Girls in Tech Singapore "Entrepreneur Superstars" Panel & Launch Party

Moderated by Adriana Gascoigne, founder and CEO of Girls in Tech, this panel discussion will cover best practices, trials and tribulations of launching a start-up, what it’s like to be a woman in tech, building a business from scratch and more.

We will celebrate the achievements and advancements of women as entrepreneurs, business owners and technologists by showcasing women who are making waves in Singapore. We also aim to highlight technology as a stage for women to have a voice, thrive and serve as role models for future generations.

Please join us for the Girls in Tech Singapore launch party, which will be taking place following the panel discussion (at the same venue).

Panel Members:

Adriana Gascoigne is the founder and CEO of Girls in Tech, a non-profit organisation, which she launched in February 2007. As a woman in tech, Adriana’s passion lies in bolstering opportunities around the empowerment, engagement and education of women in tech.

Jessica Tan is the Managing Director of Microsoft Singapore and is also a member of Parliament East Coast Group Representative Constituency (GRC). As Managing Director for Microsoft Singapore, Jessica is responsible for developing and driving growth strategies for Microsoft’s business in Singapore, as well as deepening relationships with partners, consumers and employees.

Pat Law is an award-winning communications specialist with over a decade of experience in both traditional and digital media for global and local brands, Pat is the founder of GOODSTUPH, a social influence marketing studio based in Singapore.

Meri Rosich is the founder and CEO of Splaype, a start-up specialised on content platforms for video-conference systems. Meri also serves at the board of the United Nations Association of Singapore leading gender studies. She has worked in the technology sector in New York, London, Barcelona, Hong Kong and Singapore, and holds and MBA from the London Business School and a PhD in technology history.

Gwendolyn Regina is the Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief of SG Entrepreneurs. Apart from SGE, Gwen is also a Partner at Thymos Capital, where she focuses on early stage investments in technology firms.

Audrey Tan pioneers PlayMoolah's product vision, business and market strategy. PlayMoolah is an online playtool for kids 6 to 12 to save, manage, earn an allowance and learn the value of money. We bring financial literacy to children by designing gaming technology to persuade real-world savings behavior, while providing parents with the data and recommendations to get involved. 

Thank you to our sponsors: Johnnie Walker Black Label & Epicure group

In a recent article in Mashable Business, in 2010, women became the majority of the US workforce for the first time in the country’s history. Also, 57% of college students are now women. While men continue to dominate the executive ranks and corporate board rooms, women now hold a number of lucrative careers: they make up 54% of accountants, 45% of law associates and approximately 50% of all banking and insurance jobs.* Women are also making a huge imprint and impact on entrepreneurialism. With more innovation ways to balance family and occupation, women are taking the reigns to develop and launch their own companies. An American Express OPEN State of Women-Owned Businesses report found that between 1997 and 2011, the number of businesses in the US increased by 34%, but the number of women-owned firms increased by 50%. That compares to a growth rate of just 25% for male-owned firms and has allowed businesses owned by females to reach 49% of U.S. firms.

However, this is not the case around the world. Counter to what most people would care to believe, from the early 90s, observing some of the most prestigious academic institutions globally, including in Asia, certain statistics suggested trends were shifting for women as a growing proportion enroll in university degrees which would set someone up well for a career in technology. Women made up 42 percent of students enrolled in graduate courses in science and engineering in 1993, and 50% in 2006. In the late 1990s, 36 percent of master’s degree holders in science and engineering were women. That went up to 46 % by 2007. Surprisingly, the proportion of women with bachelors’ degrees working in the computer field fell from 35 percent in the early to mid-’70s to 27 percent between 2000 and 2005. A positive statistic when considering Asia, specifically India and Malaysia, the IT population is close to a 50 / 50 split between females and males, mainly because IT is viewed as a means of employment, a way to pay the bills versus a status symbol.

With this in mind, Social Media Week and Girls in Tech would like to celebrate the achievements and advancements of women as entrepreneurs, business owners and technologists by showcasing some of the fabulous ladies who are making waves in Singapore. This digital age is inviting for aspiring women and in our opinion allows a stage for women to have a voice, thrive and serve as role models for future generations.

Moderated by Adriana Gascoigne, founder and CEO of Girls in Tech, this panel discussion will cover best practices, trials and tribulations of launching a startup, what it’s like to be a women in tech, building a business from scratch and more. We hope that you’ll be able to take part in this thought-provoking discussion on February 15^th, starting at 4:30 PM, which will be followed by the official Girls in Tech Singapore launch party.

*Statistics appeared in Hanna Rosin’s Atlantic article “The End of Men,” have prompted considerable attention and debate.

** http://blog.ambition.com.sg/tag/women-in-technology/