Yes – finally putting this idea to life!
I will just jump right to the point – I think we need more places where we as Women in Technology can meet. That is low-key. Where we actually get the time and place to talk. Inspire each other. Learn from each other. Mentor each other.
So, I want to try and create that space. With a semi-regular lunch IRL in Oslo.
Who can join?
- You identify as a woman
- You are working in tech
- You are close enough to Oslo to join a lunch once a month
- You are looking for other awesome techies that you can have great discussions with, learn from and motivate!
Why am I doing this?
I am lucky enough to be on the organizing committee of Microsoft Data Platform User Group Norway and Data Saturday Oslo. Here I see that there are more male speakers and attendees than female. Why is that?
- Anyone who works closely with me knows that I always nag about speaking opportunities and meetups. Still, I don’t see the changes I want happening as fast as I want them to. Is it because I am not reaching broad enough? Hopefully, this is a way to reach more of you and inspire you to join the data community.
- I get a lot of my technical input from social media as LinkedIn and Twitter. This is also where I often discover events, meetups and opportunities to present and meet other techies. So what if I did not follow the “right people” on these social media? Would I not get all these opportunities then? Let’s, therefore, connect so we can give each other tips on tech updates and events to attend!
- I see that there are more male attendees than females at meetups and conferences. I wonder if that might be because we are missing someone to attend with. I rarely see multiple females attending together. I, therefore, hope this group will connect us so we can attend together!
- Also, I see that men in general are great at letting each other know that they are performing well. They are so good at saying “You are doing a great job, Buddy”. Loud. At the coffee station. Or in the comments on social media. Let’s build a group where we can do more of this! I think we as Norwegian females got something to learn from our male colleagues here. Let’s try and be a bit louder in general, and also when we cheer each other on.
- Let’s be each other’s Kitchen cabinet! I got this advice from a WIT lunch at PASS in 2022, and I love it. “Kitchen cabinet” refers to any group of trusted friends and associates, particularly in reference to a president’s or presidential candidate’s closest unofficial advisers (Wikipedia). I am hoping this could be an arena to build kitchen cabinets of trusted advisors that can give advice, help and support when needed. Hopefully, it will help you keep on going, and gain confidence and strength when needed.
- And, I want to give a shout-out to Deborah Melkin and her blog A Woman in SQL 2023 where she digs into the numbers and basically says We need to be doing more. Reading that blog post was the last nudge I needed to – just do this! Thank you!
How can you join?
Easy. Just sign up through THIS FORM.
Please notice that your email will be collected so that I can send out a calendar invite for the lunch.
And nothing is sponsored. This is just me, inviting you to lunch. Please be prepared to pay for what you want to eat and/or drink.
Details will be provided through the meeting invite sent out to those who sign up through the form, but some information:
- We will be at a cafe close to Oslo central station (depending on how many we will be)
- Prepare to set aside approx an hour for lunch at 1100-1200.
- Date will come with the calendar invite
How can you contribute if you are not a WIT close to Oslo?
If you are working for a company that could sponsor the coffee for this group – please contact me!
If you are a woman that has already made it (you are a leader and/or an acknowledge technical expert) and want to contribute to this group – please contact me!
If you are missing this type of arena, but not living close to Oslo – please contact me. We might be able to work something out.
If you are non of these things – but still want to contribute – please share this blog post with females you think might want to join. My biggest challenge now will be to have this message reach the ones in need of it!
What will this be?
Good question.
I don’t know! It will be what we want it to be. Maybe just a low-key meeting arena. Maybe we will have some sessions where we present on a topic and learn from each other. Maybe we will connect, become friends, and then the need for this group will no longer be there – at least for a while. Or maybe this will be the new WITs only Norwegian Order of Freemasons.
It is up to us!
Data Ascend 
Leave a Reply