Most Influential Women in UK Tech: The 2019 longlist

Each year, Computer Weekly puts together a list of the 50 Most Influential Women in UK Technology, and when we ask the technology sector to put forward nominations, the list of names grows longer every year.

Since its launch in 2012, the final list has also grown, originally featuring only 25 of the tech industry’s most influential women, but now double that size to allow as many women as possible to be featured.

In 2017, the number of nominations exceeded 160, prompting Computer Weekly to publish a longlist of nominations for the first time.

This number has since grown further, with more than 200 names put forward in 2018, and this year 360 women who have made a significant contribution both to the women in tech movement and the technology sector overall.

Publishing the longlist each year is part of Computer Weekly’s commitment to showcasing the amazing female technology talent that exists throughout the UK.

We seek to ensure that the range of nominations for the 50 Most Influential Women in UK Technology is as diverse and inclusive as possible, regardless of age, disability, race, religion or sexual orientation, including trans women and those who identify as non-binary.

We will also soon publish our expert judges’ decision on which of these 50 names have been chosen for the shortlist, which will go forward to a reader vote to help decide the winner of this year’s Most Influential Woman in UK Technology accolade – but we also wanted to reveal all of the nominees who were considered. Congratulations to all.

The 2019 Most Influential Women in UK Technology longlist (in alphabetical order):

• Abi Mohamed, co-founder and tech director, Community Growth Venture
• Abbie Morris, CEO and co-founder, Compare Ethics
• Abigail Rappaport, global business leader, Workplace by Facebook
• Agnes Gradzewicz, co-founder and CMO, Smarty Software
• Aimee Van Wynsberghe, robot ethicist, Tu Delft
• Alex Depledge, founder and CEO, Resi
• Alex Mahon, CEO, Channel 4
• Alexa Greaves, CEO, AAG IT Services
• Alexa Marenghi, global diversity and business programme manager, Microsoft; founder of Codess
• Alexandra Deschamps Sonsino, consultant, Designswarm; founder, The Good Night Lamp
• Alexandra Gillon-Livesey, strategy associate, JP Morgan
• Alexandra Margarint, junior front-end developer, Vodafone UK
• Alice Bentinck, co-founder, Entrepreneur First
• Alison Vincent, fellow, Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET); technical adviser, Cybertonica; BCS fellow
• Alysia Silberg, general partner, Street Global Venture Capital
• Amelia Heathman, technology reporter, Evening Standard
• Ana Perez, senior director and chair of Oracle Women in Leadership, Oracle
• Angela Hood, founder and CEO, ThisWay Global
• Angela Morrison, IT and supply chain director, Debenhams
• Angela Yu, NHS doctor; founder and managing director, London App Brewery
• Angelika Johansson, full stack developer, MoneySupermarket Group
• Ania Kubow, co-founder, Whistle & Bango
• Anna Barsby, chief technology director, Morrisons
• Anna Holland-Smith, internal developer advocate, Automattic; co-founder, Women Who Keynote
• Anne Boden, CEO, Starling Bank
• Anne Currie, chief strategist, Container Solutions
• Anne Marie Neatham, COO, Ocado Technology
• Anne Rose, associate and co-head of blockchain group, Mishcon de Reya
• Anne Stokes, CEO, Streamwire Group
• Anne-Marie Imafidon, CEO, Stemettes
• Annika Small, co-founder and director, CAST (Centre for Acceleration of Social Technology)
• Ariane Gadd, lead DevOps engineer, KPMG
• Athene Donald, professor of experimental physics, University of Cambridge and master of Churchill College
• Bea Karol Burks, co-director of explorations, Nesta
• Beatrice Butsana-Sita, NED, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust; companion, Chartered Management Institute
• Beckie Taylor, co-founder, Tech Returners
• Becks Armstrong, founder and CEO, Clarity
• Belinda Parmar, CEO, The Empathy Business
• Bethany Koby, CEO and co-founder, Technology Will Save Us
• Bindi Karia, founder and CEO, Bindi Ventures; digital leader of Europe, World Economic Forum
• Cait O’Riordan, chief product and information officer, Financial Times
• Camille Baker, founder, e-stitches; reader, interface and interaction, School of Communication Design; principal investigator, University for the Creative Arts
• Carina Namih, investment partner, Episode 1
• Carmina Lees, managing director, Financial Services Technology Consulting Lead, Accenture
• Caroline Carruthers, co-author, The Chief Digital Officer’s Playbook; director, Carruthers and Jackson
• Caroline Graham, head of legal business change delivery, Barclays
• Caroline Hargrove, CTO, Babylon Health
• Caroline Hyde, technology presenter, Bloomberg
• Caroline Plumb, founder and CEO, Fluidly
• Carrie Anne Philbin, director of educator support, Raspberry Pi Foundation
• Casey Calista, account director and head of tech and digital, Lodestone
• Cath Goulding, chief information security officer, Nominet
• Catherine Breslin, director, solutions architect, Cobalt Speech & Language
• Catherine Knivett, interim COO, Corsham Institute
• Cathy McCabe, CEO, Proximity Insight
• Charlotte Finn, vice-president global strategic relations, Salesforce.org
• Charlotte Murray, chief operating officer and director of social inclusion, Good Things Foundation; director of care, health and wellbeing, South Yorkshire Housing Association
• Charlotte Robertson, MD and co-founder, Digital Awareness UK
• Charlotte Zhao, director, codebar; founder, Quirkey
• Cheryl Stevens, deputy director identity and trust, DWP
• Christina Scott, chief technology officer, News UK; deputy CTO, News Corp
• Christine Ashton, CEO, Cogventive; independent non-executive director, Bacs Payment Schemes
• Christine Hodgson, chair, Capgemini UK
• Cindy Rose, CEO, Microsoft UK
• Claire Agutter, director, Scopism; director and lead tutor, IT Training Zone
• Claire Burn, software engineer, Rapid7; director, Women Who Code Belfast
• Claire Cockerton, former CEO, Plexal; managing director, Cockerton and Co Advisory
• Claire Davenport, former CEO, Hello Fresh UK; adviser
• Claire Edmunds, founder and CEO, Clarify
• Claire Morris, head of design, Founders Factory
• Claire Novorol, co-founder and chief medical officer, Ada Health
• Claire Vyvyan, senior vice-president, Dell Technologies
• Clare Gilmartin, CEO, Trainline
• Clare Joy, senior strategy and expansion manager, Onfido
• Clare Sutcliffe, co-founder, Code Club; co-founder, She Wins; chair of trustees, Beam
• Cristina Hickman, founder, IVF Professionals; scientific representative, British Fertility Society; chief scientific officer, Apricity
• Cynthia Davis, CEO and founder, BAME Recruitment; chair of the board of directors, Pop Up Projects
• Daljit Bamford, chief customer officer, Salesforce
• Daniela Menzky, co-founder and COO, CyNation
• Daryn Edgar, vice-president strategic initiatives, SAP
• Davina Sirisena, founder and CEO, Difference Digital
• Debbie Forster, CEO, Tech Talent Charter
• Debbie Garside, CEO, GeoLang
• Debbie Green, vice president country leader applications, Oracle UKI
• Debbie Wosskow, co-founder, AllBright; former CEO, Love Home Swap
• Deborah Vickers, channel director, MoneyGuru.com
• Devika Wood, founder, Vida Care
• Devon Edwards Joseph, data engineer, Lloyds Banking Group
• Diana Kennedy, vice-president strategy, architecture and planning, BP
• Dimple Dalby, senior DevOps engineer, Compare the Market
• Doniya Soni, programme strategy and operations manager, WhiteHat
• Edel Creely, group managing director, Trilogy Technologies
• Edel McGrath, interim CTO, Sainsbury’s Bank
• Edwina Dunn, CEO, Starcount
• Eileen Burbidge, chair, Tech Nation; partner, Passion Capital; fintech envoy, HM Treasury
• Elaine Warburton, co-founder and CEO, QuantuMDx
• Elena Sinel, founder, Acorn Associates and Teens in AI
• Eli Schutze Ramirez, web engineer, Monzo
• Eliana Vanekova, head of business development and e-learning, Global Digital Week
• Elin Ng, co-founder, Salve Technologies
• Elisabetta Zaccaria, chairman of the board, Secure Chorus
• Elizabeth Denham, information commissioner
• Elizabeth Eastaugh, senior director, product – eCP, enterprise data platform services, Expedia
• Elizabeth Varley, co-founder and CEO, TechHub
• Elizabeth Vega, group CEO, Informed Solutions
• Ella Schofield, software developer, Bloom & Wild
• Elly Zhang, director of partnerships, Heliocor
• Elspeth Finch, CEO and founder, IAND
• Emily Brooke, founder and CEO, beryl.cc (Blaze)
• Emily Forbes, founder, Seenit
• Emma Cerrone, executive director, agile and digital fitness lead, global digital accelerator, MSD; fellow, Forward Institute
• Emma Fryer, associate director, TechUK
• Emma Lacy, UKI ERPM business operations leader, Oracle
• Emma McGuigan, group technology officer, communications, media & technology, Accenture
• Emma Mulqueeny, consultant and adviser
• Emma Robertson, co-founder, Digital Awareness UK
• Emma Sinclair, co-founder, Enterprise Alumni
• Emma Wright, partner, Kemp Little; founder and director, Institute of AI
• Emma Woodman, UKI ServiceNow practice lead, Accenture
• Estelle Johannes, director, member communities UK, CompTIA
• Fanny Corlosquet, DevOps engineer, The Economist Newspaper
• Farah Kanji, head of talent, Founders Factory
• Farida Gibbs, chief executive, Gibbs Hybrid
• Fatimat Gbajabiamila, Javascript developer, StoryShare
• Faye Holland, chair, Cambridge Ahead; board member, Cambridge Wireless; co-founder, Impact Women’s Network; founder and director, Cofinitive
• Fiona Hudson Kelly, chief executive officer at Smart Apprentices
• Flora Tasse, co-founder, Selerio; head of CV/AI research, Streem
• Francesca Carlesi, co-founder and CEO, Molo Finance
• Funmi Adewodu, IoS engineer, Yoyo Wallet
• Gabi Wagenhofer, CIO, Castrol BP
• Gail Jones, managing director, UKFast
• Gayna Hart, founder and managing director, Quicksilva
• Gem Young, founder, @womenoffintech
• Gemma Milne, co-founder, Science: Disrupt; tech and science journalist
• Gemma Moore, founder and director, Cyberis
• Ghislaine Boddington, co-founder and director, Women Shift Digital
• Grace Chang, software development engineer – tech lead, GoCardless
• Grace Stuart, business development analyst, Revolut
• Hadley Beeman, acting CTO, NHSX
• Harriet Green, CEO and chairman of Asia Pacific, IBM
• Hayaatun Sillem, CEO, Royal Academy of Engineering
• Hayley Sudbury, co-founder and CEO, Werkin
• Hazel Moore, chairman and co-founder, FirstCapital
• Heather Black, founder and MD, economic change, Salesforce Supermums
• Heather Delaney, founder and MD, Gallium Ventures
• Heather Picov, CEO, Apps for Good
• Heather Savory, co-chair, UN global working group on big data for official statistics, United Nations
• Helen Fraser, software developer, Morgan Stanley
• Helen Kelisky, vice-president, Marketing Cloud, Salesforce, EMEA
• Helen Lamb, vice-president, strategic pursuits unit, global delivery group, Fujitsu
• Helen Mayhew, COO Europe, QuantumBlack
• Helen Meek, agile coach and consultant, RippleRock
• Helen Milner, chief executive, Good Things Foundation
• Helen Mitchell, director and co-founder, Blukudu
• Helen Toogood, owner, Hot Chilli Consulting
• Helen Wollaston, CEO, WISE
• Helene Panzarino, managing director, Rainmaking Colab
• Hilary Leevers, CEO, EngineeringUK
• Holly Brockwell, CEO, Gadgette
• Inês Teles Correia, co-founder, DWYL; director, Founders & Coders
• Ingrid Lunden, news editor and writer, TechCrunch
• Iris Lapinski, founder and CEO, Apps for Good
• Irra Ariella Khi, CEO and founder, VChain Technology
• Isabel Fox, general partner and co-founder, Luminous Ventures
• Isabel Lewis, technology associate, Publicis Sapient
• Jacky Wright, chief digital and information officer, HMRC
• Jacquelyn Guderley, founder, Salome Literature
• Jacqui Taylor, CEO and founder, Flying Binary
• Jane Silber, executive chair, Diffblue
• Janet Coyle, director trade and growth, London & Partners
• Jaycee Cheong, software development/engineering manager, Immersive Labs
• Jeni Tennison, CEO, Open Data Institute
• Jennifer Arcuri, founder, InnoTech Network and Hacker House
• Jennifer Opal, junior software engineer, BT Group
• Jennifer Rigby, chief operating officer, Lloyd’s of London
• Jenny Griffiths, founder and CEO, Snap Tech
• Jess Wade, postdoctoral research associate, Imperial College London
• Jessica Falk, software engineer, Improbable
• Jessica Sapick, DeepMind marketer, Google
• Jo Eckersley, CEO and founder, Bubbl
• Jo Graham, CIO, Boohoo
• Jo Twist, CEO, UKIE
• Joan Lei, data scientist, Revolut
• Joanna Bryson, associate professor, Department of Computing, University of Bath
• Joanna Davinson, chief digital, data and technology officer, Home Office
• Joanne Smith, founder and CEO, Recordsure
• Joanne Hannaford, head of EMEA technology and global head of quality assurance engineering, Goldman Sachs
• Joyeeta Das, CEO and founder, Gyana
• Jude Ower, founder and CEO, Playmob
• Julie Bretland, CEO, owner and founder, Our Mobile Health
• Julie Watling, MD, Communications Solutions UK
• Julie Woods-Moss, chair of the board of directors, Dunhumby; senior adviser, McKinsey & Company
• Juliet Bauer, VP product, KRY
• June Angelides, founder, Mums in Technology; investor, Samos Investments; founding ambassador, Fifty Fifty Pledge
• Justine Roberts, founder and CEO, Mumsnet and Gransnet
• Kadine James, creative tech lead, Hobs 3D; founder, The Immersive Kind Collective; UK chair, Women In 3D Printing
• Karen McCormick, chief investment officer, Beringea
• Karen Price, CEO, The Tech Partnership
• Karen Young, former director, MDS Technologies
• Karimah Campbell, forensic and integrity services assistant director, EY’s Forensic & Integrity Services
• Kate Rosenshine, head of data and AI cloud solution architecture, Microsoft
• Kate Russell, tech journalist, gamer, author and BBC Click presenter
• Kathryn Parsons, founder and co-CEO, Decoded
• Katie Koschland, engineer, The Financial Times
• Kavita Kalaichelvan, software engineer, Appear Here
• Kayla Shapiro, site reliability engineer, BBC
• Kerensa Jennings, CEO, The Duke of York Inspiring Digital Enterprise Award
• Kim Nilsson, co-founder and CEO, Pivigo
• Kiran Bhagotra, CEO and founder, ProtectBox
• Kiran Uppal, projects director, UnrulyEQ, Unruly
• Kirsten Connell, MD, CyLon
• Kirstin Duffield, CEO, Morning Data
• Kit Collingwood, deputy director, data: Universal Credit, DWP Digital
• Kriti Sharma, founder, AI for Good
• Lamorna Short, chief of staff, Paddle
• Lara Sampson, product owner for Universal Credit and head of product, DWP
• Laura Bailey, chair, Qadre
• Laura Weston, Java developer, Sky
• Leanne Bonner-Cooke, founder and chair, Evolve; founder and CEO, e-Bate
• Leeann Monk-Ozgul, co-founder and co-CEO, Elemental – The Social Prescribing Company
• Liane Katz, co-founder and CEO, MAMA.codes
• Liat Moss, freelance consultant; former STEAM director, Ji
• Lisa Donaldson, head of brand and design, Franks Pets; co-founder, Tech Education Network
• Lisa Hammond, CEO and co-founder, Centrix Software
• Lisa Jacobs, chief strategy officer, Funding Circle
• Liz Rice, technology evangelist, Aqua Security
• Liz Whitefield, director, Hippo Digital
• Lori Lee, lead software developer, Unmind
• Louise McCarthy, CFO/CXO, adviser, Arachnys
• Lucinda Carney, founder and CEO, Actus Software
• Lucy Ireland, MD, BCS Learning & Development
• Lyn Grobler, group CIO, Hyperion Insurance Group
• Lynn Collier, global program director – customer success, Hitachi Vantara
• Magdalena Kron, ‎head of Rise London fintech platform lead, Barclays; co-founder, Geek Girl Meetup UK
• Maggie Van’T Hoff, vice-president of IT transformation and value, Shell
• Mandy Chessell, distinguished engineer, IBM
• Margaret Ross, professor of software quality and a principal lecturer, Southampton Solent University
• Margot James, digital minister
• Maria McKavenagh, COO and chief innovation officer, Verv (Green Running)
• Marija Butkovic, founder and CEO, Women of Wearables
• Marily Nika, ML product manager, Google
• Marta Krupinska, head of Google for Startups UK, Google; founder, Astarte Ventures
• Martha Moniz, engineering team lead, Paddle
• Max Benson and Karen Gill, co-founders, Modern Muse (charity)
• Maxine Mackintosh, PhD student, UCL; co-founder, One HealthTech
• Meha Nelson, co-founder and CTO, Predina
• Melinda Nicci, founder and CEO, Baby2Body
• Melinda Roylett, head of Europe, Square
• Melissa Di Donato, former COO, SAP ERP Cloud
• Merve Taner, software engineer, Simply Business
• Michelle Senecal de Fonseca, area vice-president, Northern Europe, Citrix
• Misa Ogura, R&D software engineer, BBC R&D
• Mursal Hedayat, co-founder and CEO, Chatterbox
• Nadira Hussain, director of leadership development and research, Socitm
• Nancy Fechnay, co-founder, BedrockX
• Naomi Timperley, board memeber, Capital Pilot; co-founder, Tech North Advocates
• Natalie Gammon, non-executive director, Masthaven Bank; independent member of the audit committee, National Trust
• Natalie Massenet, co-founder and co-managing partner, Imaginary Ventures
• Natalie Smith, associate software developer, MoneySuperMarket
• Natasha Sayce-Zelem, head of technology – digital service, Sky
• Nathalie Christmann-Cooper, product engineer, Buyapowa
• Neeta Patel, CEO, New Entrepreneurs Foundation; CEO, Centre for Entrepreneurs
• Nicky Tozer, VP, EMEA, Oracle NetSuite
• Nicola Graham, head of ICT, Aberdeenshire Council
• Nicola Mendelsohn, VP EMEA, Facebook Europe
• Nicola Whiting, chief strategy officer, Titania
• Nicola Perrin, head of data for science and health, Wellcome Trust
• Nicole Eagan, CEO, Darktrace
• Nikki Kelly, SVP public sector and health, Atos
• Nina Tumanishvili, founder, HelloHub; founder CEO, TubeChat
• Noor Shaker, CEO, GTN
• Pamela Maynard, president, product and innovation, Avanade
• Pat Saini, head of immigration, Penningtons Manches Cooper LLP
• Paula Muldoon, JavaScript developer, Cambridge Cognition
• Payal Jain, chair, Women in Data UK; MD, JCURV; MD, DT1 Consulting
• Pearl Noble-Mallock, head of product and cyber security, BAE Systems
• Phoebe Chibuzo Hugh, founder and CEO, Brolly
• Phoebe Greig, software engineer, BBC; co-founder, Women Driven Development; London City co-director, Lesbians Who Tech
• Phoebe Thacker, senior manager, applied technology, Unilever
• Pip Jamieson, founder and CEO, The Dots
• Pippa Malmgren, author; co-founder, H Robotics
• Polly (Gowers) Barnfield, founder and CEO, Maybe
• Poppy Gustafsson, co-CEO, Darktrace
• Poppy Rainer, head of technology, Thrift+
• Pravina Ladva, chief technology and operations officer, Swiss Re
• Priya Guha, venture partner, Merian Ventures; chair of the board of trustees, Modern Muse; council member, Innovate UK
• Priya Lakhani, founder and CEO, Century Tech
• Rachel Coldicutt, CEO, Doteveryone
• Rachel Murphy, CEO, Difrent Group
• Rachel Neaman, non-executive board member, adviser, mentor
• Rachelle Mills, co-founder and CEO, KareInn
• Rav Bumbra, founder and CEO, Structur3dpeople; founder, Cajigo
• Rebecca George, lead public sector partner, Deloitte
• Rebecca Pope, head of data science and engineering, KPMG
• Regina Moran, enterprise director, Vodafone
• Reshma Sohoni, founding partner, Seedcamp
• Rioch Edwards-Brown, founder, So You Wanna Be In Tech?
• Roberta Lucca, co-founder, chief brand officer and board director, Bossa Studios; creative director and host, Beta Lucca YouTube Channel
• Ros Delderfield, customer experience manager, BP
• Rosie Sherry, founder, Ministry of Testing
• Roxane Heaton, deputy CTO, UK Hydrographic Office
• Rubi Kaur, solutions architect, Vodafone Group
• Sabrina Castiglione, chief financial officer, Tessian
• Safia Barikzai, associate professor, School of Engineering, London South Bank University
• Sam Keyes, vice-president digital and CRM, ConvaTec
• Sam Smith, head of IT strategy and architecture, LGSS; strategic IT lead for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Cambridgeshire County Council
• Samantha Horsman, infrastructure transformation manager, Wellcome Trust
• Samantha Payne, co-founder and COO, Open Bionics
• Sana Khareghani, deputy director head of office for AI, DCMS/BEIS
• Sandra Taylor, head of digital and ICT services, Dudley Council
• Sarah Armstrong-Smith, head of continuity and resilience, distinguished engineer and diversity champion, Fujitsu
• Sarah Atkinson, global director of corporate social responsibility, Micro Focus
• Sarah Burnett, executive vice-president and distinguished analyst, Everest Group; chair, BCS Women
• Sarah Flannigan, CIO, adviser
• Sarah Hunter, director of global public policy, X, the moonshot factory
• Sarah Luxford, director, Global Resourcing; co-founder, TLA Women in Tech
• Sarah Rench, advanced analytics, robotics and AI – senior leader, EY
• Sarah Shields, vice-president, Dell EMC Enterprise Channel, Europe
• Sarah Turner, CEO and co-founder, Angel Academe
• Sarah Wilkinson, CEO, NHS Digital
• Sarah Winmill, CIO, British Transport Police
• Sarah Young, software developer, Unruly
• Sarah-Beth Amos, PhD student, University of Oxford
• Shalini Khemka, founder and CEO, E2Exchange
• Sharmadean Reid, founder, Beautystack and WAH Nails
• Sharon Moore, CTO for public sector, IBM UK
• Sharon Russell, senior software engineer, comparethemarket.com
• Sheeza Shah, founder and CEO, UpEffect
• Sheila Flavell, COO, FDM Group
• Sheree Atcheson, global ambassador, Women Who Code; consulting inclusion lead, Deloitte UK
• Sheridan Ash, technology and investments director, women in technology leader UK, PwC
• Sherry Vaswani, group CEO, Xalient
• Shirine Khoury-Haq, non-executive director, Post Office
• Shirley Creed, liveryman and trustee, The Worshipful Company of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators; former global corporate secretary, Dell
• Sophie Deen, CEO, Bright Little Labs
• Sophie Koonin, web engineer, Monzo
• Sophie Newton, COO, Brainlabs
• Stephanie Itimi, senior adviser, equality and partnerships, Essex County Council
• Stephanie Phair, chief strategy officer, Farfetch
• Sue Daley, associate director of technology and innovation, TechUK
• Suki Fuller, founder, Miribure
• Susan Bowen, president and CEO, Cogeco Peer 1
• Susanne Chishti, CEO, Fintech Circle
• Tabitha Goldstaub, co-founder, CognitionX; chair, government’s AI Council
• Tania Boler, CEO and co-founder, Elvie
• Tamara Lohan, founder and COO, Mr & Mrs Smith
• Tamara Rajah, founder and CEO, Live Better With
• Tara Donnelly, interim chief digital officer (CDO), NHS England
• Taylor Semelsberger, founder, Miro Solutions UK
• Tina Götschi, vice principal – teaching and learning, Ada, National College for Digital Skills.
• Tina Howell, platform lead, AND Digital
• Tracy Westall, non-executive director, Department for Transport
• Trudy Norris-Grey, chair, WISE
• Tugce Bulut, CEO and founder, Streetbees
• Ursula Morgenstern, CEO, Atos Germany
• Vicki Young, founder and CEO, Nalla Design
• Vicky Brock, founder and CEO, Vistalworks
• Victoria Carr, PhD Student; found and director, Researc/hers Code, King’s College London and Researc/hers Code
• Victoria McCallum, technical business analyst (contractor), Ulster Bank; non-executive director, MACS Supporting Children and Young People
• Vinous Ali, head of policy, TechUK
• Wendy Tan White, vice-president, X – Alphabet’s Moonshot Factory; board trustee, Alan Turing Institute; member, Digital Economy Council
• Yemi Oluseun, project manager, Barclays
• Yessi Bello Perez, UK crypto correspondent, TNW
• Zoe Cunningham, managing director, Softwire

A panel of expert judges has used the following criteria to decide which of these women will be selected for the top 50:

• Influence: What authority or ability does the person have – either through her personal position or the role she holds – to personally influence the development of UK IT, or to influence others in positions of authority?
• Achievements: What has the person achieved in the past 12 months to help the development of UK IT?
• Profile: Is the person recognised as a role model for aspiring leaders? How widely is she acknowledged by her peers as an authority and influence on UK IT?
• Leadership: Does the person demonstrate the skills and experience necessary to be seen as a leader in the development of IT in the UK? Does she have a leadership role and does that help her to develop the role of IT in the UK?
• Potential: How likely is it that the person will have a significant impact on UK IT in the next 12 months? Will her authority and responsibility grow?
• Community: Has the person contributed to the women in technology community? To what extent has she used her influence to help other women progress in IT?

Computer Weekly will soon open the voting for the 50 women in this year’s shortlist to allow readers to vote on who they think should receive the accolade of Most Influential Woman in UK Technology 2019.

Previous winners, along with leaders considered to have made a lifetime contribution to helping women in technology, have been added to our Hall of Fame, and so do not appear on the annual nominations list.

The winner will be announced at Computer Weekly’s annual diversity in tech event, run in partnership with Mortimer Spinks and sponsored by the Wellcome Trust, on 25 September 2019.