ISSN 2582-127X
MAY 2021
VOLUME 5
T H E
Most Impactful
Women in Technology 2021
Feminist Internet: A Reality Check
Women are Essential to the Development of AI and Data Science
NEDRA Barr CO-FOUNDER, AND CEO
SPYDER
EDITORIAL
W
omen are often labeled as creators. Rightfully they are, but their creations are often
confined to the social constraints. Nearly 600 women had served in the American civil war
but they still fail to find a place in the pages of history.
When talking or releasing discourses on women empowerment, one should not oversee the embellishments brought in the tech industry ever since it has started welcoming women and acknowledging their efforts. Women leaders in the tech industry are often said to be able to nurture more diversity and creativity within the work environment. Women founders all across the world have made tremendous strides, taking their company to the unicorn status. While we should not undermine their success, we should recognize that the tech sector is overall not so easy for women entrepreneurs and businesswomen. Nonetheless, the new age women entrepreneurs are however setting out to change this flawed and exclusive notion of women's empowerment. The tech industry is widely known to be exclusive to women. It is largely considered to be a boys club, and increasingly an old man's club with more and more elderly CEOs of big giants taking over small start-ups throughout the industry. As of today, only 19% of the tech workforce across the world is constituted by women. This is further exaggerated by the nature of gross racism within the sector, as only 3% of the total workforce is Hispanic women and only 5% are Asian women. In terms of pay, about 60% of women in 2019 believed that there was a gender pay gap. One explanation given about this is that very few female STEM graduates tend to enter the tech industry, as they are more likely to go into academia or research. Further, the women who enter tech industry take up more junior roles. But it is probably worth inquiring that why women feel such a lack of enthusiasm? There are abundant pieces on how women are often exposed to unsafe, risky environments in the society they function within. Women working in high-tech companies who often contribute to revolutionizing the companies are not given enough credits or the honor they deserve. In the industry, this means sexual abuse, or perpetually lowering the glass ceiling. About 77% of the top executives within the industry are males. And this perceived gender imbalance is reflected across all scales and sizes of tech companies. In fact, even 97.3% of the funding going to start-ups goes to the ones led by men. Socially vulnerable groups like LGBTQ, or black, Hispanic or Asian women are much more vulnerable according to the respondents of a survey, which was conducted among female techies during the #MeToo Movement. Nevertheless, women entrepreneurs/technopreneurs are using technology to make their space in this men's world. They are starting women-specific travel apps, ridesharing platforms, or beauty and other products. They are recognizing the potential of women as a customer base in a better way, but also making the industry more sensitive to women.
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COVER STORY
08 Nedra Barr Spyder, Inc
Executive of the Month
Cicely Peace-Edouard The Simple VUE
16 24 Caroline McCaffery ClearOPS
30 Cristina Dolan InsideChains
38 Louise West Adarga
46 Marina Tognetti mYngle
54 Sherry Vaswani Xalient
28
44
Feminist Internet:
Women are Essential
A Reality Check
to the Development of AI and Data Science
Nedra Barr Co-founder, and CEO
Spyder
08
A
couple of years ago, we'd be having a completely different conversation about women in technology.
The situation was bleaker than now and women
were struggling to get their capabilities and desire to work in this field visible. At present, the number of women in technical roles across organizations has increased and we can only be hopeful that the journey for women in
COVER STORY
Changing The Landscape of Insurance With Technology
technology is uphill. This is a result of a combination of things like awareness within the companies to release the potential in women, the shift in the global outlook online, factual research in favor of women. The world becomes a better place when every woman is able to realize her dreams, and while there are several notable women in technology to talk about, we're commencing this magazine issue with the spotlight on The 10 Most Impactful Women in Technology 2021 by talking to Nedra Barr, Cofounder and CEO of Spyder.
09
“
Data is gold. Combining advanced
cloud computing methods, AI and
big data, we can understand buying
behaviors that facilitate and
predicts the purchase of products
“
and services with the click of a
button. This “magic” only happens
with data.
Nedra Barr
10
HER TECH PROJECT, SPYDER
Spyder is a new SaaS software
Spyder's e-commerce platform
company serving the insurance
provides the tools and services
industry. The company loops
every producer needs to manage
together licensed insurance and
their business digitally. Its full suite
financial services representatives
of digital solutions helps home
with home offices to connect and
offices streamline the management
provide products and services
of their field force.
throughout the entire supply chain.
Her Role at Spyder
Her Success Credits – Kindness and Comedy
Nedra Barr is the Co-Founder and
sought ways to help others succeed
CEO of the newly launched SaaS
and found the opportunity in 2000
Software company, Spyder, Inc. A
when she moved into
dynamic leader, she helps
Insuretech/Fintech. Nedra has led
companies visualize, strategize, and
teams and guided tech firms,
engage in new technology solutions
including SunGard Insurance
that improve their businesses.
Systems, Insurance Technologies,
Nedra is an accomplished speaker
Experian, and Docupace
and author who has contributed to
Technologies. Most recently, Nedra
many industry white papers
was the Chief Revenue Officer for
throughout her career. She was
Skience. She has been instrumental
awarded a “Top 50 Tech Visionary”
in solution designing and providing
as well as a “Top 50 Tech Leaders”
the vision for how technology can
award from Intercon.
meet companies' operational and
After starting her insurance career
regulatory needs. In addition to her
at the age of 16 in Fort Scott,
role at Spyder, she sits on various
Kansas, throughout her career, she
Advisory Boards.
“I realized many years ago that
ethic and love of solving problems to
people respond positively to
achieve strong results for
kindness and comedy, so I insert a
companies”, she continued.
little bit inin every conversation. You
“Because I started my work life so
never know what kind of day
young; I've had opportunities to
someone is having and sometimes a
seek out top-performing individuals
little kindness and comedy can help”,
to understand how they've had such
said Nedra in high spirits.
success in their lives. Very early in
She further added how she learned
my career I incorporated what I
long ago that a strong work ethic
learned from their experiences and
coupled with high achievement
modeled my behaviors to track to
would serve her well. “I also think
success, while ensuring I learned
women are problem solvers by
from my own bumps and bruises.”
nature and I've combined my work 11
A Journey with Stop Signs and Bumps
The biggest challenges she faced
already working in the insurance
early in her career were being
industry selling all types of
female (and a very short one at that)
insurance. This was a great
and that she doesn't have a four-
experience for me as I learned about
year college degree. She always had
all things insurance and business in
to physically look up at the men that
the early stage of in my career. “
she was working with and they were
To overcome these perceived
looking down at her. Nedra says that
challenges, her philosophy at that
psychologically, that's not a good
time was just to outwork everyone
place to start with someone looking
else. Outwork them physically, be
down at you. She knew she had to
mentally tougher than anyone else
find a way to get through that would
and execute on every little thing
allow others to see her as an equal
that she was taught to do.
not less than.
“I had great mentors when starting
She further talked about how her
out in insurance, Mr. William
education panned out her career as
Hammer and his son Jim Hammer.
we know it today. “I don't have a 4-
Both taught me to have a strong
year college degree; however, I
work ethic and that you build your
graduated from High school and Jr.
business brick by brick. Lay the
College within a few months of each
proper foundation so your business
other. I started going to the Jr.
will grow the right way. I translated
College the summer of my 9th-grade
that into the notion that every
year because it was something
customer and their experience is
interesting to do, but in the end that
important and reflects on you as a
was a smart decision as it turned out
person. Make those interactions
that by senior year, the 4-year
count”, she exclaimed.
college just wasn't in the cards. I was
12
Continuous Learning
“This is an exercise we have just
individuals working in the area
gone through with the evolution of
where we want to learn more to pick
Spyder and it's a continual process
their brains and learn from those
of learning”, explained Nedra
who actually do the jobs on a day-to-
regarding the innovation it takes to
day basis.”
satisfy the target audience. “We find
Embracing Disruptive Technologies
According to Nedra, the role of a
processes and products into one
leader has changed pretty
platform for producers and home
drastically over the last few years.
offices to leverage to help manage
CEOs and other leaders used to set
and grow their respective
the strategic direction, pace, tone,
businesses. We are using Cloud
and culture for the company and it
Computing and Big Data in our
was left up to the workers to
solutions in cutting-edge ways. The
execute those plans. Today, more C-
focus of software today needs to be
level executives are rolling up their
automation, integration,
sleeves and being more involved
digitization, and simplification”, she
with the day-to-day business.
explained.
“Spyder is automating many
The Future of Spyder
“I see a great future for Spyder. It is
life far more manageable than it is
purpose-built for
today.”
insurance/financial services
As evident from many industries,
representation and their home
automation can mean a reduction of
office relationships. It's not an
overall costs and time savings with
understatement to say there is
better communication outcomes.
nothing like it on the market. We will
This is what Spyder plans to
be automating and streamlining the
accomplish in insurance.
supply chain to make a producer's
www.spyderloop.com
13
Vital Attributes of a Transformational Leader, From One Leader to Another
As one of the lead women in
individuals in the right roles.”
technology, Nedra said,
She also stresses the fact that
“Transformational leaders pose a
leaders have a very important role
strength or confidence that can be
to make their employees feel
felt throughout the team. Every
welcome, valued, and heard.
team needs leadership, structure,
Leaders need to make sure that
and accountability that are felt by
people have a path for growth
every employee at the company. If
within their role or the company.
your people or employees don't
People tend to leave when they feel
know what the mission is….it will
underappreciated or underutilized.
likely fail. Leaders also need to know
It's poor business to invest in
how to build the right teams. It takes
recruiting talented employees only
a team to win and execute, so build
to have them sit on the shelf.
your teams with the right
Always be Ready
14
“Pay your dues. Learn all you can
considerate of your employees?
and make sure you're ready to step
What is your tone with your
into that role before you do. When
employees? How do your direct
you're ready….go for it! While you
reports perceive you and how you
can learn a company's products and
carry out your messages? Thinking
services fairly easily; having your
about these things before you take
management style defined will help
on a leadership position will help in
you align the two easily and faster.
the long run. Lastly, speak up and be
For instance, know who you are as a
heard. A silent leader isn't a leader”,
boss – are you kind, fair, and
she concluded.
Nedra Barr Spyder, Inc, Co-Founder and CEO Nedra Barr is the Co-Founder and CEO of the newly launched SaaS So ware company, Spyder, Inc. As dynamic leader, she helps companies visualize, strategize, and engage in new technology solu ons that improve their businesses. Nedra is an accomplished speaker and author who has contributed to many industry white papers throughout her career. www.spyder.com
Louise West
Head of Customer Success, Adarga As Head of Customer Success within Adarga, Louise West feels honored to work with customers who face some of the greatest data challenges and enable them to transform the value they get from their data. She does this by ensuring that the voice of her customers are heard and understood throughout the customer lifecycle. www.adarga.ai
Cicely Peace-Edouard
T H E
Co-Founder and CEO, The Simple VUE Cicely Peace-Edouard is the CoFounder and CEO of The Simple VUE. She is a businesswoman with more than a decade of experience in the consumer products industry. At her role, Cicely is responsible for and supports all aspects of data, analy cs, applica on development, and IT infrastructure management solu ons and oversees all revenue-genera ng programs.
Most Impactful
Women in Technology 2021
www.thesimplevue.com
Marina Tognetti
Sherry Vaswani
Tech Entrepreneur, Founder and CEO,
Xalient
CEO and Co-Founder,
Sherry Vaswani is the Founder and CEO of Xalient, who leads through her exper se and talent to develop the best innova ve business solu ons. Before star ng Xalient, she did a lot of research and took advantage of the technology shi wherein companies started migra ng more applica ons to the cloud. Sherry successfully used SD-WAN technology to connect networks more easily, flexibly and securely than previously possible.
ClearOPS Caroline McCaffery is the CEO and Co-Founder of ClearOPS and is a recognized thought leader in the privacy world. She is frequently featured as a guest on podcasts and contributes to conferences and publica ons on topics such as privacy tech, data privacy, cybersecurity, law and women in leadership. Caroline is also an experienced execu ve and mentor.
www.xalient.com
www.clearops.io
mYngle Marina Togne is a Tech Entrepreneur, Founder, and CEO of myngle.com. A er gradua ng from University, Marina built a successful career by working at large mul na onals. Later, she realized the poten al of the internet to disrupt industries and how it changes the way people buy/sell/interact forever. That drive made her start an innova ve company- mYngle. www.myngle.com
Caroline McCaffery
Founder and CEO,
CristinaDolan
Annie Tao
Neeti Mehta Shukla
Rana el Kaliouby
Co-Founder,
Vice President of Opera ons and Co-Founder,
Co-Founder, Senior Vice President Brand Strategy and Culture Architect
InsideChains
Horizon Robo cs
Automa on Anywhere
As the co-founder of Additum.es and InsideChains, Cris na Dolan has been playing a big role in transforming healthcare, insurtech and fintech. She has also co-authored the book 'Transparency in ESG and the Sustainable Economy, Capturing Opportuni es through Data' to provide clarity to a space filled with acronyms and a wide variety of lenses.
Annie Tao is the Co-founder and Vice President of Opera ons at Horizon Robo cs. She has extensive experience in top-notch technology and internet companies globally with in-depth strategic thinking and analy c capabili es of the industry in both the United States and Canada. Before star ng her own company, Annie worked in Google and Baidu where she led a number of global projects.
Nee Mehta Shukla is a co-founder, senior vice president and culture architect at Automa on Anywhere. At her role, she is responsible for leading brand and culture strategies and ini a ves across the company. An avid strategist, Nee brings over 20 years of business management, marke ng and entrepreneurial experience from a wide variety of industries including technology, business consul ng and adver sing.
As the CEO & Co-Founder of Affec va, Rana el Kaliouby is a rarity in both the tech world and her na ve, Middle East. A pioneer in ar ficial emo onal intelligence, Rana led the innova on of the company’s award-winning technology, which uses deep learning and massive amounts of data to analyze complex and nuanced emo ons and cogni ve states from face and voice.
www.insidechains.com
www.horizon.ai
www.automa onanywhere.com
www.affec va.com
CEO & Co-Founder, Affec va
Cicely Peace-Edouard Co-founder and CEO
The Simple VUE
16
Executive of the Month
An Impactful Businesswoman In The Analytical World
C
icely Peace-Edouard is a businesswoman with more than a
decade of experience in the consumer products industry. A
dedicated professional with the insight, vision, and
enthusiasm necessary to drive revenue and results, her career comes with a solid history in developing innovative programs that have produced maximum growth and business success. For this edition of the 10 Most Impactful Women in Technology, we interviewed Cicely Peace-Edouard to get her insights into the present technological world and her company. The following is an excerpt of our interview with her.
17
“
Advancing technologies are transforming
business models in every industry and
unlocking massive opportunities. Today’s
competitive advantages are short-lived if
company leaders cannot adjust and quickly address these disruptive technology opportunities. Anticipating change can lead to important and courageous decisions to
“
stretch a company’s brand and capabilities.
Ignoring these disruptive changes can yield
an obsolete business model.
Cicely Peace-Edouard
www.thesimplevue.com 18
About Her Company - The Simple VUE As a company, The Simple VUE helps public and private
management positions at Russell Athletic, Sara Lee Corporation, and Carter's Inc. With a reputation for
sector organizations exploit the power of data and
innovative design and optimization, Cicely's work has
technology for actionable insights. The company works
been instrumental in producing leading products that
with clients to build valuable and scalable solutions that
were critical to each company's overall financial
empower their organizations to use data to solve their
performance. She holds a Bachelor of Science in
most critical business problems. The Simple VUE delivers
Management and an Associate of Arts in Design both
Predictive Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, Legacy to
from the State University of New York at F.I.T.
Cloud Migration, Applications Development, Data Management, and Security, and IT Infrastructure
Channeling the “You Can Do Anything” Attitude
Program Management Services, which makes them an ideal partner to take any organization to the next level.
Through Experience Like many women, Cicely didn't have many great female
The expert team of consultants, data analysts, data
role models in her career. Fortunately, she had a few
scientists, and engineers work together with clients to
women outside of work who influenced her in a big way.
identify opportunities, assess available data, define
Her mom and her grandmother were instrumental and
solutions, develop optimal analytic infrastructure, ingest
raised her to understand that she could accomplish
data, and visualize outputs while building capabilities to
anything she set her mind to. She also had some
sustain and expand it. With a bigger picture to empower
wonderful female professors who nurtured this sense
companies and organizations to drive business
that she could pursue her passions in life. Through all the
performance through the use of data, analytics, and
life lessons, she channeled the “you can do anything”
technology, Simple VUE helps clients:
mindset by being a leader who provides a springboard for others in their career. That is another reason why she
Ÿ
Ÿ
Empower data-driven decision-making: Deliver
started the Women's Data Collective, with a vision to
powerful solutions that transform data into decisions
foster a community where women can network, share
and ideas into action Reduce Time-to-Insight: Create solutions that
resources, and gain valuable insights through training classes, workshops, and education materials. “We know
intuitively display relevant analytics and reduce the
that when women are supported and given the right
time-to-insight Ÿ Make complex data simple: Focus on design, training, and support during implementation to ensure utility and adoption
tools, they can thrive”, said Cicely. Navigating Through Challenges When asked about the challenging initial phase of her journey, she said “Like many entrepreneurs, we faced
A Solid Career in Business Growth As the Co-Founder and CEO of The Simple VUE, Cicely is
employees to finding funds to grow the business have
responsible for and supports all aspects of data,
been the most challenging. We are constantly looking for
analytics, application development, and IT infrastructure
networks, connections, and mentors who can provide
management solutions and oversees all revenue-
the guidance needed through the various phases a
generating programs. She has an impactful career history
business goes through as it evolves. Because the industry
in developing innovative programs that have produced
is male-dominated, it can also be a challenge to find social
maximum business growth, increased market share, and
networks that uniquely understand the journey.” She
profits. Prior to starting The SimpleVUE, Cicely has held
further added that chairing the Atlanta chapter of
several obstacles. From finding customers, skilled
19
Women in Data provided some support, but the
innovation roadmap. Anticipating change can lead to
organization's shift in its mission pushed her to start a
important and courageous decisions to stretch a
new organization – Women's Data Collective.
company's brand and capabilities. Ignoring these disruptive changes can yield an obsolete business
Attributes Of a Transformational Leader Cicely believes the attributes that every transformational leader should have are: Ÿ
Entertain new ideas - A leader is receptive to new ideas and realizes growth only happens in an organization with a culture of openness to new ideas
from all levels. Ÿ Ability to take the right risks – A leader trusts their intuition and uses the intelligence gathered by team members to make informed decisions. Ÿ Ability to be Adaptable – A leader is constantly adapting to changing market conditions and seeks creative ways to respond to the dynamic business environment. Ÿ Internal motivation – A leader finds motivation from within and uses that as the driving force to effectively manage the direction of the company.
model”, answered Cicely. As a business leader, she believes it is crucial that her company exploits these technologies and constantly pushes her organization to think creatively on how it can improve the companies they serve and the industry as a whole. How Does The Future Look Like? The Simple VUE aims at expanding its expertise in many of the emerging technologies that complement the products and services – AI being at the top of the list. According to her, AI is touching everything from banking to healthcare and how we do business, giving industries incredible new tools to change the world. This 21stcentury breakthrough is fuelled by four innovations — the Internet of Things, AI, cloud, and data security, and The Simple VUE are making investments to meet the demand. “We are excited about the possibilities of empowering organizations to become more efficient,
Knowing What the Audience Wants Through
drive improvements, increase market share and have a
Innovation Ÿ Developing a team – looking for partners and
positive impact on their bottom line”, concluded Cicely.
employees that share our vision on innovation. Ÿ Staying agile – to be ahead of the curve by constantly
Her Shout-out to the Emerging Women Leaders “The first big piece of advice I would give emerging
exploring applications and solutions to today's most
women leaders would be – find a mentor. We know that
pressing problems. Ÿ Analyzing the Marketplace – by studying the
having the support of a mentor can boost confidence, expand capabilities, and open the door to new
marketplace and looking for new ways to implement
opportunities. I believe that any woman can rise to
emerging technologies to add value and efficiencies.
success, as long as she has access to the skills and tools. She needs to realize her full potential. Secondly, no
Exploiting Disruptive Technologies For Creativity “Advancing technologies are transforming business models in every industry and unlocking massive opportunities. Today's competitive advantages are short-lived if company leaders cannot adjust and quickly address these disruptive technology opportunities. These technologies are emerging at accelerated rates. Business leaders must be thoughtful about their
20
matter how difficult the road gets, never give up. Here are five key pieces of advice: 1. Have a clear set of values, goals to reach, and don't wait until you think it's perfect 2. Follow your dreams and believe in the positive changes you want to make 3. Remember the decisions you make impact others 4. Play to your strengths and not your weaknesses 5. Always be yourself
Caroline McCaffery CEO and Co-Founder
ClearOPS
24
Providing Privacy And Security Operations To Enterprises of Different Industries
C
learOPS is a B2B SaaS privacy tech company
a corporate securities attorney for the prominent law
offering vendors questionnaires-as-a-service
firm, Gunderson Dettmer. She graduated from NYU Law
and vendor risk management tools. Vendor risk
and holds her bachelor degree from the University of
due diligence is a pain. The company is unique because it
Pennsylvania.
focuses on solving the pains of vendors who are on the receiving end of risk due diligence. ClearOPS currently
Leading Through Difficult Times
offers two solutions: “Clear Answer Management”,
Caroline believes forcing herself to become a public
which automates response to privacy and security
speaker has been one of the most important keys to her
assessments, and “Service Provider Reports”, which
success. As an introvert, she was afraid of speaking in
generates weekly privacy and security operation reports
public, but whenever she has a weakness, Caroline
on vendors and its downstream service providers.
dedicates herself to overcoming it. Thus, she started taking all kinds of speaking opportunities. Caroline went
The Brain Behind ClearOPS
from being nervous on stage to now being able to stand
Caroline McCaffery is the CEO and Co-Founder of
up confidently and enjoy the experience. She feels
ClearOPS and is a recognized thought leader in the
finding success is oftentimes one's metric of success, not
privacy world. She is frequently featured as a guest on
how the world defines it.
podcasts and contributes to conferences and publications on topics such as privacy tech, data privacy,
Combating the Challenges and Barriers
cybersecurity, law and women in leadership. Caroline is
Caroline has gone through the same challenges most
also an experienced executive and mentor. In prior roles,
women have. One of her first challenges to overcome
Caroline has been the General Counsel for a tech
was the general expectation of success. As someone who
company, a VP of Business Affairs for an A.I. company and
wanted to have a career in business and also a family, she
25
“
The goal is that every person's own
personal right to privacy can be
exercised online, giving each person
“
control. That is what technologies
like artificial intelligence or the
blockchain should be doing.
Caroline McCaffery
www.clearops.io 26
changed the way she thought about traditional career
overall market is moving, then he/she can be considered
and family goals. “I asked myself, 'is a linear career that
as innovative.
results in seniority a success?' Keeping an open mind is what has helped me succeed in my chosen path,” says
Data is Driving Today's Innovation
Caroline.
ClearOPS uses deep learning and natural language processing. Caroline feels that these technologies are
Vital Attributes Every Transformational Leader Must
fabulous for making connections in data that would take
Possess
a lot of time. She thinks they surface important
According to Caroline, listening is a vital attribute that
connections within disorganized data enabling people to
any leader needs to have or practice to perfection.
make good decisions. Caroline believes the best leaders
Another one is a piece of advice that she received, i.e. a
are making substantive decisions powered by data.
good manager manages themselves, not others. Caroline thinks the two together form the keys to great
Towards the Future
leadership. Controlling one's reactions and being aware
ClearOPS is paving the way for the future where the
of how others are feeling and what they are thinking puts
personal right to privacy online can be respected.
a person in the position to inspire others to be their best
Caroline has talked to a lot of emerging privacy tech
and feel good about themselves.
startups who are building that future but the world can't get there without a process that breaks the current one,
Advancing Technology Revolution Through Strategic
which starts with getting companies organized. Hence,
Innovation
getting companies organized is what ClearOPS is doing.
Caroline loves technology and she is also the type of person that likes to do research and become an expert.
Essential Advice to Rising Female Leaders
She thinks that is how one can innovate in products that
Caroline advices, “No one will claim you to be a leader
appeal to its audience. When a person spends a lot of
until you claim yourself as a leader. Only accept critical
time on his/her problems and is willing to get good at
feedback if it is fair.”
solutions, but also keep the perspective of how the
27
Feminist Internet: A Reality Check
28
I
n the world today, especially in the virtual world,
It is not an illogical demand. In the face of ever steeped
Internet has made a transition from a 'growing
patriarchy, it is an ethical issue. Feminists have long
network' to a near-omnipotent medium. It has made
argued that women are being compelled to remain
its presence through PCs, laptops, televisions and
beyond the orbit of the Net forcefully by the patriarchal
mobiles. Its manifold functions have made sure that
forces. It has also been seen that with the growing use of
beyond its original status as an ICT item it becomes an
the Internet by women in some developed western
everyday companion. But questions remain whether
s o c i e t i e s , t e c h n o l o g y i s p l ay i n g a key r o l e i n
behind its astonishing growth there lies strains of various
transformation of the patriarchal elements existing in
biases based on age, region, ethnicity, nationality, and not
those societies. Side by side, the various practices of male
the least, gender. Feminists, cyber-feminists in particular,
dominance are being challenged and the Net is
have long argued that the democratizing potential of
facilitating the struggle of women to bring it closer to
Internet has to be harnessed by not only removing its
women and make it acquire a 'feminine' character. To
gender bias but aggressively making it feminist. This is
reiterate, the trend still escapes the non-western world.
the sense of serving the specific interests of women by appropriating the radical potential of the Internet.
There is little doubt that a feminist Internet can contribute immensely, structurally and culturally, in
Let us remember that with the passing of more than two
providing a new gender scenario by breaking existing
decades of the twenty first century, the world seems to
blocks, which prevent access of women to the new
be highly divided in this case. While in the US, the number
technology. It will help the fight against the huge
of men and women having online presence is equal, and in
instances of pornography, sexual harassment and trolling
the Scandinavian countries it is as good, in the UK only
of women in the virtual world but will also result in a
one woman against two men use the Internet. In the non-
tough fight against all these in the real world itself. Wider
western developing states, it is far worse with steep
and appropriate use of technology by women would
gender bias marking the Net. As a whole the ICT scenario
certainly lead to a better world. But at the same time, the
in the world is grossly discriminatory against women
roadmap must include the following steps: first, the
because women users are much less in number than men.
greater use of the Internet by women should not imply women would only act as consumers and/or shoppers. It
If Internet would conform to the feminist argument, the
must give equal status to women as creative users of the
world would have been much better? It is a fact that
World Wide Web. Second, the whole endeavour in
women constitute half of the humankind and with their
feminizing the Internet should include men and not be a
history as 'laggards' in the use of the Internet, they
'women only' process. Some feminist Internet should not
remain deprived of much of the advantages that it offers.
be an excessively utopian vision marked by reverse
The advantages are not just technological. They are
gender bias. The Digital Divide can be challenged by
heavily economic and also social, cultural, and
firming up the Internet in the Feminist way but in such a
commercial. The ethical question is why women should
challenge men also have to be active. In other words, the
be deprived of its potential just because they are of the
feminist Internet is only as good as a feminist society in
other gender.
the inclusive sense of the term.
29
Cristina Dolan Co-Author, Transparency in ESG and the Sustainable Economy Founder & Co-Founder
InsideChains & Additum 30
Driving Digital Transformation through the Development and Incubation of Technology-driven Products
I
n almost every area, technological advancements
for modern society. This is why Cristina is hyper focused
are needed for innovation, development, and
on cyber security technologies; it is the most impactful
problem-solving. The corporate world has changed
component of ESG metrics especially for financial,
dramatically as a result of the innovation and widespread
digital, healthcare and infrastructure organizations.
acceptance of technologies, which has influenced the way the entire industry operates in today's modern
Kindly brief us about your Book.
world.
The pandemic has proven how critical it is to build
In an exclusive interview with engineer and serial
sustainable organizations, and that requires
entrepreneur, Cristina Dolan shares her inspiration on
understanding all of the components that make up the
working with organizations to digitally transform
ESG to weave it into an organization's DNA. You can't
business models through advanced technology, data and
manage if you can't measure, which is why I was inspired
blockchain ecosystems with economic layers that offer
to co-author the book 'Transparency in ESG and the
members greater visibility, richer data, cybersecurity,
Sustainable Economy, Capturing Opportunities through
new business models and dynamic new products. As the
Data' to provide clarity to a space filled with acronyms
co-founder of Additum.es and InsideChains, she has
and a wide variety of lenses. The growing interest by
been playing a role in transforming healthcare, insurtech
investors, executives, entrepreneurs and students has
and fintech.
made this book very timely, and we are excited that the
Digital Transformation has created greater cyber
publisher will be launching the book in the coming
security risk, which is the biggest and most immediate
months.
financial risk organizations and communities face today. It is complex, and not well understood, yet as the world
There are many different lenses and approaches to
depends on connected technologies to improve our way
defining and measuring sustainability and ESG. For
of life globally. It has become the most important sector
some people, the focus is primarily on the environment, 31
“
Fueled by intelligent networks, our
connected world is sharing massive
amounts of data, which can improve our society in many ways. Every industry
including healthcare, agriculture, transportation, retail, media, finance, law and entertainment are all
“
transforming through the use of
technology, connectivity, computational
and data science.
Cristina Dolan
www.insidechains.com 32
yet many other critical components affect the
Throughout my career, I have been fortunate enough to
sustainability and survival of organizations. With the
have leadership roles with the opportunity to lead digital
world's dependence on connected technologies and
transformations by building out the next generation of
data, cybersecurity has become an even bigger threat.
disruptive platforms. I started my career at IBM when
The social components can affect direct and indirect
networked computing created distributed business
stakeholders and can devastate entire ecosystems,
opportunities. At Hearst and Disney, I built the first
which was evident during the financial crisis in 2008.
generation consumer media and streaming content
Cybersecurity has the potential of being an even
platforms in lead technology roles. Later at Oracle, I
greater risk for the most critical infrastructure and
focused on taking eCommerce to market, enabling
services that communities depend on than the financial
secure shopping and transactions which powered
crisis or the pandemic have been. Understanding how
companies like eBay and Amazon. As a co-founder of
to build and grow sustainable organizations extends
Internet Service Provider, OneMain, built out the first
beyond large public companies, and this knowledge
personalized geographic content, which didn't require
needs to be integrated into all organizations to support
the unauthorized collection of personal data. The
all the stakeholders and their respective dependant
company was acquired by Earthlink after growing it to be
ecosystems. Sustainability is strongly tied to the
one of the ten largest ISPs and completing a highly
technology and data that are powering our economies.
successful IPO. Recruited by the board of a venturebacked spinout from Harvard and MIT, I took on the role
Give a brief overview of your background and your role
of CEO, commercialising the computational linguistics
in the company.
and machine learning start-up. Later, I joined the fintech
Over the past five years, I have been focusing on
transformation by joining a leading institutional trading
cybersecurity, cyber risk, data governance and access
platform, TradingScreen, leading product management
control. Cybersecurity is one of the most immediate
for data and content. I got involved very early in
material financial risks that companies are facing today.
blockchain and crypto innovation and went on to co-
While the headlines are filled with data breaches and
found several companies in the insurtech space. In
ongoing hacking, it doesn't seem to be included in the
addition, I am a co-founder of Additum.es, a European
ESG and sustainability discussions in the same way as
healthtech company focused on value-based medicine,
climate risk. There is no greater immediate financially
which utilizes IoT and blockchain to capture the value
material risk facingorganizations, governments or
created throughout patient journeys.
society today. Cybersecurity represents the greatest
Cybersecurity has been an area that I am passionate
threat to the sustainability of organizations and all the
about because it is so closely tied to sustainability. In
stakeholders, including their respective communities.
addition to being a founder of an early blockchain cyber
As an engineering, computer scientist and entrepreneur,
insurtech, I was a board advisor to an Israeli cyber risk
I have been building products and organizations at the
assessment company that was acquired by
leading edge of data-rich and connected technologies.
MasterCard. Additional advisory roles include
Over the last decade, I have focused on transformational
Crayonic, an award-winning passwordless access
technologies like blockchain and data science in fintech,
solution, and WiseKey, a global cybersecurity company
insurtech, health tech and media. Technology has been a
deploying large scale digital identity ecosystems for
driver of every industrial revolution and has been the key
people and objects using Blockchain, AI and IoT.
to maintaining sustainability and competitiveness as
Currently, I am focused on building alliances at RSA
market needs evolve. 33
NetWitness, which is one of the most exciting
2015 Stevie Awards – four awards including
companies in the cyber security. Sustainability requires
Gold: Dream it. Code it. Win it. – Organization of the Year
the ability to protect organizations from cyber threats,
for Government or non-profit
which is the biggest more immediate material financial
Silver: Cristina Dolan (Founder and Organizer) – Female
risk we face today. It affects every stakeholder in so
Innovator of the Year for Government or non-profit
many different ways. This is a space that requires just a
Silver: Cristina Dolan (Founder and Organizer) – Female
much attention as climate change.
Executive of the Year for Government or non-profit Silver: Dream it. Code it. Win it. – Startup of the Year for
What were the past experiences, achievements or
Consumer Services Industries
lessons that shaped your journey as a successful
2014 - Traders Magazine Charitable Works Award
women leader?One of the most enjoyable experiences
These are presented to women who devote considerable
came from my volunteer work with the MIT community.
resources and energy to philanthropic causes that
As an alumnus that has gained so much from my
benefit society as a whole.
education at MIT, I have always felt it is important to give back.
Kindly mention some of the primal challenges that you
In 2013, several members of the MIT Corporation,
faced during the initial phase of your journey.
which is effectively the MIT board of trustees, talked
Science fiction inspired my desire to be an engineer.
me into launching a global student competition, Dream
When you watch movies like Star Trek or Lost in Space,
it. Code it. Win it. (Dreamitcodeitwinit.org), to
the women who knew how to solve problems and
encourage students to engage in engineering. The
understood technology were all heroes. They wore cool
competition rewarded students with over $250,000 in
outfits and were engaged in the community. I
prizes for solving interesting problems using
consideredthem as my role models. I believed the
technology and code. Being an engineer, I didn't realize
future would be transformed with technology and I
that problem-solving skills were not traditionally
wanted to be a part of it.
taught in schools. Before launching Dream it. Code it.
As a student at an elite private girl's high school, my
Win it, I didn't appreciate the gift of being a problem
college advisor felt I would be better off pursuing law or
solver, which is a critical skill for an entrepreneur at the
something more traditional. Luckily I was too stubborn
leading edge of industry transformations.
to listen. I remember my mother told me that lawyers
Dream it. Code it. Win it. has received numerous
are involved in everything and have so many
awards including the Traders Magazine Charitable
opportunities and the flexibility to do whatever they
Works Award and four Stevie Awards for the best
want. Funny enough, that was what I thought of
innovator, executive, start-up and non-profit
electrical engineers and computer scientists. I was
organization. Additional honors include the MIT with
fortunate not to have doubted my vision for the future.
an MIT Harold E. Lobdell Distinguished Service Award. The related TED Talk, Just Solve It, which encourages
Describe some of the vital attributes that every
people to learn to solve problems and pursue
transformational leader should possess.
engineering studies, has over 900k views.
Transformational leadership at the edge of industrial revolutions has no guidebooks or blueprints, so you
2016 MIT Harold E. Lobdell Distinguished Service
need to be comfortable building the roadmaps and
Award
communicating the vision to engage your community.
34
You also have to be a lifelong self-learner and problem solver, because you won't find the answers without doing the work. As a mentor to many very bright students and young executives, I always recommend they learn about the journeys of executives or leaders they admire. There are so many history lessons that offer ideas and guidance. How do you innovate your products/solutions that appeal to your target audience? Connecting with people and communities is critical because that is how you learn. I am fortunate to have been educated at MIT where I started building a strong network of critical thinkers that are engaged in transforming so many aspects of the world we live in. Living in New York and travelling extensively to speak at events has provided insights into how industries and society is transforming societies globally. I have built a global professional network that has been critical to my success throughout my career. How are disruptive technologies like Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning/Deep Learning/ Automation/Cloud Computing/Big Data impacting today's innovation and how has the role of a leader has changed over the years? We live in a connected world that is transforming faster than ever. Every industrial revolution has been fuelled through technological innovation. Fueled by intelligent networks, our connected world is sharing massive amounts of data, which can improve our society in many ways. Every industry including
How do you see the ESG (the topic of the book) in the future ahead? ESG has become one of the most important criteria for attracting employees, consumer engagement and investment. Today, there are many different methodologies, data sets, lenses,frameworks and reporting standards. Space is filled with many different acronyms, and few people understand the space holistically, especially concerning what it takes to build resilient and sustainable organizations. MBA programs are graduating students that are focusing on ESG and corporate boards are starting to develop ESG KPIs for management at all levels of organizations. The space is still young, and yet it is more critical than ever. The sustainability of organizations and communities requires an understanding of ESG and how to define, measure and integrate it into the fabric of society. The future of ESG is just beginning. I am thrilled to be working in cybersecurity, which is one of the most critical pillars of sustainability. What is your advice for budding or emerging women leaders? Ÿ
create opportunities for a better world.
healthcare, agriculture, transportation, retail, media, finance, law and entertainment are all transforming
Ÿ
Of course this makes cyber security more critical than ever as we grow more dependent than ever on connected computing and intelligent networks.
Be a self-learner and push yourself beyond your comfort zone.
through the use of technology, connectivity, computational and data science.
Gain the skills to lead sustainable transformation and
Ÿ
Be a problem-solver. If you can solve customer problems you will have a successful company, if you can solve an employer's problems you will have a job. More importantly, if you can solve your own problems you will have fruitful and happier life.
35
Louise West Head of Customer Success
Adarga
38
Empowering customers to make faster, better and more accurate decisions with cutting-edge AI
A
darga provides a powerful AI Knowledge
terminology. Users can explore, visualize and share
Platform that helps its customers in defence,
insights and intelligence via Adarga's intuitive UI, Adarga
intelligence, government and beyond to
BenchTM.
harness the power of the vast, untapped and growing
The company's focus on surfacing the hidden value of
information resources at their disposal at a speed and
data stems from real-life need with Adarga's CEO and
scale beyond human capability. Adarga collates, reads,
Founder Robert Bassett Cross having served in the
understands and analyzes huge, disparate data sets in a
British Army and experienced first-hand the challenges
secure platform at high speed to help customers
in analyzing vast amounts of data, a very human-
discover the deep and critical insights that drive faster
intensive job when it comes to text, in a short time to
and better decisions, in turn allowing them to gain a
make mission-critical decisions. Louise West, Head of
significant information advantage.
Customer Success says, “I have worked with many
TM
Adarga's Knowledge Platform is uniquely positioned to
Government departments, all of whom need to rapidly
read, understand and interpret huge amounts of
understand the huge volumes and varieties of data they
complex data, including human-generated data like text
face on a daily basis to make evidence based decisions.”
and video, from within an organization or from external platforms, thanks to its best-in-class natural language
Walking With the Customers
processing techniques. This is a form of AI focused on
As Head of Customer Success within Adarga, Louise
understanding and interpreting human language. This
West feels honored to work with customers who face
allows Adarga to transform raw data and information
some of the greatest data challenges and enable them to
into knowledge. From here, the platform builds an ever-
transform the value they get from their data. She does
growing, advanced knowledge graph, powered by
this by ensuring the voice of her customers are heard and
cutting-edge AI, which surfaces hidden, meaningful
understood throughout the customer lifecycle.
insights and discovers evidence-based connections in
Louise has vast public sector experience having worked
context with algorithms that understand sector specific
with Government departments including the Ministry of
39
“
Organisations must move quickly to
harness the power of their data to
gain an information advantage. AI will be crucial in reducing cognitive
burden on humans and enhancing
“
critical decision-making as it never
gets tired or overwhelmed by
information.
Louise West
www.adarga.ai 40
Defence, Home Office, Ministry of Justice, Police, Local
her career journey. From an early stage, she learned to
Authorities, and Health. The roles Louise has held have
follow a career based on her interests so that the natural
given her a real understanding of operational
passion for the work is never lost.
considerations, mission-critical delivery, the importance of data, and the experience of many traditional
Drawing Inspiration from Around Her
challenges in transforming data into intelligence.
Louise believes that she has been privileged enough to
Stepping out of your comfort zone
work with great transformational leaders and her
Taking risks can be daunting, yet Louise believes that this
experiences of working with them have influenced her
is necessary to accelerate capabilities. She says, “I've
working practices. She is further inspired by the thought
frequently been given the opportunity to step outside of
provoking conversations she has with her customers and
my comfort zone, to test and overcome self-imposed
colleagues.
barriers. In stepping outside of my comfort zone, it is fair
A key principle Louise holds is to surround herself with
to say that I did not always get it right!” It was in these
clever people and provide an environment where people
scenarios that Louise made sure she gave attention to
are inspired to go the extra mile and are able to make
the guidance and used these experiences as a method to
mistakes. Louise reiterates that this is how people can
rapidly grow and improve.
learn and become more effective at their roles.
Louise believes that it is important to retain a positive
According to Louise, work should be fun and all
attitude and mental resilience when faced with
transformational leaders need to create an inspirational
challenging situations. These attributes are further
workplace where people desire to work and engage with
enhanced by identifying the type of leader you want to be
one another.
and the underlying values. Louise believes that everyone is different and by knowing her own values, she was able
Vast Industry Expertise and Continuous Listening
to adapt to different situations.
Louise suggests that listening to customers, advisors, and internal experts drives product innovation. While
Embracing the Challenges
being deeply embedded and trusted in the industry,
From the start of her career, Louise has embraced
Adarga possesses the first-hand experience of the
challenges; she was given the tremendous opportunity
challenges their customers are facing in harnessing the
to build a company-wide network at all levels of seniority.
power of the data. The company understands how its AI
From this point, Louise has sought roles that give her
platform can be applied to tackle different paint points
flexibility in how she goes about achieving the desired
and use-cases. By taking a customer-centric approach,
results .
Adarga understands how to meet their needs and
Understanding how to engage with a wide range of
accelerate the delivery of any transformation program.
people was another challenge Louise met. It was in the
The company's world-leading scientific advisory group
initial phase of her career that Louise started adopting
and deep links with academia worldwide ensure they are
methods and tools that helped her to think about what
at the bleeding edge of innovation. Adarga's high-fidelity
the other person may want to get from the meeting and
AI models are uniquely trained and positioned to
the key messages she needed to deliver.
understand and analyze complex Defence and National
Both in terms of skillsets and market sectors, Louise has
Security data to help its customers gain an information
hehad the opportunity to experience different shades in
advantage.
41
Accelerating Digital Transformation
intensive analysis of this information, leading to
The advent of the Information Age has already catalyzed
increased interested in AI as a means to do that.
AI's ascension into a realm previously reserved
There have been many reports on the consequences of
exclusively for humans. Louise mentions that we are at a
making decisions without the right evidence and yet
pivotal point of AI being adopted into organizations in
traditional approaches impose natural limits on the
order to generate insights across the ever-increasing
capacity of individuals and teams. Against this landscape,
volumes and variety of data pouring in.
Adarga is in a fortunate position. The company has
According to Louise, cloud computing has played a vital
harnessed the potential of the Cloud since 2016 and has
role in transforming the pace at which AI and machine
been working closely with its customers to expand its AI-
learning products are developed and has offered
driven platform. With the ever-increasing interest and
customers the flexibility to process varieties of data
adoption of AI across the globe, Louise expresses her
volumes.
excitement to work with Adarga's expanding customer
As a leader in an AI organization, Louise operates as an
base to help customers harness the full potential of data.
advisor and encourages her customers to get involved in the agile development of products. Leaders within the
Befriend the Risks, Love What You Do
company's customer base are overcoming traditional
Louise confidently says, “Take risks. Be bold. Step outside
speeds and approaches to digital transformation in order
of your comfort zone. This is how we all learn and grow, as
to move rapidly from concept to delivery, says Louise.
scary as it may seem at the time.” Louise concludes by asking people to identify their values, work for a
The Future Looks Bright
company they respect, and find a job they love, and says it
Louise highlights that the unprecedented growth in data
will enable everybody to find excitement in the work and
is impacting everyone and her customers frequently
a passion to make a difference.
raise that they are looking at alternatives to the labor-
42
Women are Essential to the Development of
AI and Data Science
44
T
he world of technology offers both women and men a wide variety of opportunities. Despite their superior qualifications, women are significantly underrepresented in AI and Data Science today. Instead of rising to managerial and C-suite positions, they are more likely to quit their employment. Women in AI AI is one of the fields in which women can excel, particularly if the right incentives are put in place to encourage female participation. They are a necessary force that businesses must incorporate in order to advance their AI development. In particular, a strong focus on the female workforce in an AI environment will help overcome some of the more serious issues that businesses face when it comes to ML technology, such as selection bias. As a result, for companies to reach the highest levels of AI development, women must be mobilized on a large scale and included in all AI-related business endeavors, from analysis to product release. Women in Data Science Women are more mindful of the pitfalls of big data, which is a bonus. They have a natural knack for making the right decisions and reacting to all of the data's responses, and they thrive at teamwork, team management, and problem-solving. Gender diversity can attract new customers, allowing businesses to tap into previously untapped markets. Since the concept of a data science team is fresh, businesses must recruit leaders who can collaborate horizontally and learn about new insights. Shutting down the technology gap between men and women, on the other hand, should not be limited to achieving a certain women-to-men ratio within the industry. Although recruitment is still a problem, the emphasis should be on inspiring and recognizing women in the industry, as well as educating women and girls interested in or joining the profession that expertise are not gender-based. How can More Women be Involved in AI and Data Science?
More female involvement in STEM, AI, and data science fields is urgently needed around the world. Female entrepreneurs, research scientists, and business leaders are critical to the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) and related innovations that improve our lives. Motivating Women with STEM Background Due to a shortage of qualified workers in the industry, more positions are being generated than recruiters can fill as companies seek to develop data science teams. Organizations should inspire more women with a STEM history to fill this talent gap. Women are substantially underrepresented in the field of data science, and as a result, companies are losing out on important skill sets. Customers are thought to favour businesses that are dynamic enough and hire more women in technology. One of the most effective ways to empower women with STEM backgrounds is to introduce STEM to them at a young age. Female role models in the data science sector should be more visible for the young audience, so they have someone to look up to. In addition, creating programs and conversations about female empowerment in educational institutions is critical. Industries Should Recruit a Diverse Range of Candidates Industries that employ data scientists can approach women's colleges as well as the schools they typically recruit. They should also pay special attention to schools with a large number of female tech students to demonstrate that they are valued in the industry. Workplace Culture that Is Exclusive Men still outnumber women in the fields of data science and artificial intelligence. As a result, there could be a male-dominated atmosphere at work, with fewer women applying for employment. Companies can make these fields more appealing to women by placing their female workers at front and center on the company side of the issue. Women should be empowered to pursue these positions, and the workplace should be a welcoming and inclusive atmosphere.
45
Marina Tognetti Founder and CEO
mYngle
46
Changing the Traditional World of Education by Delivering Truly Customer-Oriented Solutions
m
Yngle offers customized language
working in different countries, and got an MBA from
training programs through video
INSEAD.
conferencing in 45 different
It was when working as a consultant on a project on
languages anytime, anywhere. Its lessons are one-on-
internet strategy that Marina first saw the potential of
one, with highly qualified native coaches and related to
the internet to disrupt industries and change forever
the learner's job position. The company's virtual
the way people buy/sell/interact. She had to be part of
classrooms enable learners to take classes 24/7.
that! That was the driver to start an innovative
mYngle is the solution for busy professionals who need
company - mYngle.
language training to be successful in their international business and for companies that want great learning
Continuous Learning from Real-Life Experiences and
results along with a transparent and controllable
Peers
learning process to make their investment a success.
Marina likes challenges in everything she does. Entrepreneurship, especially in tech, allows one to
An Inspiring Tech Leader
look far ahead, innovate, change traditional business
Marina Tognetti is a Tech Entrepreneur, Founder, and
models and disrupt industries. Starting an innovative
CEO of myngle.com. Her passion for entrepreneurship
company meant that there was no set path she could
came later on in her career. When she graduated from
follow. Marina had to learn and adapt along the way.
University, it was an era when entrepreneurship was
This was true when the company started, but it is also
not very common for academics. Marina, therefore,
true today, as it develops in an industry that is in
first built a successful career by working in large
transition.
multinationals, namely Procter & Gamble, Philips, Sara
The biggest challenge was when the company had to
Lee, The Boston Consulting Group and eBay; living and
drastically change, 'pivoting' from the initial business
47
“
The goal is that every person's own
personal right to privacy can be
exercised online, giving each person
“
control. That is what technologies
like artificial intelligence or the
blockchain should be doing.
Marina Tognetti
www.myngle.com 48
model to a completely different one, which is the
developments.
mYngle today. mYngle was launched as a marketplace,
She adds “Continuous improvement comes from
something Marina knew very well from her previous
constantly listening to users' feedback and improving
eBay experience. “We thought we got it all: funding,
accordingly, as well as using new technologies to our
lots of Awards and PR, a very motivated team. But
advantage. Data analysis and machine learning help us
something in the business model was not functioning
triage new products better, it helps us understand clients
as we expected. We listened to our customers and they
and try to anticipate possible issues better. It also helps
gave us the new direction, from an open marketplace
the sales department with forecasting, funnels analysis,
to a quality global online school, from B2C to B2B,” says
and staff coaching.”
Marina. She believes that the key to success was accepting that
Overcoming the Challenges
change was needed and not being afraid to question
Marina believes building a business from scratch is
assumptions, and truly listening to its customers.
always challenging and building a tech start-up disrupting an industry as traditional as that of
Advanced Solutions to Attract the Target Audience
education, is exponentially more challenging
According to Marina, education was (and in large part
(especially more than 10 years ago, when the
still is) operating in the old traditional way, offering
company started). There are all sorts of resistances -
learners what is available, not what they need. But
those of a still immature market- that one has to
“One size does not fit all.” In a “Flat World”, business
bypass. From the stereotypes consumers have in
leaders are learning that the customer is central and
their minds to the (conservative) opinions of people
there is no place for traditional supply driven
around. Now online language education is setting the
institutions.
standards in terms of quality and flexibility, and
Innovation needs to add real value, everything should
mYngle has been a part of that.
start and end with the customer. Constant focus on
For these reasons, the company has also won
customers and their needs is one of mYngle main pillars
numerous awards as recognition for its contribution
and that allows the company to differentiate from the
to online education. In the beginning (2008):
many new players moving online that still have to prove
Accenture Innovation Award, European Ventures
their value. mYngle nurtures an obsession for customer
Summit Award, Benelux Venture Summit Award, and
satisfaction and this is also one of its key strengths. The
more later onwards. Marina also received numerous
company looks for continuous improvement in its
awards as the Founder and CEO of Myngle, such as 50
service by constantly listening to users' feedback and
Most Inspiring Women Tech Leaders in Europe, 50
improving accordingly, as well as leveraging new
Most Inspiring Women in the Dutch Technology
technologies at its advantage.
Sector, Iconic Women Creating a Better World for All and many others.
Leveraging Disruptive Technologies Marina believes technology should be seen as an
Vital Attributes a Leader should Possess
opportunity as it opens directions that only a few
Marina suggests that in this era of challenging
decades ago seemed unattainable. It allows new
technologic evolution and, more recently, COVID
businesses that can disrupt entire industries. 'CHANGE
challenging the status quo, transformational leaders
is GOOD' as it forces improvements and continuous
must redefine their role and draw on different sets of
49
skills to be able to face the challenges ahead. If they
significantly more convenience in terms of flexibility-
step out of their comfort zone, they can fall. One needs
with lessons 24/7 and flexible scheduling - as well as the
to trust its own capability to be able to stand up again.
possibility of benefitting the skills of teachers that are
When one has that trust, one can be an innovative
not located in geographical proximity. These benefits go
leader.
beyond the short-term limitations of the lockdown,
According to her, this means having a strong vision, to
modernizing the world of education.
set the direction and anticipate and navigate
That is where mYngle can make an impact, being
challenges, but at the same time being flexible, not be
ahead in this digital transformation by constantly
afraid of taking (calculated) risks, in order to anticipate
innovating and pursuing the best possible quality
trends and steer the company in turbulent waters,
and results, educating the market on the difference
building an organization that is agile to respond to this
between improvised solutions and years of
fast-paced environment.
expertise. Online learning will be an intrinsic part of the new normal with mYngle a part of it.
The Future Ahead Marina feels that the adoption of online solutions will
Radiating Key Advice to Emerging Women Leaders
continue post-pandemic and online learning will
On advising to budding leaders, Marina says,
accelerate over the next months or years. After years
“The most important advice I can give to an aspiring
of encouraging eLearning and virtual classroom
entrepreneur is to stop comparing. The stories you
approaches, the pandemic has helped move the needle
read about the few that ''got it all'' are rare exceptions
on technology acceptance for learners and L&D
and often not the full truth. Let that go. Let go of trying
professionals alike.
to imitate types of leadership you see around but
Customers are now discovering all the advantages of
which are not you and be really true to yourself. Don't
virtual education compared to the traditional one in a
look around for answers, look inside.”
physical classroom. It offers the same results, but 50
Sherry Vaswani Founder & CEO
Xalient
54
'Never Stop Learning and Challenging', Says Sherry Vaswani, the Leader Wearing a Cape of Confidence and Transforming Businesses
X
alient is an award-winning network
1994, shortly after graduating. It was a business in the
transformation company providing consulting
telecoms sector, and it grew successfully until it was
and managed services to large enterprises.
acquired by a global telco some 17 years later. Sherry
Established in 2015, it is an independent specialist in SD-
admits learning so much during that journey and hence,
WAN, cloud security and cloud-driven communication
wanting to do it all again with a new company and new
technologies. The business has grown rapidly to become
idea was inevitable.
a multi-million-dollar global company, trusted by many of
Sherry founded Xalient after a lot of research, to take
the world's leading brands including Kellogg's, Keurig Dr
advantage of a technology shift wherein companies
Pepper, Avis and WPP.
started migrating more applications to the cloud. Sherry
With offices in the UK, US and Romania, the company
states that the SD-WAN technology was new and
delivers services to almost 100 countries globally today.
offered a new way, using the cloud, to connect networks
Having received several international business awards
more easily, flexibly and securely than previously
and accreditations in 2020, Xalient feels honoured to be
possible, at a fraction of the cost. Networks were largely
listed sixth in Dun & Bradstreet's 2021 Fastest-Growing
unchanged in design and delivery over 15 years, and
Tech Companies report. Sherry Vaswani, Founder and
Sherry was aware that businesses desperately wanted
CEO, leads Xalient through her expertise and talent for
viable alternatives to the traditional players and had a
developing the best innovative business solutions.
clear vision.
Dreams Coming True
Sherry says, “I wanted to create a company that would
Sherry Vaswani started her first business venture back in
offer that alternative model, specializing in new cloud
55
“
Harnessing the power of AI is a game-
changer for Xalient in how we manage
global networks and their security.
Powerful, predictive analytics and new,
self-healing capabilities mark a new
“
era of cloud networking, keeping our
customers connected, secure and fit for the future
Sherry Vaswani
www.xalient.com 56
technologies, where building and managing networks
footprint. Convincing such giant companies that a UK-
are fast, reliable, high performing and above all, future-
based start-up could be trusted to manage their global
proof and resilient.”
network sounds already a complicated task. Sherry took
Sherry's idea was to compete head-to-head with global
on this challenge by perseverance, focus and passion.
players but with an alternative proposition defined by
Here, the power of one's network becomes evident, as
Xalient's deep specialism, responsiveness, flexibility and
Sherry gained support from people who trusted her and
customer focus. Sherry's happiness and pride are evident
her work from experience. Thus, with a well-tested
as she reflects on how the idea worked out and just a few
proposition, and a first-class team, Sherry had the core
years on, she is the CEO of a successful global business,
makings of a successful business. Sherry highlights
with multi-million revenues and a portfolio of prestigious
Xalient's first major global client, Kellogg's back in 2016,
global brands, with customers that welcomed the
and proudly says that they remain one of their major
different, disruptive approach and want the company to
clients today.
be successful. Stairway to Success A Strong Heart and Focus is What a Business Demands
According to Sherry, the key to transformational
The initial lesson that Sherry learned was to have an
leadership is having a clear view of the start point, end
unwavering focus on her end game -believing that it is
goal and a roadmap to get there, which should be simple
easy to get distracted from the main goal and thus one
and easy to understand. Armed with that, she believes
should learn how to say no and to delegate.
that the next vital step is to communicate your vision
As Sherry mentions, building a business is a high-
very clearly, and often, to everyone, showing the part
pressure job, and not for the faint-hearted since there
they will play and the value that achieving success will
are tremendous highs and just as many lows, particularly
deliver. Sherry reiterates that getting buy-in from your
in the initial phase. Sherry has consistently tried to
team and ensuring they will be there at every step of the
savour these by celebrating the wins, learning from the
way is critical to success. Hence, being a strong
mistakes, constantly being prepared to challenge the
communicator, a team builder, team player and a
status quo, and finding new innovative ways to do things.
s t r a t e g i c t h i n k e r, a r e a l l c r i t i c a l s k i l l s f o r
Sherry asks people to not wait until they need to
transformational leaders in Sherry Vaswani's words.
innovate or change and make it intrinsic in the business. As the world is moving fast, no business can afford to
Xalient: Innovation and Collaboration as the Core
stand still for long, especially in technology. As a leader,
Strengths
Sherry would always keep this in mind.
Like most tech companies, innovation is absolutely core to Xalient's long-term success. Sherry elaborates the
Do You Have Your People?
process as continuous and collaborative, managed
One of the significant challenges for Sherry was getting
through an Innovation Board, with the partners and
the right people around her, who shared similar vision,
customers, and engaging with industry experts such as
values and ambition. Another was to persuade a
Gartner and IDC as valuable sounding boards to ensure
customer to buy the services and gain those critical early
that it directs investments in the best possible way. As
references. Sherry reveals that, for Xalient, it was even
well as this, Xalient engages with academic institutions,
more difficult as its target market comprised entirely
for example, it currently has a multi-year partnership
large enterprises, specifically those with a multinational
with the University of Bradford in the UK where they
57
combine their teams of data scientists to exploit the
market, spurred on by so many companies increasing
potential of AI/ML in network management. Sherry is
their investment in transformation, especially in
sure that this collaboration with all stakeholders has
networks and cyber security, as a response to the
been the key to Xalient's successful service innovation.
pandemic. Sherry says this will increase the competition
Last year, Xalient developed a “first of type solution”, Iris,
and hence, Xalient's challenge is to stay ahead of the
that adapts SD-WAN technology for high-speed trains.
curve, maintaining an edge through flawless delivery and
The company also launched a breakthrough AI-driven
constant innovation. For instance, Sherry considers
network monitoring solution, Martina, that predicts
progressing the company's investments in AI and more
network behaviour, spots anomalies and applies fixes
generally in new solutions and services as a method to
before they are visible to, or adversely impact, a business.
stay in a competitive edge. Sherry confidently states that
Sherry says that the company has focused too on
Xalient's customers are its best references and the
commercial innovation, offering delivery models that
company's task is to make sure it stays that way so the
use Opex rather than Capex, something proving
company can continue to grow at an above-average
attractive to many companies in the post-pandemic
market rate. Sherry is excited about her company and its
economy.
growth ambitions and the dynamic industry in which Xalient operates - and reassured that she has a brilliant
Say Yes to Disruptive Techs and Automation
team and set of clients with whom those ambitions can be
Sherry reveals that the cloud has driven the business at
realised.
Xalient as old data centre and office-based network models have been eroded, IoT growth has exploded, and
Authenticity is the Key
remote working is here to stay. Enterprises are now
Sherry asks budding leaders to always be authentic,
accelerating their digital transformations to meet the
irrespective of gender. However, for women, she feels it
demands of the post-Covid world, with a definite focus
is important to understand that being clear and
on automation, harnessing the power of AI and machine
disciplined in business does not mean trying to be macho
learning. As Sherry puts it, leaders must invest time to
and aggressive. Sherry believes that women do not need
understand all new disruptive technologies and then
to be pushy or loud to succeed. Intuition, nurturing and
encourage their teams to constantly ask how it could
emotional intelligence are assets that differentiate
benefit the business or a customer's business. Never stop
leaders, according to her and thus adding rational
learning and challenging, repeats Sherry.
analysis to this mix will enable a powerful winning formula. Lastly, she urges young leaders to be aware of
Staying Ahead of the Curve
their strengths and weaknesses, and balance this with
Xalient is operating in a high-growth sector of the
the team they build.
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