On 11th Oct 2022 saw the Tech Industry came together to celebrate The Midlands Women In Tech Awards 2022.
The annual event, which is organised by B Events, took place at the Eastside Rooms, Birmingham with host Deb Leary OBE at the helm.
The evening kicked off with a welcome drinks reception where the room was buzzing with passionate conversations and a backdrop of the Saorsa string quartet which set the scene for a fabulous uplifting evening with over 350 attendees.
The Women in Tech Awards aims to inspire the next generation of women in the technology industry and through celebrating those currently paving the way, will hopefully help bring about a more equal and representative world, especially within the Midlands and throughout the UK.
In recent years, the Midlands has become home to an increasing number of tech businesses and entrepreneurs, meaning there is certainly no shortage of talented women to look to, in order to innovate and spearhead the direction of our digital future.
Now in its 3rd year it was great to see how much the movement has grown, and continues to gain momentum.
It’s wonderful to see so many brilliant women being recognised & celebrated for their achievements in the tech industry.
The evening continued with some amazing food followed by an inspirational speech delivered by keynote speaker Vanessa Eyles, Director of The Cyber Resilience Centre for the West Midlands, about her journey and how she overcame hurdles in a male dominated industry.
There is an importance to see more role models for Women in Tech and the Women Tech Awards showcase just that.
This year special recognition award went to Debbie Assinder for her services to the region in encouraging more women in tech.
Debbie Assinder said, “Extremely proud of our region and the fantastic talent that we have on offer. Our work must continue as we have to keep inspiring future generations of female talent as our mission is to address the gender imbalance in the workplace.”
Judge Deb Leary OBE said, “As head judge I am proud of all the finalists who confirm the high quality of talent in our region.”
Amandip Jheeta – Judge and former Shining Star winner, “proud to have come full circle as a former winner, I have now come as a judge this year and it affirms the important role that the Midlands Women in Tech Awards do to spotlight female talent”.
Sarah Dowzell – Tech Professional (Non-coding) Award winner 2022, “So proud tonight, being recognised means so much to me amongst so many wonderful female leaders.”
The finalists and winners were no less impressive, reflecting the massive impact they are having in our region, huge congratulations to all the winners.
This year’s sponsors include Diamond sponsors Goldman Sachs and Bootcamp Media.
Supporting sponsors Birmingham City University, Culture Recruitment Group, NTT Data, SCC, B Events Media, Find Me a Solicitor, Hollywood Monster, Luvv Stay, 1 Eleven Developments and Elonex.
2022 saw The Luca Foundation chosen as its beneficiary, raising £3,500 on the night for the charity.
The winners on the night were:
Academic Award: Reham Badawy – University of Birmingham
Apprentice Award: Parris Small – Jaguar Land Rover
Best Use Of Tech In A Public/Private Sector Project Award: Qurat Ulain – West Midlands Fire Service
Innovator Award – Dongli Li – GaitQ
Project Delivery Lead Award – Prof Nicola Wilkin – University of Birmingham
Rising Star Award – Caroline Brown – Goldman Sachs
Tech Professional Award – Sarah Dowzell – Natural HR
Start-Up Founder Award – Frankie Lewns – Bloomwise Ltd
Tech Entrepreneur – Paula Bedborough – Secure Socialising
Tech For Good Award – Natalie Scarlett – Black Heritage Support Service
Shining Star Award – Bal Lola – Repl Group
Special Recognition – Debbie Assinder
Also, thanks to our photographers on the night Mr Ladd Photography and Jas Sansi Photography – photos from the evening can be found here.
