For the fifth year in a row, powered by GIZ, HTEC celebrated the International Girls in ICT Day with the aim to encourage and inspire young girls to consider pursuing their careers in ever-growing world of ICT.
The Information and Communications Technology (ICT) field has long been making an impact in science and technology. Yet, there is the stigma that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) are strongly considered a man’s world.
Girls in ICT Day: Bridging the Gender Digital Divide
We need to ask ourselves: Why don’t young girls pursue careers that promote ICT opportunities?
As we are all part of the fourth industrial revolution, it is critical that both men and women are equally skilled, qualified, and represented in these disciplines if we are to really make a change. And, this issue needs to be addressed from an early age.
This is why HTEC strives to inspire and acknowledge the importance of women in the ICT field and the value they can bring to the industry. We support innovative solutions in education and STEM programmes that would allow young women to overcome barriers to meet their potential and shine on their road to success. Our doors are always open to young women who are yet to decide on their careers.
Girls in ICT Day is celebrated globally every fourth day of the fourth week in the fourth month of the year. It aims to create a global environment that empowers girls and young women to consider pursuing careers in the growing field of information and communication technologies (ICT).
Together with GIZ (German Society for International Cooperation) and within their “Professional Orientation in Serbia” project, HTEC joined the movement five years ago and has since hosted dozens of high schools and university students.
Each year, this event took place in person. Young girls visited offices in Belgrade and Niš where our female colleagues from engineering, design, HR, finance, and marketing departments shared the stories of their education, work experiences, career development, and their current responsibilities. They also unveiled what it looks like to work in an IT company on a day to day basis.
During the last year’s event that took place online, six of our colleagues shared their stories from HTEC with 70 girls and their professors and answered the girls’ questions about their education and career paths.
HTEC Celebrates: Girls in ICT Day 2021
For the fifth year in a row, in collaboration with GIZ, HTEC celebrated the International Girls in ICT Day this year as well. The event took place online. It hosted girls from 7 local technical and grammar schools and introduced them to different positions women occupy in the ICT industry.
All the girls who took part in the DECIDE project initiated by GIZ had a chance to meet our ambitious and successful female colleagues from various departments like finance, project management, legal, data science, design and quality assurance who chose their career paths in the ICT field. The girls had a chance to hear more about the company itself, interesting projects and its work processes. Also, our colleagues shared their first-hand experience when it comes to their education, professional development and the positions they currently occupy in HTEC company.
They also emphasised how important it is to continually work on personal and professional development and learn something new on a daily basis to keep up with the trends that keep changing at enormous speed in the ICT field. They encouraged girls to always be curious, motivated and persistent and never to miss a chance to apply for a job even if that particular position may first seem inadequate for them. They pointed out that working in ICT is dynamic and creative, and that its team spirit, positive atmosphere and thriving working environment inspire and motivate everyone to show their maximum potential.
Our colleagues have voiced how impactful this program is, as it lifts up the positive spirit of the young girls, inspiring them to step into the world of ICT.
Girls’ Power: Moving Forward
We know that change doesn’t happen overnight. But we try to provide our experiences and obstacles we had to overcome to realise our career aspirations. We hope this way we will encourage young girl talents to step into the amazing world of ICT.
We realize that by empowering the women, we empower whole societies. But we need to keep in mind that the drivers of the change are each and every one of us. Only together can we make steps that count.
To learn more about the GIZ project DECIDE and our collaboration and mutual commitment to support young women to pursue their careers in ICT, read Nedeljnik’s article.
At HTEC, we are committed to advancing gender equality both in the workplace and in society. To learn more about our female experts and their career development, read about our women in tech, Aniko Kovac Krnjajic and Jovana Mitic.
If you’re interested in a career at HTEC, visit our careers page.
