More than 100 people and teams across the North West have been nominated for this year’s TalkTalk Women in Tech Awards. The event, back bigger and better this November for its second year, celebrates the achievements of women working in the technology sector across the region.
The TalkTalk North West Women in Tech awards will take place at First Street Bar and Kitchen on Wednesday 2 November. The evening is by invitation only. It will be hosted by Tristia Harrison, CEO of TalkTalk, and awards will be handed out by entrepreneur Gary Neville.
Nominations were invited from the public this summer across six award categories: Rising Star, Innovation / Innovator, Tech for Good, Mentor of the year, Team of the year, Outstanding Achievement
A winner in each category will be announced on the awards night itself, however the range and breadth of people put forward shows the depth of female tech talent across our region. Everyone who was nominated is listed below.
RISING STAR
Alison Chiwara, Charlene Chigumira, Farhana Fatima Khan, Flóra Harai, Hannah Atherton, Hannah Hammonds, Hannah Venning, Mahalakshmi Iyer, Jade Oakley, Jen Openshaw, Jigyasa Grover, Juliana Ferreira, Katie Din, Kay Vose, Kimberley Dearlove, Kira O’Donoghue, Lauren Edmondson,
Lauren Williams, Manisha Varu, Niomie Haynes, Omotosho Mary Pelumi, Rachel Inskip, Ruby Melling, Sally Davis, Sameenah Patel, Sarah Pates, Simone Heilman, Sophia Ben-Yousef, Victoria Hanley, Yas Soto, Yasmin Sidat, Yun Chen
INNOVATION
Beckie Taylor, Camilla Ellerton, Claire Bailey, Danielle Summers, Karen Snape
TECH FOR GOOD
Cheryl Stevens MBE, Claire Rawlinson, Emma-Louise Fusari, Georgia Wheedon, Hannah Drake,
InnovateHer, Judy Leung, Kelly Widdicks, Laura Pomfret and Holly Holland, Maram Yehiah, Marie Dandy, Melissa Church, Neha Garg, Rebecca Mahoney, Roxy Lawton, Sara Wilcock, Tech Returners
MENTOR
Alexandra Brown, Amanda Newman, Amber Keats, August Aldred, Beckie Taylor, Cath Trotter, Debbie Street, Emily Winter, Emma Price, Georgiana Baragan, Jo Sheerin, Julie King, Kelly Widdicks,
Laura Derbyshire, Lisa Armstrong, Lucy Bushby, Lucy Yiasoumi, Mand Cashin, Ronah Solon, Samantha Mitcham, Varuna Venkatesh
TEAM
ACE Team at Pets at Home, Manchester Tech Festival, KPMG, Tech Returners, Digital Everyone, Manufacturing Alliance, InnovateHer, Manchester Metropolitan University, BAE Systems, JJ Smith Woodworking and Machinery, Skills City team
OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
Alice Spreckley, Beckie Taylor, Bijal Majithia, Elena Gifford, Gill Parry, Hannah Lewis, Jen Henson-Fisher, Jennifer Openshaw, Joeli Brearley, Kimberley Jackson-Diskin, Lalita D’Cruze, Laura Herbert,
Mhairi Davidson, Philippa Glover, Rachel Gregory, Rebecca Stephenson, Sarah Swallow, Seónaid Lafferty, Tiffany Thorn
The judges tasked with choosing this year’s winners are:
- Debbie Brown, Strategic Director of Service Reform – Salford Council
- Maja Borota-Nedic, Director of Engineering – Booking.com
- Lou Cordwell OBE, Chief Creative Officer – Magnetic; Director – ID Manchester and Chair – GM LEP
- Professor Helen Marshall, Vice Chancellor – The University of Salford
- Katie Prescott, Technology Business Editor – The Times
- Vikas Shah MBE, entrepreneur, philanthropist, University of Manchester Honorary Professor and CEO Swiscot Group
- Naomi Timperley, co-founder – Tech North Advocates, Manchester Tech Festival and in Computer Weekly’s top 50 Most Influential Women in UK IT
- Rebecca Wearn– Senior Broadcast journalist – BBC
