'˜Techie' who faced rascism and sexism in the workplace working to get more women into technology

TANJA LICHTENSTEIGER was just eight years old when she started coding.

Now, 20 years on, she is leading software development at Leeds Beckett University and has been nominated for a top women in technology award.

Although Tanja, who is half Swiss and half Filipino, has been commended for her work to try to get more girls and women into technology, she says there is still a worrying shortage of females going into the industry.

“I am worried about the number of women wanting to come into the sector,” says Tanja.

“Women just aren’t applying for the jobs and with an increase in technology there is likely to be a skills shortage unless something is done.”

Tanja believes the industry needs to make itself more attractive to women, and schools need to do more to encourage girls to take up technology subjects such as computer science.

Tanja was introduced to coding at school in south-east Asia, where her family travelled extensively as she was growing up due to her father’s career as an engineer.

“I thought it was really cool,” says the 34-year-old, who moved to Leeds when she was 20.

“They made it very much like a game and I just loved it.” A couple of years later she was introduced to robotics.

“I thought this is really for me. At such a young age I suddenly realised I had the power to control a machine, something which I thought was only for grown-ups. I didn’t care that I was one of only two girls taking the subject in a class of 30 boys.”

But rather than go to university, at the age of 16 Tanja took the unusual step of embarking on an apprenticeship in the IT department of one of the largest supermarket chains in Switzerland.

“It was an amazing experience gaining skills on the job, but I had to overcome racism and sexism, which were an obstacle while being the only female and non-white person in a department of 120.

“On my first day someone asked me what I was doing in the IT department. They asked if I was lost as the cleaners were downstairs. They just didn’t believe me and I had to get my security badge out to prove it.”

But rather than being put
off by the prejudice she has faced, it made Tanja more determined.

“The challenges just made me more determined and I have grown to be multi- faceted.

“I have also had to learn to be more extrovert, as I am naturally quite a shy person.”

Tanja moved to the UK and Leeds 14 years ago.

“My little brother wanted to study engineering and Leeds was one of the best universities to do that and so I decided to apply for a job there.

“Most people who move to the UK seem to live in London but I didn’t want to do that. I’d spent a lot of time living in Jakarta and Manila and I wanted to live somewhere where hills and the countryside were close by and Leeds fitted the bill.”

She landed a job at the then Leeds Met University, now Leeds Beckett, as an analyst and over the last 14 years has worked her way up to a business system team leader.

Tanja , who lives in Horsforth, Leeds, could command a far higher salary in the corporate world but it is not something that attracts her.

“Few things are as satisfying to me as watching our university students graduate, knowing full well that the systems we built helped them gain a foundation for their career, which could potentially shape all our futures,” she says.

“She is also passionate about getting more women into the industry she clearly loves.

The number of women working in the technology sector currently remains low at just 16 per cent. A recent study found that the two main barriers preventing women entering the industry were a shortfall in support for female progression in the workplace and a lack of female role models.

“I really hope things have improved. It does feel like they have but at the same time where have all the women gone?

“We recently tried to recruit for a post and not one woman applied. I was really surprised.

“Women before me have built a path for me to follow and my aim was to build a path for others to follow me, but they just don’t seem to be there.”

Tanja says the industry must look to itself.

“Women need to feel that there are opportunities and career progression and that they will feel comfortable working in this industry.”

She says there are still too many industries where women are under-represented and this gives the wrong message to
girls looking to make career choices.

“The gender pay gap is another issue that has to be resolved if we are encourage more women into the industry.”

Parents also have a part to play in encouraging girls to take up STEM subjects or those traditionally labelled as boys’ subjects at school.

Tanja is far from being a stereotypical ‘techie’.

When not working she is incredibly active.

When I meet her she has just been to the gym with her boyfriend and is making plans to go a climbing wall on her day off the following day.

She is also a power lifter and a purple belt in jiu jitsu.

“I like challenging myself,” says Tanja. “The job I do is very much in the mind and I like to stay physically fit as I think it helps my mental health as
well. I am always thinking at 100 miles an hour and doing something physical really helps me.”

And she is determined to try to get more women into technology industries as we rely more heavily on them in all aspects of our life.

“Technology is the future and it worries me that it is a future built by men. We need to address this sooner rather than later,” says Tanja.

Tanja is one of three finalists in the Team Leader Award category – sponsored by American Express. It is part of the FDM everywoman in Technology award

A total of 39 women have been named as finalists in the eighth annual FDM everywoman in Technology Awards – celebrating the brightest individuals changing the face of technology in the UK and beyond.

This year’s theme “Inspiring Tomorrow’s World” highlights the importance of encouraging women to study STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) subjects from a young age and motivating them to pursue fulfilling, long-term careers in technology.

The finalists were hand-picked from a record-breaking number of entries by a panel of the UK’s most senior technology leaders. The 2018 winners in 13 categories will be announced on Thursday, February 8, at The London Hilton on Park Lane.