One question I’m always asked during a Finovate networking session is, “Why don’t you put more women on stage?” My answer: we don’t dictate the gender of the company’s presenter. We leave that decision up to the company.
This post is to celebrate the fintech industry’s growth of female inclusion. At the first Finovate conference in 2007, there were zero women on stage. Last month, at FinovateEurope 2016, 20% of the companies featured a woman on stage (party on!). Here’s a look at the ladies of FinovateEurope 2016:
AdviceRobo’s Rosali Steenkamer (CCO)
BankersLab’s Michelle Katics (Co-Founder & CEO)
CREALOGIX’s Geraldine Critchley (Head of Digital Marketing)
ebankIT’s Diana Winstanley (Bus. Dev.)
Envestnet’s Molly Pandya (SVP, Product Management)
Ethoca’s Helene Ladjadj (Senior Manager, Issuer Relations, EMEA)
EyeVerify’s Tinna Hung (Director of Marketing)
IT Sector’s Inês Domingues (Market Manager)
Livian Technologies’s Raquel Oliveira (Head of Product)
myInvenio’s Modesta Jonauskyte (Sales & Marketing Assistant)
Outshared’s Irene van den Brink (Director)
SBDA Group’s Anna Laskovaya (Project Manager)
Spiff’s Kristin Moller (CMO)
While not all of these women are CEOs of their company, each plays a role in removing women from the “endangered species list” of fintech.
We still have a long way to go, but be encouraged by the movement that has already taken place and the global initiatives that have sparked growth. The FemTech Leaders MeetUp, organized by Ghela Boskovich and Michelle Moffatt, has held three successful events this year (I attended the London meetup last month, and the attendance was impressive!).
If you’re interested in attending a FemTech Leaders event (men are also invited to attend), check out the upcoming meetup in Sydney or RSVP for the meetup in New York after the first day of FinDEVr New York on March 29. It’s less than a 10 minute walk from the venue.
This post wouldn’t be complete without a shoutout to the ladies of Finovate & FinDEVr; the women who help make our events happen (Editor’s note: And of course, Julie Schicktanz, the author of this post):
- Leah Baldwin
- Dom Marczak
- Emily Olyarchuk
- Erika Sanchez
- Kate Schultz
- Kate Stolte
- Heather Stowell
- Paula Wrzecionowska
Be sure to check out our celebration of International Women’s Day on the FinDEVr blog.
The post International Women’s Day: Celebrating Females in Fintech appeared first on Finovate.