This conversation covers the career progression and transition of Sarah Hall, the experience of imposter syndrome, and valuable leadership lessons.

Sarah shares her journey from recruitment to learning and development, discussing the challenges of work-life balance and the decision to start her own business. The discussion also delves into the concept of imposter experience, its impact on women, and the valuable leadership lessons learned throughout Sarah's career. The conversation delves into the themes of learning from mistakes, enabling and empowering others, pride in career success, career transitions and alignment, and advice to a younger self.

Sarah and Lucy discuss the importance of learning from mistakes, enabling and empowering individuals, finding pride in career success, making career transitions, and providing advice to a younger self.

Takeaways

• Imposter Experience
• Leadership Lessons Learning from mistakes
• The joy of enabling and empowering others

Chapters

• 00:00 Career Progression and Transition
• 10:43 Imposter Experience
• 17:33 Valuable Leadership Lessons
• 21:10 Learning from Mistakes
• 22:04 Enabling and Empowering Others
• 23:29 Pride in Career Success
• 29:28 Career Transitions and Alignment
• 37:39 Advice to Younger Self

Hosted by Lucy Rider

We hope you enjoy this one as much as we did!

We hear her experience of moving to the UK from India 8 years ago, her upbringing and some of the cultural differences coupled with parent expectations and the educational system.

Astha talks about her non-negotiables when returning to work after maternity and how she juggles such a demanding career path alongside being a mother.

If you are on your own journey to becoming an Architect, want to hear what it's like to grow up in India and move to the UK, or how a senior female leader juggles work & family life... this one's for you! Enjoy the episode. 

Leigh

This week we're join by Hannah Johnston. 

Since joining Slimming World in December 2021, Hannah has built and now leads the entire Cyber Security Team. With a wealth of experience and a proven track record in cybersecurity leadership, she shares valuable insights into the industry and her journey.

This week we are joined by Angelene Woodland Singleton, Chief Marketing Officer at British Business Bank. Angelene is a respected digital and customer transformation leader, board executive, and NED, bringing a wealth of experience from working at the forefront of strategic change.

A very honest account of how she moved from France to the UK, had to start from scratch on her journey into Technology. Jenny struggled with her English language and building a connection when first coming over here, so started waitressing to develop her conversational style. She bombed her first couple of tech interviews, but then landed her first tech job at Bupa and is now flourishing in her career.

Jenny opens up about the importance of communication skills, how to seek feedback and who to seek it from, keeping her '4 burners' lit and what makes a good manager in the tech industry.

The Women in Tech Perspective - Series 2 Ep.3 Featuring Jennie Johnson MBE, CEO at My First Five Years and Founder of Kids Allowed

The Women in Tech Perspective - Series 2 Ep.4 Featuring Muna Khan, Technology Leader in Business & Digital Transformation

This week were joined by Paula Carter 

Paula is a Strategic and Business Transformation Leader and Founder of Inicio Success Ltd. With over 25 years of experience across digital and business transformation, she has a proven track record of helping organisations navigate complex change, unlock growth, and deliver results that last.

Paula has held senior roles across both public and private sectors, including the Ministry of Justice, Department for Education, BT, and global manufacturing, leading multi-million-pound contracts, major technology and business transformations, and building high-performing teams across the UK, Europe, and India.

Through Inicio Success Ltd, Paula specialises in turning ambition into action, helping businesses tackle operational, people, and transformation challenges with clarity, collaboration, and measurable impact. Known for her energy, empathy, and tenacity, she combines strategic vision with genuine human connection to inspire teams, build momentum, and create sustainable change.

• Hannah’s love for an entrepreneurial environment
• The change in the property landscape in Manchester over the last 10-15 years
• The real juggle of being a leader in a successful business and getting the balance of having two young children
• The emotional rollercoaster of being a Manchester United fan!

This was a really insightful episode, as we hear how Az parents his son & daughter equally, what he feels WiT allyship really means, how he supports his team at work and what he thinks the future of Women in Tech should shape up to be.

Steph is a Director of the North East England Chamber of Commerce, and recently ended her tenure as Non-Executive Director of The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Steph is an integral part of her local community. She’s been a leader with Girlguiding UK for over three decades and holds the position of Chair at the Eliot Smith Dance Company.  Steph recently served as co-chair of The Angelou Centre; a Newcastle-based charity led by black women. The Centre offers training, counselling, and refuge support to those who need it most. 

As the founder of the ‘Black All Year’ podcast and associated events, Steph uses the platform to amplify black voices. She highlights the challenges that the community faces, as well as celebrating their success and achievements. 

In 2022, Steph was named Transformational Leader at the Northern Power Women Awards.

• Her career journey and the steps that led to her current role.
• Key achievements she's most proud of throughout her career.
• Her perspective on often being the only woman in the room and how this has influenced her professional experiences.
• Valuable leadership lessons she’s gained along the way.
• Why she believes team building is essential to effective leadership.
• Insights on the global push to encourage young women into STEM fields—and why retention in the sector continues to be a challenge.
• The story behind her book, including the inspiration for the characters Steve and Marcus.

We learn the differences between Project Management and Process Management and how important it is to invest in yourself to deepen your technical understanding. Listen to Ana's tips on identifying stakeholder management skills at interview stage and what she looks for in a candidate when hiring into her Tech Project Management team at Cloobees. 

Ana shares her journey from the Republic of Moldova to the UK, having only intended to visit on holiday and accepted a new role after just 1 week of being here and caught the London bug!

There's also hear an eye-opening story about how a client told her to 'bring in the male decision maker to get this project moving'... ENJOY!

This is Part 1 of our discussion with Ruth Bucknell, VP of Experience Design at Dentsu and her colleague Sarah Painter, VP of Experience Marketing.

You'll hear their perspective on how we attract more females to technology, how their early careers shaped their leadership role today, how the pandemic has shifted customer expectation, what true WiT allyship looks like and we also discuss what opportunities there are for females in technology in 2023 (AND that's just Part 1!!).

We hope you enjoy this one as much as we did!

This week were joined by Jane Cryer

Jane Cryer is the founder of Leadfully and an experienced executive coach, leadership consultant, and facilitator. With nearly two decades in leadership development, she helps leaders overcome barriers, build confidence, and create impactful, compassionate cultures.

This week we are joined by Hannah Spencer, Head of Finance Transformation at News UK. 

This week we are joined by Jinny Mitchell-Kent, Joint Managing Director at Great Estate.