. To wake up and then encourage girls’ technological interests at an early age, for example, programming events. Young girls also need to be exposed by inspirational female role models working in the industry.

What do you think that organizations can do to gain a more equality in recruitments?

Highlight the ones you want to attract and spread the image of a company with a good culture and values. Show that there are female developers at the company and let them help with the recruitment of the technical roles. For example, focus in job listings more on what the work means, how it works with you and “soft skills”, and instead reduce the list of requirements and increase the list of credits.

Anna Verlehag
.NET developer, Infozone

Would you like to know more about Annas work at Infozone or within DataTjej, please contact her. Woman or man, if you are interested in starting your journey at Infozone? Contact us and we will let you know more about how it is to work at Infozone.