hey, hello, hi!
This weeks #WISW/#WomeninSTEMWednesday is the lovely Hannah who works within the technology and innovation industry.
Hello everyone – I’m Hannah, I’m from Dorset and I moved to Cardiff in February 2019. I’m an Events Coordinator at a technology and innovation company. I produce and facilitate events, collaborating with stakeholders and utilising opportunities to tell people about what we do. I work with fantastic engineers who are developing next generation technology to benefit our future society – everything from clean energy and better healthcare diagnosis to autonomous vehicles.
What were you interested in at school, and why?
My background isn’t in STEM subjects – my degree is in English Literature. However, this is not a prohibitive factor for working in marketing in a STEM organisation. I enjoy the challenge of working with our engineers to develop technical copy into marketing copy for events. I also enjoy working with science communicators at children’s festivals – it’s fascinating to watch them engage young minds.
Do you think outside interests/hobbies play an important role in encouraging more girls into STEM?
Yes – absolutely. From a young age experience is gendered. For example, boys are steered towards cars and girls towards dolls. Any toy should be openly available to all. When it comes to marketing and advertising, boys and girls should be on packaging playing with toys together – that’s collaboration in real life – men and women working together to progress projects.
If a girl sees someone who looks like her building a circuit or playing with a toy car, she’s more likely to identify with it and consider it a possibility, an option.
What pathway did you take to get into your job?
An unexpected one! My sister’s dance company took a piece to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2017. The conversation went: ‘if you’re going to the Fringe, I’m coming too!’
I was their Marketing and Production Assistant for six weeks – sourcing props and creating content to promote their performance in the Fringe’s competitive environment. This experience led me to become an Events Marketing Assistant for a marketing agency in the financial sector – part of my role involved running an awards programme. When I moved to Cardiff, this experience enabled me to become the Events Coordinator for my current company.
What’s your favourite thing about your job and why?
One area I love about my job is the work my company is doing to engage students at different stages of their education in STEM subjects – we run STEM events to highlight different routes into tech and we’ve been able to collaborate with some brilliant organisations on this initiative. In the UK, 1.8 million engineers are needed by 2024. We want to help close this skills gap, so the activities we run aim to encourage our audience to consider STEM careers in the future.
We are working to encourage more women to pursue STEM roles. In March we produced a webinar in celebration of International Women’s Day, under this year’s theme #ChooseToChallenge. We invited female STEM leaders to discuss how they got into STEM, definitive experiences in their careers and advice they’d give to women considering STEM – this is one event I’m particularly proud of.
What do you find most challenging about your job and why?
In the year of the pandemic, I’d say the most challenging thing has been the whole events industry being turned on its head, adapting to digital events (and relying on WiFi!), while working to make the online experience as engaging and as valuable as in-person events.
What does your day-to-day life look like while at work?
I’m lucky that every day is different depending on what stage we’re at with an event. My job relies on collaboration, whether it’s with our wider team, letting different areas of the business know what support we require to deliver the event successfully, or updating an external team who we’re collaborating with.
One day can be focused on research, attendee logistics, sourcing collateral and creating marketing communications. The next can be discussing event content ideas and how best to deliver. Hopefully, the event day goes smoothly, because I’ve briefed the team involved and any last-minute hiccups have been resolved!
If you could change one thing about your job, what would it be?
To run STEM, and Diversity and Inclusion events celebrating women in STEM more regularly – this is something we’re working towards. The more we advocate gender equality, with men welcoming, including and supporting women and women supporting each other, the more accessible STEM careers will feel to everyone.
Have you ever felt your gender has influenced the opportunities you’ve been offered and/or experienced so far?
I know I’m in a privileged position to be able to say no to this question – when pursuing job opportunities, I’ve not knowingly been pre-judged or discriminated against because I’m a woman.
However, scratch the surface and most women have stories about male behaviour or comments at work that have been let slide, due to the patriarchy making us believe it’s normal and therefore acceptable when it’s not. But to counteract that, some of the women I’ve worked with so far, are the women I admire the most – incredibly strong, hard-working and talented women, who speak their minds and who have taught me so much.
What advice would you give to young girls who are interested in pursuing a STEM career?
Resilience is key – you’re going to have setbacks, but you can and will overcome them. I always tell myself ‘the only way is through’, because I know that whatever I’m facing, the experience will make me more resilient.
In a male-dominated industry, you have to back yourself. Easier said than done, I know. I saw a quote on Instagram recently, I think it was from Elizabeth Day (Author, Journalist and ‘How to Fail’ Podcaster), that said ‘if you don’t see yourself as valuable, no one else will’ and it’s so true.
Seek out your community – build your network and take every opportunity you can. You’ll find kindred spirits, supportive friends and colleagues who will challenge you. And if things don’t go how you first thought, they’ll be there to help you keep moving forward.
Ahhh Hannah, your passion for getting people involved in STEM is SO REFRESHING to hear !! I’ve absolutely loved reading your answers and honestly it’s given me so much more motivation to get creating and get inspiring young girls even more !!
You are proof that your degree doesn’t define you and opportunities pop up in the craziest of places!! I love that you touched on having a strong support network – it’s so important to have people you can rely on when things get tough.
If I’m ever feeling mad or let down by the state of STEM and the patriarchy these answers are going to be my first port of call to get my head back in the game!
Thank you so much Hannah!
All my love, Meg x
Girls Who STEM 