Vogue Australia editor-in-chief Edwina McCann (pictured above) today announced key partnerships and schedule of events for VOGUE CODES 2017.

Vogue Australia, in partnership with Westpac and Telstra, will hold the VOGUE CODES 2017 Summit on Friday 28 July. The following day, VOGUE CODES: KIDS returns; and new to the schedule is VOGUE CODES Live, an event aimed at young tech-minded women early in their careers.

The global first VOGUE CODES summit was launched last year to encourage women to be empowered by technology in an effort to see more women pursue careers in tech-related industries and be the creators of the digital future.

McCann said: “The response to the inaugural VOGUE CODES was incredibly positive and experiencing the energy in the room during the Summit was extraordinary. This year, we wanted to build on the event to allow more people to be able to participate and benefit. The introduction of VOGUE CODES Live creates a platform for young women starting out in their careers to come together and be inspired by and network with those succeeding in the tech industry.

“The statistics of female participation in the commercial and education tech-sectors are appalling and we want to leverage the attraction of the Vogue brand through VOGUE CODES to engage our audiences with this topic and help make a career in technology more fashionable, thereby empowering more women through technology.

“We’re delighted to have Westpac return to partner with us for VOGUE CODES 2017 and that Telstra has come on board this year. We are all committed to making this a highly successful campaign which really makes a difference.”

Westpac Group chief information officer Dave Curran said: “At Westpac women currently make up 32 per cent of our technology leadership roles and we know this is not good enough. We are passionate about addressing the gender imbalance in the technology industry and our partnership with VOGUE CODES is doing exactly that.

“We want to encourage women and girls to think about the limitless possibilities that a career in technology offers and break down the stereotypes that are often associated with the industry. Working in technology requires entrepreneurial, creative, and problem-solving skills, and tech is becoming a part of every career.”

Telstra group executive of human resources Alex Badenoch said: “In our industry and within our organisation – where we know there’s a gender imbalance – opportunities like VOGUE CODES, which help emerging female technology leaders build up their knowledge, confidence and career goals are essential.

“Our partnership with VOGUE CODES is another way we are empowering women to connect with technology and join the conversation about how we can address the skills gap, and fuel future innovation through a more gender balanced technology industry.”