She Will Innovate: Technology Solutions Enriching the Lives of Girls.
Intel Corporation and Changemakers recently launched She Will Innovate: Technology Solutions Enriching the Lives of Girls.This challenge is designed to promote information and communication technology solutions that improve the lives of girls and women. We are looking for programs that break down barriers to ICT access, ideas that accelerate digital literacy, and projects that use ICT to empower women to lead better lives.
We think that Hive Colab might be a good fit for the competition and we encourage you to submit an entry! In addition, please do help us pass on the word to others who you think might be a good fit!
Three prizes of $10,000 each are available to the entries that bestdemonstrate innovation, impact, and sustainability. Entries submitted before July 18, 2012 are also eligible for an Early Entry Prize of $500. The final deadline for entries is August 15, 2012 at 5 PM EST.
But it’s not just about prize money—participants in Changemakers competitions can also receive exposure for their idea, build connections toothers in this field, and learn and share best practices with one another.
To learn more and submit an entry, visit us at http://www.changemakers.com/girltech and follow along on twitter using #girltech.
Getting your worth, Know you Value!
We would like to pass on our thanks to all who attended ”getting your worth, know your value“ which was co-hosted with Hive Colab on Friday 29th June 2012. This was our fourth event of the year and was extremely successful! Special thanks go to Hive Colab for kindly hosting the event with us. Our keynote speakers, Juanita Ntambi Billing officer at ORANGE Uganda and Barbara Birungi Managing director of HIVE COLAB and our Q&A panelists: Komuhimbo Sandra from UWONET, Faith Kyateka from HCP, Topista A. Mpora from UNBS and Sarah Ruhukya from CDC.
Many women find themselves failing to get the salary raise they so deserve or the new job appointment they have been working towards achieving simply because they do not believe that they will get it or that they have the right to ask for it. The reason is because they do not know their value and do not know how to ask for it, they are easily intimidated into thinking they are bothering the organization or management by asking, therefore end up letting many opportunities pass them by. If one has worked hard and has the Qualifications and know how of a job why not ask for it? Or if you valuably contribute to the organization and believe you deserve a rise why not ask for it? We discussed and determined that some of the mistakes women make and reasons they fail to ask are:
- Our greatest enemy is ourselves
– Words and actions undermine our goals
– We feel grateful to having been given the opportunity
– We find it hard to advocate for ourselves especially when it comes to money
- You deserve the money
– We are fantastic at telling other people how valuable they are but horrible to do it for ourselves
– Difference between how a man asks for a raise and how women do it
– Lack of confidence that you can actually get it
– The feel sorry for me attitude
– Not knowing the right buttons to press when asking
– Not stating the value you add and why you deserve it in relevance to the organization instead of personal relevance
We discussed how to deal with these issues and solutions below;
- Be fearless
- Know your value and its up to you to get your employer to value you
- Come up with a plan – do not wait for your company to recognize your worth
- Ask in a confident, straight forward way and be ready to walk
- Learn a skill in demand, one that is important to your company
- Give credibility where it is deserved and if it is you, applause yourself Be specific in applause
- Keep going where you face the greatest resistance
- Read up
- Ask yourself how you can improve situation and do not succumb to your past mistakes (Failure is when you succumb to your past mistakes)
- Your friendships matter a lot the people you keep around you matter in your future
- What is your current status? Have friends that matter and have your best interests at heart. People influence each other without noticing each other
- Take time off every week to market yourself, get published, talk about what your have been up to whether at meetings, conferences, workshops. Grow your network meet new people you never know who you are sitting next to at a meeting or networking event. Take your business cards with you, never allow to be caught in a situation where you say’ “sorry I run out of cards” always be prepared
- Show genuine interest in people, listen when they speak and reflect later on.
- Decide what you want to be known for and work towards being exactly that. Be that lady every one knows can do “this” or that”
- LEARN and KEEP LEARNING
- The only person responsible for your career is you!
- Do not dwell on mistakes, Take time to think of where you are, where you are going and how you are going to get there, then do what you need to do to get there!
- Failure is not as bad as we think, its part of learning, helps you wake up so do not beat yourself up so much when you fail, pick yourself up, dust failure off and keep moving and improving
When looking for a job, what Competences and Ideal decision making skills do you need? We listed some of them;
Be fruitful and know how to present yourself
Show your achievements in your application and resumes, do not copy and paste other people’s Cv’s, be ready to defend your skill stated in your CV.
When you are not sure of your competence of a skill required at the new job, show enthusiasm to learn and that you are a fast learner. Do not be rigid.
Show confidence when speaking to the panel or interviewer.
Do not assume they know about you from your CV, talk about yourself and say the best there is about you.
Market yourself to yourself; if it were you interviewing someone presenting him or herself like you are, would you employ them? Branding yourself – know yourself
Talk about your accomplishments, the things you did as an individual
Taking up opportunities that may not seem pleasant at the moment, a job transfer up country may seem like a bad idea but in the Long run contribute to a new job you are applying for that requires one to have worked up country.
Know your profile and Market your skills,
Attitude is everything
Confidence in yourself and what you know you can do
Have a big dream and always expand your boundaries
Grow your network!
Enjoy your week ladies as we prepare for more at our July Meet on the 20th Of JULY which will be at HIVE COLAB.
Related articles
- WITU June Meet up: Getting what you are worth, know your value ! (witug.wordpress.com)
Women In Business
How to be your Personal Best
Written By Ellen Lubin-ShermanAs an executive coach in self-marketing and the author of The Essentials of Fabulous, I write from the vantage point of personal style and packaging. While you may think everyone should be judged on the work they deliver, you’re only half right. You are absolutely judged on the quality of your work but you are also judged on the way you present yourself to the world. Samantha Cameron, wife of Prime Minister David Cameron is an excellent example of a CEO who presents an impeccable image. Prior to her husband becoming Prime Minister, Cameron was credited with repositioning the luxury leather good and stationery Smythson of Bond. Today, she serves as a consultant to the company while maintaining her fashionable and “camera ready” appearance. Polished and elegant, Cameron is a perfect example of accomplishment and style.So let’s consider the qualities that make someone stand out, be memorable, and leave no doubt that you are indeed fabulous – not only because you’re tops at what you do but because you’re also tops at the way you can persuade and mobilise people with your confidence.#1. Get enough sleep.Sleep is essential for looking and feeling your best. Unless you’re the type who can function on five hours of sleep, I strongly recommend a reasonable bedtime of 10pm during at least part of the week to keep your energy and spirits at its highest level.#2. Shop your wardrobe the night before work.I always have an idea in my head of what I’m planning to wear the night before so I’m not frazzled in the morning. While “shopping,” I’m also experimenting with my accessories since they can tweak an outfit in a rather inexpensive way. For example, Accessorize offers inexpensive strands of wood beads that would look sensational with a white shirt and a tailored trouser suit.#3. Clean out your handbag at least once a week.Remove the change from the bottom of the bag, the train tickets, the scribbled notes of things to do and then repack the bag with all the essentials including Listerine breath strips (aside: Listerine did not pay me to write that; I truly think those breath strips are indispensable); pen and small notebook for “eureka” moments that have to be written down; a fresh handkerchief or a small package of tissues; lip moisturiser (can be used on cuticles as well) and a small box of plastic toothpicks to be used in the ladies’ room before a meeting to insure there’s no lettuce or sesame seeds between your teeth.#4. Speaking of food…never eat pasta with tomato sauce or a salad with balsamic dressing when you’re dining with the boss. You will thank me for this advice. #5. Is multi-tasking making you hyper despite the fact you’re brilliant at it? The iPhone offers an app called Schedule Planner. It’s free and frees you from worrying that you’re double-booking a meeting or a conference call.#6. Keep a small travel bag in your office containing a folded and crisp white shirt, travel-sized toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash, shampoo, deodorant, makeup and an extra pair of stockings. Should you unexpectedly be asked to hop onto the Chunnel for an early morning meeting in Paris, you will be ready and confident that you are at your best, last minute scheduling notwithstanding.#7. And since we’re talking about self-marketing…describe yourself in one adjective.Whether it’s tenacity, focus, indomitable, fearless, bold, charming and/or collegial, make sure you own the quality that makes you a standout.
For professional women, the stakes are high as we all want the opportunities and the challenges that we rightfully deserve. But let’s not kid ourselves: In addition to being a super-performer, we also have to create an aura or emit charisma to ensure we’re unstoppable.
Ellen Lubin-Sherman is the author of The Essentials of Fabulous: Because “Whatever” Doesn’t Work Here Anymore:http://essentialsoffabulous.com/
WITU June Meet up: Getting what you are worth, know your value !
Join us this Friday as we discuss and share experiences as Professional women, getting the best out of our jobs and improving ourselves. we shall be talking about;
THEME: Getting What You’re Worth, Know your value
DATE: 29TH JUNE 2012
WHERE: HIVE COLAB
OVERVIEW:
Do you know your value in the workplace? Discover how successful women maximize their earning power, and learn valuable tips to get paid what you’re worth.
Your most valuable asset is you. start the second half of the year right by learning how to better understand your personal worth at our June Forum: Getting What You’re Worth. How do you know what key talents get recognized in your field? How competitively does your individual value rank among your peers? Answers to these questions and more can help make this year a stepping stone toward your goals for a higher income–and realizing your full net worth!
SPEAKERS ARE:
JUANITA NTAMBI ORANGE UGANDA
NINA KTUNGI Senior Business Advisor I CISA | IT Risk & Assurance I Advisory ERNST & YOUNG
WORKSHOP:
We will discuss
What competences one needs when applying for a job and once you have the job, what competences you need to keep that Job and get a promotion.
Is your Salary matching your skill?
How do you grow at your work place, climbing the business ladder?
This is a networking event, come with your business cards, share your story and take some coffee and snack. Bring a friend with you!
PROGRAM COMING SOON!
WITU MarchMeet, Improve a woman’s life, give her an App Apps built by women for women
vWomen in technology Uganda
Theme: Improve a woman’s life, give her an App Apps built by women for women
Date: 16th March
Venue: Mara Foundation Launchpad, Opp Makerere University Main Gate at Tusky’s building, 4thFloor
Time: 5:30-7:30pm
March is a women’s month so we want to focus on what technology can do for a woman, how we can use tech to improve a woman’s life, take a stand build an app that will transform a woman’s life today. It could a health issue that this app tries to solve, change a woman’s life today by enabling her through mobile apps, and enable a woman by a simple tap on her phone. Women are the underutilized assets we posses in Uganda, Let us get things done and not wait on others to come solve our problems. How can you assist a rural woman today, a business woman that is not skilled in Tech, whatever issues you can think of that can aid a woman’s life and improve it? Come for our meet this Friday 16th and lets think together. The winning app will WIN a PRIZE! Let us support our fellow women this month by providing them with something we are good at, Tech! Come with a another lady! Lets build together
please register here for your ticket. http://www.eventbrite.com/event/2992720307
Software Development Workshop – JAMS 2012
- 3 months internships at Grameen Foundation Applab
- Mentorship from leading industry experts
- An evening with the Thoughtworks team
- JDK 1.6 or higher
- JUnit 4
- Latest version of Eclipse
WITU working to bridge the ‘Gender digital divide’ in Uganda
Women in Technology Uganda (WITU), Feb meet up was held on 17th Feb with the theme “Ugandan Women in Technology: Opportunities and Challenges” at Makerere University in Kampala Uganda. Women in Technology is a forum that we founded with a focus is on finding real solutions to the long-standing problems of how to attract, retain and advance more women in the IT industry. Inspiring, leading and influencing the action to increase the number of women in IT The uneven distribution of Information and communication Technologies (ICTs) within societies and across the globe is resulting in a ‘DIGITAL DIVIDE’ between those who have access to information resources and those who do not. Women’ low levels of literacy and education relative to men as well as the negative attitude towards girls achievement in science related fields contributes to the gender dimension of the digital divide. Women still have a low degree of economic security than men and face gender related constraints on their time and mobility. They are therefore less likely to access, use and participate in shaping the course of ICTs compared to their male counterparts. The Status of Women and ICTs in Uganda In Uganda, Women’s awareness and usage of ICTs is nearly three times less than that of men (2006 ResearchICTAfrica ). An assessment of the Rural communication and Development Fund(RCDF) from a gender perspective undertaken by women of Uganda Network in 2007 revealed that the fact that women are key consumers in the privately owned computer training centres had nothing to do with gender targeting. Many of these females went for secretarial training or to learn elementary computer skills like Microsoft office applications to enhance their gender stereotyped roles of secretary. Women who were employed as trainers or lab attendants were the minority. As far as ownership management and control of private ICT business centres, Women were generally few. The study also revealed that although RCDF support to various ICT projects had facilitated further spread of ICT facilities and services to the less privilegedareas and its communities, women have benefited less from the projects as compared to their male counterparts. Without access to information technology, an understanding of its significance and ability to use it fo social and economic gain, Women are likely to be further marginalized from the mainstream of their communities, their country and the world (Nancy Hafkin and Nancy Taggart 2003). Meet our speakers of the Feb 2012 Meetup We tackled the opportunities and challenges that women in technology face, how we can explore these and solve the challenges to increase the number of women technologists e in Uganda. We had amazing young women who shared their experiences here; Barbara Birungi the Founder of WITU gave an overview of what WITU is and why it exists, she shared the vision, mission and purpose. She also welcomed all the members to the first meeting of the year. The sessions were chaired by Lynn Kirabo and Maureen Agena. RosebellKagumire a Multimedia Journalist and Human right Activists from Chanel 16 who runs a blog http://rosebellkagumire.com/ spoke about “Women and Media”. She shared her work experience while she still worked at the daily Monitor. She acknowledged that Technology and especially social media has increases opportunities for citizen to speak out a for journalists to share beyond the newsroom. She said that ordinary people without professional Journalism training can now use tools of modern Technology and the global distribution of internet to create, fact check and argument media. Rosebell believes that tools like twitter are now changing the “Agenda Setting” function of the media.Follow her on twitter @RosebellK Eunice Namirembe a program manager from Text to Change and ICT4D specialist talked about the “opportunities of Mobile Technology for women”. She said that it is evident that that there is a huge difference in terms of access, use, application and control of mobile phones between men and women. Whereas, we all agree that ICTs can enable both men and women to gain stronger voice in their communities and that mobile phones can specifically offer women flexibility in time and space, this is far from reality for many rural women here in Uganda. A big gender gap exists in accessing communication services. More men than women access/make use of ICTs because most ICT infrastructure is in the urban areas, where areas majority of the women/rural populations live in the rural areas. Given women’s multiple roles and heavy domestic responsibilities, their leisure hours are few and therefore need a tool that can effectively reduce the “distance” between them as individuals and institutions thereby making sharing of information and knowledge easier and more effective. The mobile phone comes in handy.It is believed that women, especially those in rural areas, are often left out in terms of technology and in sub-Saharan Africa alone, women are 24% less likely than men to own a mobile phone. And because of the high economic dependence of women on men mobile phones become relatively expensive for majority of rural women.Follow her on twitter @gnayeunie Evelyn Namara an entrepreneur, programmer and AfNOGChix trainer working with Solar sisters shared her experience from AfNOGChix about “Training Women in Technology”. She said that AfNOGChix was inspired by the desire to share technical challenges in setting up, building and running IP networks on the African continent. As a result, some of the pioneer Network Operators came together and established a network of key operators on the continent.The Africa Network Operators Group (AfNOG) is a forum for the exchange of technical information, and aims to promote discussion of implementation issues that require community cooperation. The reason as to why a lot of focus was on women was because Few women applied for the main AfNOG events;Women are a bit intimidated learning with male students; Women are hesistant to asked questions and finally Women usually relied on Male participants to finish up assignments. AFNOG therefore solves all these issues and bridges the gap by having women trained by women. Follow her on twitter @enamara Esther Patricia Akello an employee of Bank of Uganda who is so passionate about Information Security shared with us “what it means to work in a male dominated profession”. Esther said that, there are few women who study technology related courses and practice what they studied professionally. She attributed all this to the cultural socialization of women and the notion that women are made to believe that they cannot think or work technically. At the meeting, Esther encouraged young ladies who are passionate about technology to own up and stop complaining about the few numbers but rather make a difference and excel in their IT related professions. Follow her on twitter @ekisesta Last but not least was the Google ambassador and Appscircus 2012 Kampala winner Christine Ampire.As a second year software engineering student, Christine joined the AppsCircus competition and developed a mobile application called MafutaGo that saw her win in Kampala. Together with her team, she attended the recent MobileWorld Congress in in Barcelona and they won the RingMater ward.http://thenextweb.com/mwc/2012/02/27/the-mobile-premier-awards-announce-winners-at-mwc/ She said that the secret to all this was the spirit of teamwork and commitment regardless of your gender. She said that young girls have to get rid of fear if they are to excel in Technology. We strongly believe that women’s participation in the creation of technology will strengthen the workforce, raise the standard of living for many women, and help to assure that technology addresses women’s needs and expands the possibilities for their lives. For more details about WITU please contact us
Thanks to our sponsors; Hive Colab, UGOuganda, PC Techmagazine and Makerere University (Faculty of CIT)
By Maureen Agena
Women in Technology Uganda(WITU)
Cartier-Womens-Initiative-Awards
The Cartier Women’s Initiative Award is a social entrepreneurship competition aimed at creative, financially sustainable and responsible women-led start-ups, in all countries and industries. Created in 2006 by Cartier in partnership with the Women’s Forum, INSEAD business school and McKinsey & Co., the Awards will be given this year to six Laureates in the following categories: Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America, Middle East and North Africa, North America and Sub-Saharan Africa. Applications will be accepted until March 13, 2012. Entrepreneurs are invited to submit a short business plan using the online application form. The projects must be between one and three years old. The Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards are looking for committed female entrepreneurs heading initiatives with the potential to grow significantly in the years to come. To apply for the 2012 edition, fill out the application form on http://www.cartierwomensinitiative.com. All applications must be submitted online in English. Application deadline: March 13, 2012 at 10am Paris time (CET). As it cannot be extended, please verify the corresponding deadline in your time zone. Eligibility Criteria The business project to be considered for the Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards must be: An original for-profit business creation, In the start-up phase: at least one year old and no older than three years The main leadership position must be filled by a woman The competition is open to women from any country, nationality and industry.
2012 Grace Hopper Celebration Of Women In Computing (Call For Participation)
By BJ Wishinsky (Community Manager, Anita Borg Institute for Women in Technology)
The 12th annual Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing (GHC) has opened its Call for Participation.
GHC 2012
The annual conference, presented by the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, is the world’s largest gathering of women in computing.
The Grace Hopper Celebration will take place from October 3 – 6, 2012 at the Baltimore Convention Center in Baltimore, Maryland.
This year’s theme “Are We There Yet?” recognizes that technology and the culture of technology are continuously evolving but there are also concrete goals we are striving to achieve.
Important Dates:
- March 16, 2012: Deadline for submission of Program Abstract
- May 17, 2012: Notifications
- June 1, 2012: Registration Opens
- June 25, 2012: Deadline for submission of Final Program Content
Submissions are being accepted in the following tracks:
- Birds of a Feather (BOFs)
- New Investigators Papers
- Panels, Workshops and Presentations
- PhD Forum
- Posters and SRC Posters
- Social Collaboration Track
- Women of Underrepresented Groups Track
The organizing committees will review all abstracts submitted to the conference on the basis of a set of criteria, including the quality of the submission and its relevance to this conference, originality and scope of the subject matter.
For complete details,including links to the proposal template and sample proposals, see the Call for Participation page.
Puzzle for Policy Makers: How to Increase Gender Equality in Entrepreneurship BY SCOTT SHANE
Across the globe, the gender gap in entrepreneurship remains stubbornly persistent. The Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) 2010 Women’s Report found that among the 59 countries in which data was collected, only women in Ghana have a higher rate of entrepreneurship than men. Similarly, data from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development show that in 2010, self-employment was more common among men than women in 27 of 29 countries in which information was gathered.The gender gap has been notably persistent in the U.S., where women accounted for the same share of self-employed heads of corporations in 2010 as in 1994 — 22 percent. How can policy makers reduce the longstanding disparity? The answer depends largely on why the gap continues. One explanation is that women face greater obstacles to company formation than men. If only it were that simple. The researchers for the GEM report found no statistically significant gender-related differences in barriers to business formation. Related: Women Entrepreneurs Put the Government in the Hot Seat Moreover, a variety of studies haven’t found any gender difference in the chances of getting financing, once the type of start-up business is factored in. For instance, manufacturing firms are more likely to be financed by outside sources, and men are more likely than women to start manufacturers. But once the different odds of men and women starting companies in industries like manufacturing are accounted for, there is no longer any difference in the chances of obtaining outside financing. In fact, women actually have greater access to start-up capital when self-financing is taken into consideration. Men and women have access to similar amounts of savings to finance their businesses, but women tend to start less capital-intensive companies than men. Policy makers could try to deal with one reason for the gender gap: differences in entrepreneurial capabilities. The GEM report indicates that women are much less likely than men to report having the necessary abilities for running their own businesses, particularly in developed countries. The authors of the report propose that policy makers can put in place programs that help women “build their capabilities for business ownership.” Of course, these efforts will run up against another major factor in the gender gap. Women are less likely than men to start businesses simply because they are less interested in running their own companies, the International Social Survey, conducted in more than 20 countries, shows. If women are less interested in starting businesses than men, they probably won’t be interested in programs that build entrepreneurial capabilities, either. Gender differences in preferences for entrepreneurship have persisted across several decades. The Cooperative Institutional Research Program at the University of California at Los Angeles has surveyed college students about their interest in running their own businesses annually since 1975. Consistently, their data has shown a stronger interest among men than women. In fact, that difference is greater now than it was in the mid-1970s. Related: Do Women Entrepreneurs Face Gender Discrimination? Gender differences in interest in entrepreneurship start early. One study by Marilyn Kourilsky, professor emerita at UCLA, and her colleagues showed a 14 percentage point gap in whether high school kids wanted to become business owners someday. It isn’t that women have more negative views of entrepreneurship as an occupation than men; they are just less interested in the job personally. The GEM report shows no statistical difference between men and women in whether they view entrepreneurship as a good career choice or whether successful entrepreneurs have high social status. Elected leaders can’t legislate a way to make more women want to start companies, particularly when gender differences emerge as early as grade school. Consequently, the gender gap in entrepreneurship is likely to persist for a long time to come.
picked from http://www.entrepreneur.com
