Though I have not come from a traditional tech or STEM background, I have developed a keen interest in technology. The big question is: What value can I add to the tech economy without those credentials?
It’s true I never really had much interest in technology growing up, even though I was constantly surrounded by it. It wasn’t until my business career collided with e-commerce that I realised that, in fact, I was very interested. And a chance encounter with some extraordinary women at the forefront of Australia’s high-tech industry provided a light-bulb moment. I decided this is where I want to play.
Technology gadgets were a regular feature in our house
My dad is known by family and friends as a ‘gadget man’. He was one of the very first mobile phone users in Australia, with a small handset mounted to his car dashboard. It wasn’t until he upgraded to a nifty over-the-shoulder number a decade later that I realised his car phone was actually powered by the huge metal box mounted under the dash!
When I was a kid, dad travelled to Hong Kong a fair bit and, at Christmas following one such trip, Santa gave me a tape deck Walkman – I was the envy of all my school friends. And one year, dad arrived home with a new Hi-Fi system sporting a CD payer at a time when CDs were as rare as hens teeth in Australia.
He used to regale us with the story of his purchasing decision. He was ‘this’ close to choosing the digital tape player but he had a gut feeling that digital tape wasn’t a robust enough product. Digital tape seemed to him to be an interim technology and he felt CDs would win the market in the future … I have to give him credit, he had good intuition for that sort of thing!
As a kid, I enjoyed lots of neat techno-gadgets - we even had a Pong console that we'd hook up to the old portable telly. But I wasn't really interested in the technology on any level beyond being a consumer.
My family had all the tech nous
I was surrounded with tech-nuts growing up: my dad with his gadget fetish; my brothers who loved to pull things apart to figure out how they worked; my uncle who was an electrical and sound engineer; and my cousin who became a pretty awesome software engineer.
Despite their enthusiasm and animated discussions about the latest and greatest, their interest in all things tech didn’t rub off on me. I wanted to be a business woman and I figured all I needed was to learn to touch type on mum’s state-of-the-art Olivetti electronic typewriter, save files onto floppy disks and, a few years later, navigate a PC.
My pathway for studies, and my subsequent career, was very much down the business track. I had gained an appreciation for learning about cultural nuances as an exchange student to Sweden, age 16, and figured tourism would be an ideal industry for me. In pursuit of this goal, I completed my Bachelor of Business in Travel and Tourism Management.
I was a bit late to the party
If you’ve read my post about My Story: An unconventional career, you’ll be aware that my early career was very much hospitality-based. Tourism was always a backdrop to what I was doing and I had every intention of continuing to tap into the industry. When I branched away from hospitality it led me to Entertainment Publications, which is a dining activities and accommodation guide.
In 2007, I was presented the opportunity to set up an e-commerce division within the analogue business, transforming the existing accommodation booking program to an online booking platform. My interest in technology was awakened.
After tendering, scoping, planning data and reporting requirements, designing the process flow and user interface, testing in the UAT environment and scoping an integrated bookkeeping module, I was hooked. I wasn’t an engineer but I loved working with them and seeing my business case come to life!
Diving into my own tech startup
So, I may have been somewhat late to the party but, when I finally got there, I was energised and totally fascinated with technology’s potential to super charge business outcomes. I started becoming aware of how technology was rapidly changing the world and its fundamental economic structure. I began to understand that technology opened up possibilities for completely new and innovative business models, not just lifestyle gadgets and tools to hasten productivity.
With my new found enthusiasm, I jumped at the opportunity to quit my secure, well-paid job and jump into the unknown and fraught world of the tech start-up! My partner brought the tech nous and I contributed the business smarts. I was pretty chuffed when we won kudos at Anthill Magazine’s Cool Company Awards as one of Australia’s ‘Coolest’ businesses under the Innovation category.
This success opened the door for an advantageous merger with RivusTV, the company that had developed the video streaming technology our little startup was leveraging. After being installed as COO, I operationalised the new strategy and business model into the rivusTV business enabling it to pitch as a pre-IPO.
Unfortunately, the Board decided in-house legal skills were needed to navigate that next phase and, being a bootstrapped enterprise, there wasn’t room for both of us. So, my endeavours at the pointy end of tech took a slight detour for a number of years. Although my roles continued to encompass some tech-related elements and I kept my ear to the ground through my networks.
A chance encounter crystallised my aspirations
In late 2019, I attended the Women in Tech. Fest in Brisbane. At the time I had strategic oversight of technology at Hub Australia, a coworking provider, and I was particularly interested in a speaker who was presenting on PropTech. That objective was thrown out the window after listening to the other compelling presenters on day one.
I was completely unprepared for the impact Sue Keay, Research Director for Cyber-Physical Systems at CSIRO’s Data61, would have on me. I was blown away by her world, the work that she was doing and the potential for the technologies she spoke about. I felt an palpable shift in the warp and weft of my universe. My future had just been re-written and high-tech was going to be at the centre of it.
That was backed up by The Hon Karen Andrews MP, Federal Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, speaking about some of the super-cool initiatives being undertaken by cutting edge technology companies in Australia. And her assurances that Australia is leading the world in remote technologies such as mining and medicine but that we have a limited window of opportunity to consolidate our skills and ensure we stay competitive.
And then there was Karen Lay-Brew, Managing Director at the Australian Business Software Industry Association, who encouraged participants to get involved with shaping the future of Australia’s technology economy by actively seeking a seat at the table on boards, committees or industry panels that provide recommendations to government on ethical, legal, regulatory and standards issues.
It had never crossed my mind before that moment that I could get involved in such a fundamental way to influence Australia’s technological future. But now that the possibility had been raised, I knew that I wanted to combine my governance experience with my passion for technology and find a way to contribute.
So, what value can I add without STEM credentials?
Another takeaway I left the Women in Tech. Fest with was that the industry needs all sorts of skills and perspectives to ensure its success. The tech industry, like any other, is an ecosystem and requires input from various disciplines to thrive. I was in awe of the intimidating array of talented women at the conference, both presenters and audience participants. But I had a very strong sense that my commercial skills were just as relevant as the advanced AI, mechatronics, cybersecurity and doctoral research skills of those I was networking with at the event.
Leadership was another major topic at the conference and, to my surprise, I discovered that my skills in this area were quite advanced in comparison to many of my esteemed counterparts. Many of these highly talented people had not had a need to develop such skills to advance their prodigious careers. Whereas my career had progressed largely on the strength of my leadership capabilities.
Another key expertise I bring to the technology table is governance. I know the fundamentals required to gain investor confidence, increase business valuation and commercialise an innovative idea. A technology with the most awesome potential can fail if the governance and accountability frameworks, operational policies and processes, or workplace culture are not set up to support its success.
So, you see, I can add a lot of value to the tech economy without STEM credentials.
What value can you add? Contact me if you want advice on how you too can contribute to ensuring the success of Australia’s technological future.