Initially, I aimed to be just another technical co-founder and preferred to stay behind the scenes, avoiding the spotlight and public discussions. I often felt that my opinions were irrelevant and not worth sharing publicly. I believed that simply having an opinion didn’t justify speaking up.
Women in Tech Leadership Roles
However, as I engaged in conversations with friends and colleagues, I realized that my position came with a responsibility to address certain issues. One significant issue is my role as a female CTO co-founder. During a recent discussion with a friend, it struck me how remarkable it is that women in the U.S. only gained the right to vote a little over a century ago, in 1920. Despite entering the workforce in large numbers starting in the 1940s, women still do not occupy 50% of major stakeholder positions in significant businesses. It’s rare to see half of the countries at the UN led by women, and it’s even more uncommon to find an Asian woman serving as a technical co-founder.
Throughout my career, I’ve had several coaching calls with other industry leaders.
Inevitably, they asked if being a woman had affected my ability to lead or altered others’ perceptions of me. I understood that these questions were not intended to be discriminatory but rather considered gender as one of many factors. Nevertheless, it bothered me that my gender should matter at all. This question shouldn’t even arise. That’s when I realized that to normalize women in technical leadership positions, I couldn’t remain passive and silent. I needed to speak up.
I firmly believe that leadership positions should be awarded based on experience and merit, regardless of gender. However, the image of today’s leaders serves as an inspirational model for the youth. On several occasions, when I revealed that I was a female technical co-founder, I sensed hesitation from the other side. I despise the notion that my gender or appearance should influence business discussions.
Despite my inclination to stay quiet and focus solely on technology, I recognized the importance of using my position at OdeCloud to inspire young girls. I want to show them that they, too, can be successful and not limit themselves. This realization motivated me to start writing on behalf of OdeCloud. My co-founders and I founded this company with the belief that we could make the world a better place through our resilience and determination. We wanted to be the change we wished to see.
Through my work, I hope to demonstrate that women can excel in technical leadership roles and to encourage a more inclusive and diverse future in the tech industry.
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