Women In Technology Hamilton

Supporting Women In Technology in Hamilton, Ontario and the surrounding areas.

DemoCamp Hamilton, Startup Drinks and Software Hamilton

As I mentioned during my launch at DemoCamp Hamilton, I would not have been able to do it without the assistance of the kind people at Software Hamilton.  But why do I mention three organizations in the title? Because they have all played a vital role in getting WITH off the ground.

I went to Startup Drinks and started chatting with a few of the people there. I found that I was one of the few women in the group and I was the only technical one of the group. I talk about this event a little bit in my previous post, but it was at this event that the idea for WITH was born. I launched it at DemoCamp with the full support of Software Hamilton. They have been fully supportive of my efforts and have helped me where ever they can.

I’m writing this not only to thank them for everything they’ve done for me and this organization, (believe me, it’s more than you know), but if you are in the tech sphere in Hamilton, make sure you get out to these events. Trust me, they will support more women in this area and we need it. If they support us, shouldn’t we at least show up? I have included these events on our calendar, plus others that people might be interested in attending.

Here’s Kevin Browne being interviewed at the last Democamp by TechTalk4HamOnt on their first run:

FITC Women

FITC

When I attended DevTO last week and announced plans for WITH, I was approached by FITC about a contest they are running just for the women. You can find the details about it at http://www.fitc.ca/women/. They only have 50 tickets to give away and it’s worth the price of admission. This is in hopes of increasing the attendance of women at the event and improving the status of women in the technology field. Exactly what we at WITH are hoping to achieve.

If you aren’t going to enter the contest (or aren’t female), you can still get a discount by using the code “WITH” and get 10% off the price of admission. This is valid for not only the conference in April, but also for their spotlight events, Javascript and HTML5 over the next few months. They also have great student rates for those still attending classes.

I went last year myself and really enjoyed it. The posters for this year have been done by James White (aka Signalnoise). I had the pleasure of seeing his talk last year and have had a bit of a rapport with him afterwards. You can see my personal blog post on it here.

I hope that more women will attend and enter the contest, especially from the Hamilton area. This is what we’re about and it can only get better. Thanks to FITC for contributing the discount code and helping me launch WITH. Hoping to see you there!

- Shanta

 

Here We Go…

WITH Logo

Women In Technology Hamilton

Having spent more than 20 years in Toronto and been involved with such Wonderful groups as Women in Information Technology Management (WITM) at Ryerson University, Ladies Learning Code and hearing about various groups such as Geek Girl Dinners, I was surprised to find when I moved to Hamilton that there were no such similar organisations.

I have been explaining to colleagues back in Toronto that Hamilton is like the Phoenix rising from the ashes, literally, in that it is in a phase of rebirth. There are numbers of start-ups that are are coming out in Hamilton, many in the tech areas. However the same is true in the Hamilton region as it is in Toronto in that there are not very many women in the tech community. As I met with some of the gentlemen in the tech community a few weeks ago, and enquired about groups for women in the Hamilton area, the response was there weren’t any that they knew of. However, one of them had been looking for someone to take up the torch and run with it. I slowly raised my hand as if to volunteer for the position. An exited look came across his face and said “Really? You’d be willing to take up this task? I’ve been looking for someone to take up this initiative. I’m behind you one hundred percent. Anything you need, you let me know.” And so it began…

I’ve only lived in Hamilton for about a month, but after having made the decision to move to the neighbourhood, I started attending a number of networking events that I found on Twitter with other business and IT people in the region. I’ve seen a number of the same faces and all appear to be supportive of this venture. I’ve tested the waters at a few of these events and asked about women in technology and any interest that some might have in it. Even if they themselves are not women in technology, they may know of someone that may fit the bill and to please connect with me. At every event that I posed this at I’ve had at least three people approach me afterwards. Many with a look of relief on their face, as if to say “Finally! Someone is doing this!”

And so I am pleased to announce the launch of WITH: Women In Technology Hamilton. If you are interested in being up to date with what we are doing join our mailing list, follow us on Twitter, like our page on Facebook and get involved. Let us know what you would like to see happen with this group. What would events would you like to see? What are the challenges that you are facing? Tell us stories about how you have overcome the breaking of the glass ceiling in the tech field. The first thing I would like to do is to an official launch and getbrainstorming.

So here’s what we need to get started:

1. a date

2. a venue

3. (if possible) sponsors

4. your thoughts and ideas

Feel free to e-mail me (with@withamont.com) and let’s get on it!

Yours truly,

Shanta R. Nathwani, Founder

Women In Technology Hamilton