Pauline has worked at AI over the past 9 years and has seen the team grow as the demand for online tech solutions has increased. AI empowers organisations to take control of their data in order to become successful. Pauline explains the importance of this: “Data is vital to the success of any business. Data-driven organisations gain insights that create new opportunities across their business and drive business value. Data insights allow businesses to make smarter decisions and operate more effectively.”
In 2018, the number of women working in STEM roles accounted for only 22% of the entire UK workforce. Pauline commented: “Women are still under-represented in the STEM industry and I think part of the reason can be attributed to a mixture of culture, stereotypes and confidence. From my experience, the main skills required to work in STEM are critical thinking, being analytical and problem-solving. Anyone can bring those key traits to a role, regardless of gender.”
“The lack of female representation in STEM also means we have less female role models or mentors in comparison to our male counterparts. I was fortunate in that my first manager was, and still is, one of my strongest female role models who has inspired me throughout my career. At AI we have a strong culture of nurturing new talent with over 90% of our placement students being offered graduate positions. I hope that I can act as a mentor to the female graduates who join AI.”
The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has forced organisations to move to remote working swiftly. This has given precedence to the tech industry to provide solutions to facilitate business continuity. Microsoft Teams now has over 44 million active users worldwide, which is an increase of 20 million people since January 2020. Pauline said of the situation: “We have been working with our customers to ensure they can securely access their data through online platforms such as Microsoft Teams. “
“With appropriate remote working capabilities enabled, AI’s customers can implement a ‘business-as-usual’ approach at a time of exceptional economic uncertainty. This allows staff working from home to securely access business-critical information with security and business integrity intact.”
As the tech industry proves crucial in helping companies adapt to a new way of working, Pauline hopes more women will join the STEM industry: “There are great opportunities for those interested in a career in STEM and I would encourage any young female students who are reflecting on their career options to consider the wide variety of STEM courses available to them.”
AI aims to scale business operations in its tenth year with a strategic decision to focus its offering towards the financial services sector.
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