Inspirational women unveiled in "20 in Data & Tech"

The initiative launched by senior female figures in the UK data industry to motivate and galvanize women working in the sector has unveiled the inaugural “20 in Data & Technology”, detailing exceptional stories of female achievement in data science across the UK.
The programme is the result of a partnership between The Female Lead, a not for profit organisation set up by industry guru Edwina Dunn, and Women in Data UK (WiD UK), a group launched by Roisin McCarthy and Rachel Keane, managing consultants at data recruitment firm Datatech Analytics.
The scheme has been spearheaded by Women in Data UK chair Payal Jain and Dunn, whose shared experiences of a career in data science inspired them to tackle the gender-talent gap they claim is inherent to the industry.
They insist that trends indicate data science is lagging behind other sectors in this respect, including similar fields such as IT. The “20 in Data & Technology” aims to showcase the wealth and diversity of data-led career paths that women are successfully pursuing in the UK today and inspire the next generation of data science leaders.
The full line up is:
Pitch Bitch founder Angie Livingstone
iProspect data and audience strategy consultant Belle Cartwright
Experian Data Labs data scientist Berenice Pila-Diez
Amazon Alexa manager of machine learning Catherine Breslin
Royal Mail enterprise data architect Emma Swift
RSA chief data officer Gillian Tomlinson
Aimia global analytics academy director Jackie Clayton
Henderson Global Investors portfolio manager Jenna Barnard
Ladbrokes data scientist Jenna Zhang
Barclaycard director of collections strategy Karishma Jaitly
Decoded founder and chief executive Kathryn Parsons
Bliss senior data analyst Kirtsy Neal
Transport for London chief data officer Lauren Sager Weinstein
Gain Theory global chief executive Manjiry Tamhane
Outcomes Based Healthcare co-founder and CTO Nasrin Hafezparast
L’Oreal UK & Ireland senior CRM manager Noorin Virani
Mediacom chief transformation officer Sue Unerman
Think Big Analytics director Yasmeen Ahmad
Unidays head of data and insight Tamara Castelli
Britvic Soft Drinks head of business insights Steph Cullen
Writing for Decision Marketing, Mindshare insight manager Diana Akanho said: “More and more research is demonstrating the financial benefits of diversity in the workplace. Diversity means more debate and more perspectives and so better decisions. You are also more likely to hire the best talent if you are not swayed by shallow gender biases.”
To view individual portraits and in-depth interviews with each of the “20 in Data & Technology” visit the Female Lead website >