We are thrilled to announce the finalists for the 5th Midlands Women in Tech Awards 2024! This year, we received an overwhelming number of phenomenal nominations, making it a difficult task to narrow down the finalists. Each nomination showcased the incredible talent, innovation, and dedication of women who are shaping the tech industry in the Midlands.
The Midlands Women in Tech Awards are more than just an event—they are a powerful movement towards the inclusion and progression of women in the tech sector. With the ceremony set to take place on 4th October 2024 at the prestigious Birmingham Eastside Rooms, this year’s awards promise to be a celebration of excellence, diversity, and empowerment.
We are proud to have headline sponsors Methods – An Alten Company, along with the steadfast support of Birmingham City University, NTT Data, SCC, and others soon to be announced. Their continued commitment to these awards from the very beginning has been instrumental in making this event possible.
The Midlands Women in Tech Awards are dedicated to applauding the accomplishments of women who are carving a path in the tech industry, challenging perceptions, and spotlighting the pioneering women shaping the tech realm. By doing so, we strive to inspire more women to enter the field and realise their potential in dynamic, innovative, and fulfilling tech careers.
In a landscape where only 17% of the UK’s technology professionals are female, and a mere 3% of young women consider technology as their first career choice, the importance of celebrating and showcasing women in tech cannot be overstated. These awards play a vital role in inspiring future generations of women to consider technology as a viable and rewarding career path.
Organised and run by B Events, known for delivering some of the region’s most respected awards ceremonies like the Birmingham Awards and Midlands Food, Drink & Hospitality Awards, this event aims to empower, inspire, and amplify the voices of women in tech.
The 2024 Midlands Women in Tech Awards will recognise outstanding women across 13 categories, celebrating achievements in areas such as Tech for Good, Best Use of Tech in the Private Sector, Start-up Founder, and Tech Entrepreneur. These categories reflect the diverse roles and significant contributions women are making across the tech landscape.
The announcement of our finalists brings with it excitement and anticipation within the tech community. These finalists represent the incredible achievements of women in this sector and serve as an inspiration for future generations to pursue careers in tech. The awards ceremony on 4th October 2024 will be a night to remember—a celebration of talent, innovation, and empowerment in the ever-evolving world of technology.
We encourage everyone to participate in the voting process and support these incredible women. Voting is now open, so make sure to cast your votes for your favourites!
See the full list of finalists below:
Start-Up Founder Award
– Clare Downes – Virtual Decisions
– Elena Boos – Visionary Farms
– Eman Al-Hillawi – Entec Si
– Giovannie Jean-Louis – PROBr
– Olivia Davson – Cubbi
Apprentice Award
– Hazel-Freya Thomas – The DM Lab
– Maria Rafique – PwC
– Stacey Watson – Ove Arup & Partners
Rising Star Award
– Alokparna Dutta – Goldman Sachs
– Amulya Seshachala – Delta Financial Systems Ltd
– Annam Khan – Accenture
– Clare Maguire – AIFA
– Diana Gicoveanu – SCC
– Helen Dickens – Methods
– Katie Overton – Jaguar Land Rover
– Michelle Loveland – ACUTEC Limited
– Olivia Mackenzie – Kagool
– Tijana Bogicevic – Jaguar Land Rover
Academic Award
– Anitha Chinnaswamy – Aston University – Cyber Security Innovation Centre
– Nicola Gittins – UoB Elevate Entrepreneurial Programme
– Patricia Perez Esteban – University of Birmingham – The Healthcare Technologies Institute
– Vladlena Benson – Cybersecurity Innovation (CSI) Research Centre Aston University
Tech For Good Award
– Alina Sovenko – Solutions for People
– Amanda Mandiki – BT Group
– Daljinder Mattu – Department for Science, Innovation and Technology
– Emily Gotch – Microsoft
– Helen Frances – Oracle NetSuite
– Joanna Woodward – Women in Tech Birmingham
– Kloe Avon – Redihomes
– Louise Latter – BOM (Birmingham Open Media)
– Pamela Aculey – Just Like Me & MIXD Reality
– Rebecca Hayward – JLR
Innovator Award
– AJ Alromaithi – University of Birmingham
– Fiona Erskine – SCC
– Karen Newman – BOM (Birmingham Open Media)
– Prof. Hanifa Shah – Birmingham City University
– Rose Lord – Empro Business Group Ltd
Project Delivery Lead Award
– Aine Morgan – SCC
– Diana Doros – SCC
– Harriet Brown – PwC
– Helen Dickens – Methods
– Nukey Proctor – Methods
– Riana Nisar – HM Courts and Tribunals Service
– Sunitha Debbadi – Kagool
Shining Star Award
– Amy Glover – Delta Financial Systems Limited
– Jane Dixon – Visavvi and SCC business
– Lauren Tombs – Methods
– Nukey Proctor – Methods
– Pippa Ansell Hope – Goldman Sachs
– Rebecca Hitch – Jaguar Land Rover
– Roohi Bhatnagar – University of Surrey
– Shanu Jain – Goldman Sachs
Tech Professional (Non-Coding) Award
– Daljinder Mattu – Department for Science, innovation and Technology
– Dominika Kycia – Kagool Ltd
– Dominika Tasarz-Sochacka – Payara Services Ltd
– Geraldine Trufil – Split Second Research (SSR)
– Harriet Brown – PwC
– Jane Holmes – NTT Data
– Mikayla Sinead – BOM (Birmingham Open Media)
– Natasha Moss – Delta Financial Systems Limited
– Srishti Malik – PwC
– Tara Lawrence – B13 AI
Tech Entrepreneur Award
– Batool Zaidi – Excelify Solutions
– Georgina Bowman – MySports Community Ltd
– Geraldine Trufil – Split Second Research (SSR)
– Karen Newman – BOM (Birmingham Open Media)
Best Use of Tech In a Public Sector Project Award
– CSI – Aston University Cyber Security Innovation Centre
– Dr Nihal Abosaif – Heartlands Hospital NHS Trust, UHB
– Natasha Moss – Delta Financial Systems
– Becki Floyd
Best Use of Tech In a Private Sector Project Award
– Emma Armstrong – Empro Business Group Ltd
– Leena Parmar – Jaguar Land Rover
– Louise Latter – BOM (Birmingham Open Media)
– Sonia Rani – PwC
Congratulations to all the finalists, and we look forward to celebrating your achievements on 4th October 2024. Let’s continue to empower, inspire, and amplify the voices of women in tech!
Prof Hanifa Shah is Executive Dean of the Faculty of Computing, Engineering & the Built Environment at Birmingham City University (BCU). She studied Computer Science as an undergraduate, has a PhD from Aston and a Masters from Cambridge. She has held lectureship, readership, professorship and executive leadership positions in Computing and Engineering departments at Aston, Staffordshire and BCU, and a Visiting Professorship at Manchester University. She also has several years’ experience in the industry including BT, Cadbury Schweppes and Britvic. Her wide-ranging experience of higher education spans teaching, research, enterprise and industry engagement combined with leading academic strategy development and organisational change. She has launched and driven a number of innovative initiatives over her career. Her work has helped to shape national and international thinking on work-based learning and university qualifications for IT Professionals through her work on transformational development programmes for large corporations and public sector organizations. Her commitment to the success of students and staff has led to her developing a cohesive approach to research, industry partnership, and teaching increasingly underpinned by a digital strategy. This provides a strong basis for an exciting student experience and employability alongside opportunities for staff to remain at the ‘cutting-edge’ of developments in fast-changing technical subjects. As Head Judge, she will bring an all-round view from both an Education and Industry perspective.
Prof Sally Eaves is an award-winning international keynote speaker, author and influencer with globally leading rankings across all advanced technology disciplines, digital transformation, future of work and social innovation aligned to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals. She has recently been ranked 8th in the World in Blockchain impact and is continually ranked in the top 10 for digital disruption and across frontier technology subjects by leading bodies such as Onalytica.
Hillary Smyth-Allen is the Executive Lead at SuperTech, whose purpose is to spotlight the strength of the West Midlands Tech Sector. With a focus on FinTech, their purpose is to promote professionals and companies in this space to ensure the UK remains a strong player in global fintech. As a Judge Hillary brings experience as a former Director of AECOM as well as having held influential positions at GBSLEP and WMCA Skills Commission.
Gurjit has spent 26 years with Goldman Sachs, having started off in Trading he has worked in a number of different areas of the organisation in this time. He has held a range of positions including VP and Managing Director of Business Units. Gurjit has a passion for innovation and is an ambassador for diversity and inclusion.
Tracy is returning to Judge this year’s awards and will also be delivering the Key Note at the Awards Dinner. Computer Weekly recently named her amongst ‘The Most Influential Women in UK Tech”. Tracy Westall is currently the Chairperson at Curium Solutions as well as sitting on a number of boards including DfT and WM5G Limited. Over several decades she has repeatedly demonstrated an ability to lead and inspire others in the tech sector in delivering innovative projects. As the former Director of Corporate Services at SCC, she was responsible for the Strategy and Governance of a £350m portfolio including Software & Cloud Services and was responsible for more than 100 members of staff.
Deborah Is the CEO and Founder of Forensic Pathways, a multi award winning organisation that supplies products/software and consultancy for the criminal and business intelligence market. As well as being the CEO, she is also the recipient of multiple awards including the British Female Inventor of the year Award in recognition of her skills as an innovator. Deborah is a mentor and speaker supporting Entrepreneurship and Start-Ups and is currently a VP at the Greater Birmingham Chamber of Commerce.
Pam Waddell OBE leads the Innovation Alliance for West Midlands partnership, whose goal is to stimulate science and technology-based innovation across the West Midlands. Pam has a wealth of experience combining science and innovation, both conceptually and practically in both the private and public sectors.
