There is no place for men-only panels in today’s world and event organisers must go the extra mile to secure diverse speaking line-ups. That is the view of Kirsty Devlin, who co-founded a platform to make it easier for people to find female speakers. The platform showcases more than 300 women who are available to speak around the world on a variety of subjects.
“Diverse panels are better – and not having a diverse enough panel really is problematic these days,” she stated. This platform is designed for those that identify as women to promote themselves for speaking opportunities. Denying women opportunities to present at professional conferences and feature at events prevents them from gaining visibility and deprives their colleagues of their valuable perspectives. Failure to listen to the voices of female experts contributes to the continued gender diversity problems experienced in many industries. It is more damaging to not try and find a diverse panel and just use your own network to find speakers.
Devlin’s comments arrive as a search for female entrepreneurs in technology continues, with a deadline for entries approaching. The small percentage of women in technology, between 17 and 19 per cent, poses a significant problem. Moreover, it is often challenging to persuade women to speak about their experiences and expertise. Confidence is a huge contributing factor to the lack of women available for speaking opportunities. “You might not think that you’re experienced enough to speak, but you just need to give it a try – and put yourself out of your comfort zone,” she explained. “It is really important to be visible and show your knowledge and expertise.”
Devlin has experience at several highly-rated technology businesses and notes that most of the speakers on the platform come from a tech background. She shared an instance where she was contacted by someone looking for a female speaker on cryptocurrency. While she initially did not know any, a quick search on the platform revealed six individuals capable of addressing the subject. “It is an amazing list of women, or people who identify as women, who are open for speaking opportunities, panels, podcasts, and judging panels. We believe that more women need to be visible to change the daily imbalances in STEM.”
In conclusion, the emphasis on diverse speaking panels is critical to addressing gender imbalances in various industries. Ensuring that women have opportunities to share their expertise is not just beneficial to them but to the broader professional community.