Calling All Superwomen, Get Your Entry In For B&T's Women Leading Tech Awards!

B&T’s Women Leading Tech Awards, presented by Atlassian, will crown the women setting the pace in the tech industry and putting the future in motion.

On-time entries close on 30 January, while late entries will close on 6 February.

The Awards recognise the contributions of everyone in the sector—from new faces with the Rising Star trophy to established leading lights with the Executive Leader and Woman of the Year trophies. The Awards also recognise those women who make an impact beyond their companies with the Champion of Change, Sustainability Crusader, Mentor and Social Impact Advocate.

As an initiative created to support gender parity and representation across the tech industry, the Women Leading Tech Awards is an event inclusive of non-binary and gender diverse members of the tech industry, as well as any individual identifying as a woman.

Enter B&T’s Women Leading Tech Awards, presented by Atlassian, now!

If you’ve forgotten the entry requirements and categories, let us quickly refresh your memory.

There are 32 categories to enter, with one outstanding individual in each category earning the title of winner.

Our headline partner, Atlassian, will also bestow a Woman of the Year Award to one exceptional talent, while all finalists will compete for the People’s Choice Award, determined by public vote after entries close.

To enter, you’ll need to submit a brief overview of what you have contributed in the eligibility period to the advancement of women in the tech profession and the community, including contribution in the progression and development of women within your organisation and/or the wider industry, at a maximum of 500 words.

Secondly, you’ll need at least one reference from either an employer, community leader, academic or client, at a maximum of 150 words each. There are some category-specific details required. All of this can be found here.

The categories are: Business Support, CFO, Customer Success, Data Scientist, Delivery, Design – Sponsored by Canva, Developer, Engineer, Entrepreneur/Founder, Executive Leader, Marketer, People & Culture, Product, Public Relations, Recruiter, Sales, Adtech, AI Pioneer – Sponsored by Quantium, Cyber Security, Ecommerce, Education/Research, Employer, Fintech, Martech, Champion of Change, Glass Ceiling – Sponsored by Girls’ Programming Network, Innovator, Mentor, Rising Star, The Women Leading Tech Award For Society, Lifetime Achievement, and Woman of the Year – Sponsored by Atlassian.

The future waits for no one. So, if you’re leading the charge in your area of tech, enter the Women Leading Tech Awards 2026, presented by Atlassian, now!

Check out last year’s Women Leading Tech winners and Power List!

B&T has spoken to past winners for some words of inspiration and advice in navigating the tech industry, and how to contribute to lasting change.

Canva’s global head of people Jennie Rogerson urged women to remember the importance of kindness in the face of challenges affecting the tech sector.

“Kindness to others, as well as to ourselves, feels more important now than ever before with so much turbulence in the world and in many of our lives. At work, kindness can be thought of as putting you ‘behind’ not ‘ahead’ which, to me, is entirely untrue,” she said.

“Giving genuine acts of kindness, no matter how big or small, and taking care of ourselves, can reduce our stress and anxiety and can improve our overall contentment. These small moments of kindness can have a huge impact on others, can also foster inclusion, and give people space to create and innovate.”

Audrey Michelin, OpenX’s senior director, publisher development APAC, honed in on the importance of acknowledging the strength that women bring to an industry.

“It’s really important to acknowledge the strength that women bring to an industry. We think and have different experiences to men. What would be great is to have more companies investing in outreach programmes for younger women to support their interest in STEM. We need to reach younger women before they are told that they can’t do something or that they’re not smart enough,” she said.

She would also like to see more transparency from companies around their gender pay gaps and hiring policies at senior levels. According to the Global Gender Gap Report (2023), women make up only 29.2 per cent of the tech industry.

“A lot of the time at trade events you see a panel full of white men, hopefully, in the future, there will be more diversity in every way,” she said. “I’m also a member of the leadership committee for the Women In Programmatic Network, which I’m really proud of.

“Groups like that are really important. They give women a chance to connect with women they wouldn’t otherwise meet and have conversations about what they’re doing, what their experience has been like and how to navigate it, rather than waiting for a panel to come up at a trade event where a sales leader just says, ‘Oh, you just have to work really hard’.”

Don’t miss out, enter B&T’s Women Leading Tech Awards today!

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