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Everywoman’s 15th tech awards launches nominations

Clare McDonald
Clare McDonald
Business Editor

Women’s network Everywoman is launching nominations for its 15th Technology Awards, looking to showcase the UK’s leading and upcoming women in the technology sector.

In partnership with Bupa, the Everywoman 2025 Technology Awards is looking for nominations for women across science, technology, engineering and maths who both established and up-and-coming – with the awards showcasing women in roles from student and apprentice all the way up to c-suite.

Commenting on the importance of role models for encouraging others into the sector, Maxine Benson, co-founder of Everywoman, said: “The absence of visible female leaders in the tech industry is a critical issue. Our recent report, in collaboration with Bupa, identified imposter syndrome and a lack of visible role models as the top challenges and barriers for women in technology (39%). Interestingly, the scarcity of role models was cited as a challenge across the board, with entry-level women recognising this in equal measure to women who have made it to the C-suite.

“This lack of representation has a cascading effect and limits access to mentorship and guidance for aspiring women technologists. Role models serve not just as beacons of achievement, but also as tangible proof that success is attainable, providing the roadmap and encouragement necessary to navigate a field in which they are underrepresented.

“The Bupa everywoman in Technology Awards play a crucial role in celebrating and highlighting role models at all stages of their careers. This is essential for inspiring the next generation of women in technology and removing the barriers that hinder attracting and retaining female talent. Such efforts are vital to maintaining the resilience, innovation, pace, and diversity that the technology industry requires.”

According to research from BCS found women made up around 20% of technical roles in the UK in 2022, and this number hasn’t moved much over the last five years.

A lack of role models is one of the first reasons cited when the question of why girls don’t choose tech careers comes up, alongside a lack of understanding of what tech roles involve and the types of people who do them, both of which could be solved with more people from the industry being available to young people to explain and educate.

Up to this point, the Everywoman in Technology Awards has recognised over 500 women in the last 15 years, building a portfolio of accessible and relatable role models in the sector who those looking into tech careers can follow and aspire to be and learn from.

This year’s categories are as follows:

  • The AI Champion Award – sponsored by ARM
  • The Apprentice Award – sponsored by SSE
  • The CIO/CTO Award – sponsored by Accenture
  • The Cyber Security Award – sponsored by BAE
  • The Digital Star Award
  • The Digital Transformation Leader Award
  • The Entrepreneur Award – sponsored by Howden
  • The Innovator Award – sponsored by American Express
  • The Leader Award – sponsored by HSBC
  • The Male Agent of Change Award – sponsored by Centrica
  • The One to Watch Award
  • The Rising Star Award
  • The Software Engineer Award
  • The Team Leader Award
  • The Tech for Good Award – sponsored by RS Group

Nominations for the Everywoman in Tech Awards are open until 7 October 2024.