Slovakia has a lot of great women, experts in the IT field. However, we perceive that they are not well known to the public because they do not get more space to present their work or to be recognised for it. That is why we decided to create such a space. Firstly, to help them become more visible, but at the same time to motivate younger girls who are deciding about their future and other women,” explains Petra Kotuliaková, Executive Director of Aj Ty v IT.
The winners of each category will be awarded at the Gala Evening at the P. O. Hviezdoslav Theatre in Bratislava on 10 October. The gala evening will be the culmination of the all-day multi-genre professional conference Slovak Women in Tech 2024, which aims to inspire society, strengthen the perception and position of women in Slovakia in the field of information technology and provide them with a platform to present their work. Also to encourage young girls and their families to find a promising career in IT.
A total of 57 nominations were received for the first edition of the Woman in IT award, from which a five-member jury consisting of Dita Formánková (Czech Republic), Martin Drobný, Ivana Budinská, Petra Kotuliaková and Peter Rusňák selected three nominations in the categories of Woman in IT, IT Student of the Year and IT Ally of the Year. The award ceremony will take place on 10 October 2024 at the P. O. Hviezdoslav Theatre in Bratislava as a highlight of the first IT conference for women in Slovakia, Slovak Women in Tech 2024.
The nominees are:
First category: Woman in IT
A woman who has demonstrated a high level of excellence, innovation, leadership, and has actively pursued greater diversity in the technology industry over the past five years.
The following finalists were nominated in this category:
Diliana DURKAJOVÁ: Graduated in mathematics at the Faculty of Mathematics, Physics and Computer Science at Comenius University in Bratislava. She has been working at Slovak Telekom for over 15 years, has moved through several positions there and currently holds the role of Head of Artificial Intelligence. At the same time, she is working on topics and development in the areas of Team Growth & Self-leading team Leadership, Demystifying AI, People Experience, Data Strategy, AI & Data products ops, Microservice Architecture, Service Design.
Alena KANABOVÁ: graduated in Foreign Trade at the University of Economics in Bratislava. During more than 25 years of her career she has worked for local and foreign clients of Accenture, a consulting and technology firm. Currently she is responsible for projects in the field of healthcare and public administration within a regional technology centre. In addition, she is an active ambassador for inclusion and diversity in the work environment, with an emphasis on increasing the representation of women in the IT sector and in leadership positions
Iveta TONHAUSEROVÁ: She has been working as a full-stack software engineer for 18 years, currently at GoHealth. She has worked on various technological aspects of software development, which never ceases to fascinate her, but she is also increasingly involved in education and expert volunteering. This is as a developer or expert consultant on many projects for several non-profit organizations to help people in need, minorities, children or animals, such as DePaul, LEAF or Freedom for Animals.
Second Category:IT Student of the Year
A woman studying in IT who has achieved excellence in her studies, provided an innovative solution or helped to advance a topic through her contribution.
The following finalists were nominated in this category:
Alžbeta JUREČEKOVÁ: A fresh graduate of Mathematical and Computer Modelling at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, STU. Since the beginning of her engineering studies she worked as a Data Scientist trainee at Swiss Re. She worked mainly on the internal library containing useful functionalities for other Data Scientist teams, but also in other projects. In her spare time, she enjoys scouting – she organizes events for children during the year, helps with the running of a non-profit organization, and participates in the organization of camps in the summer.
Annamária MIHELIČOVÁ: She works as a system validator at Siemens Mobility. She is also finishing her master’s double degree in medical technology. In April she defended her master thesis at RWTH Aachen, in June she successfully graduated from FEL CTU. Her undergraduate studies focused on cybernetics and robotics, and alongside her studies she was a member of the wITches association, which introduced children to the world of IT and technology. In her free time she likes to play sports, travel and listen to podcasts in various fields.
Timea KLOPČEKOVÁ: She is a student of the Secondary Industrial School of Electrical Engineering. Her motto is “I live, I breathe, I do business.” She is a member of Nexteria, a community of young people interested in personal development and social events. Together with her friends, she founded Benly, a startup to create authentic and contactless business cards for entrepreneurs. She is also working on Ecolect, a waste collection app, which won the best student company award from Junior Achievement Slovakia and is now representing Slovakia with it at the GEN E European Student Company Competition. He also works in graphic design.
Third Category: IT Ally of the Year
A company, institution, organization, individual or individual who has made a contribution to improving the level of diversity within IT, the organization and/or the broader community in the last five years.
The following finalists were nominated in this category:
ACCENTURE: A global company that helps the world’s businesses, governments and other organizations build their digital foundations and optimize operations. Globally, it employs 750 thousand people in over 120 countries. It is one of the leaders in IT, including cloud, data and artificial intelligence. Inclusion and diversity are an integral part of its corporate culture. They believe that diversity fosters innovation and brings new perspectives.
Štefan ŠIMÍK: He is a data scientist with a focus on finance and banking. He has experience in data analytics, machine learning and software development with deep knowledge of banking, algorithmic trading and financial markets. He is currently working as a data science consultant. He provides business intelligence and machine learning services for banks and trading companies. In addition, she has also been a lecturer in the You too in IT training programs for adult women for the past seven years.
WOMEN’S ALGORITHM: Is an organization dedicated to supporting women and girls in technology and leadership. Their goal is to unlock the career potential of women through education in innovative technology fields, digital skills and management, thereby actively contributing to overcoming stereotypes and prejudices. They have already reached more than 12 thousand people through free educational initiatives. They inspire, spread awareness, break down unconscious prejudices, stimulate social debate, diversity and inclusion.
Why do we do it?
Valuing women in the IT sector helps promote equal opportunities for all, regardless of gender
when women’s achievements in the IT sector are visible and recognised, it can serve as an inspiration for young girls and women to also get involved in the field and overcome any barriers they may face a culture of valuing women in IT can contribute to creating a positive and inclusive work environment where all employees feel valued and respected equal representation of women and men in the IT sector contributes to a greater diversity of views, experiences and approaches.
More information about the finalists and the Women in IT Award can be found here.
Info about the one-day multi-genre conference Slovak Women in Tech 2024 and its programme can be found here.
