You’ve probably seen that at SR2 we’ve grown quite a bit over the last couple of months and I wanted to introduce our 3 new brilliant ladies to the team. Steph, Amy and Char are all experienced technical recruiters and have seen first hand the challenges around recruiting women in technical roles! I am over the moon to have them on board and also to have them as ambassadors for Women Rock, they are all going to be working on projects for the brand throughout the year… stay tuned! Here is a bit about all of them <3

Charlotte.

WHY DID YOU JOIN SR2?

Because they’re bloody amazing. No, because they treat people like human beings whether it’s the people that work here or clients. Everything SR2 do is for a good reason, whether it’s to help our Bristol community or our Tech community!

WHAT DOES YOUR DAY TO DAY LOOK LIKE?

Get into work early and grab a coffee and if Boris is in then I’ll probably make a fuss of him and then carry on with my recruitment duties. We always work hard but there’s never a day where we don’t have a laugh!

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL?

My sister is my role model! So proud of everything she does whether it’s her kind heart of how hard she works day to day. She is the most honest and real person I know and she reminds me every day to stay positive and be true to myself.

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS AND AMBITIONS FOR WOMEN ROCK?

I honestly and truly believe Women Rock has the ability to go ALL THE WAY. The whole concept is unreal and I find it so empowering that we have the utilities and tools to be able to help and change women’s (and men) thoughts and expectations of their future. For me, I was unaware that getting into tech was even an option as I went to a very traditional school where the norm was to study History or English. I feel so strongly about making younger people aware that this is a thing, probably more so now than ever!

WHAT DO YOU THINK THE CHALLENGES ARE FOR THE WOMEN IN THE INDUSTRY?

I mentioned before how passionate I was around making younger women aware that yes, tech is not just for men but is a great career choice for us ladies too! I think we need to encourage women in tech to speak out and make other people aware that it’s an amazing and empowering option for everyone involved.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EAT AND DRINK?

This is very important. Very important indeed.. Eating wise – any PASTA or Italian based cuisine. Drink wise, it’ll have to be either a nice traditional ginger beer or a gin and tonic with a twist.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE IN THE WORLD?

My favourite place every is a place called Banyuls-Sur-Mer in the South of France, it’s a tiny little seaside cove and does the most amazing Sangria and also.. fun fact – has a rock that looks like a head!

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING OUTSIDE OF WORK?

Well, I do love a glass of wine and going to the gym (not at the same of course) if I’m not gyming then you’ll find me having a few drinks with my friends or doing yoga!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE QUOTE?

‘The best revenge is massive success” – Frank Sinatra

WHO’S YOUR SQUAD?

My squad would include my sister, obviously my friend Lauren and celeb wise I would have to have Leonardo Dicaprio because he’s my favourite actor ever and love the fact that he uses his platform to help save our planet #SquadGoals

AMY.

WHY DID YOU JOIN SR2?

I joined SR2 to be around a group of genuinely nice people, who are trying to make a good name for themselves. Recruitment can have a really bad reputation in the tech industry, so it’s great to be around people who are trying to actually give back and help not only the tech community, but the Bristol community as a whole.

WHAT DOES YOUR DAY TO DAY LOOK LIKE AT SR2?

I get into work, go through the job boards and my ad response to see if there are any new candidates who are looking for a job. I then have a cup of coffee and begin reaching out to local hiring managers! Once I know what my candidate is looking for in their next role I’ll reach out to companies who I know will fit the bill. Hopefully I’ll be able to generate some opportunities that they would get excited about! Aside from this, I’ll spend my day writing up new adverts for candidates, networking on Linkedin and helping promote our own brand “Women in Tech!”

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL?

My Mum, she can have so much on her own plate and still be the most compassionate and selfless person, and she makes it look so easy!

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS AND AMBITIONS FOR WOMEN ROCK?

I have 2:

1) To support the women already in tech. It’s a well known fact that the tech industry is a male dominated industry, so to support those women who are there making waves in the tech world and make sure they know we think they rock!

2) To encourage women who want to get into tech, whether that’s students or women in other industries, to show them that it’s not just a job for men, introduce them to all the amazing things other women are currently achieving and how they can be a part of it too!

WHAT DO YOU THINK THE CHALLENGES ARE FOR THE WOMEN IN THE INDUSTRY?

From speaking to my clients, it’s clear they are aware that there is an issue with diversity in the tech world and many are crying out for more female developers in their team. What I think is the main challenge is breaking that stereotype with the younger generation when they are considering what career might suit them. Out of all the girl’s in my year I can’t think of one person that went into tech, let alone considered it. Breaking the stereotype at this age and showcasing to young girls how exciting a job in the tech world can be, would bring in a new generation of female techies and role models for even younger generations to aspire to

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EAT AND DRINK? THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.

Eating = anything with cheese. Literally anything. Drinking = Green tea if I’m feeling healthy, rhubarb G&T if I’m not!

WHERE IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE IN THE WORLD?

Bali! I just spent 2.5 months there and its just such a beautiful island

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING OUTSIDE OF WORK?

I love practicing and teaching yoga! It helps keep me sane in what can be a very stressful job. I’m also a big fan of sitting on the sofa with a big blanket, cup of tea and one of my cats, watching Netflix!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE QUOTE?

It’s a long one, but resonates so much:

“People tend to burden themselves with so many choices. But, in the end, you can throw it all away and just make one basic, underlying decision: do you want to be happy, or do you not want to be happy? Once you make that choice, your path through life becomes completely clear”

Michael Singer- Untethered Soul, definitely recommend a read!

WHO’S YOUR SQUAD?

1) My best friend Mel, practically a sister and would hold my hand through anything

2) Zooey Deschanel, I feel like we would get on and sing songs round a campfire

3) Can my cat be one?? He just gets me!

STEPH.

WHY DID YOU JOIN SR2?

I joined SR2 January this year, still a newbie! I had been working for a large corporate recruiter for a year. I had started to get itchy feet before Christmas, as I didn’t feel I was getting the best out of myself in the environment, which I was working in. Chris reached out to me and told me about SR2 and how they were doing things. I was already very much aware of SR2 and always loved their presence online and the involvement they had in local charities and supporting Diversity in the workplace. Anyway, I arranged to meet up with Chris for a cheeky gin and tonic in the Alma pub, from there we just chatted away for a couple of hours and I instantly got the feeling that SR2 was the sort of place I had always wanted to work with. He offered me the position and I got started just after Christmas, it’s been the best start to my year and every day I feel more motivated and genuinely enjoy my job, throwing myself into the world of Java in Bristol and trying to be as fully immersed within the market as I can be. In a nutshell, I joined SR2 because I want to make a difference within the recruitment industry and by being a part of their wider vision and ideas is the best way for me to do this.

WHAT DOES YOUR DAY-TO-DAY LOOK LIKE AT SR2?

It looks like me boiling the kettle to make copious amounts of coffee. I love to play with Boris (our office dog) and then when I do actually get my head down to do some real work… I focus my day around the candidates I am working with at that time, getting a head start and always making conscious decisions with my market in mind. Honestly, no day is the same in my job. It very much depends on who is on the market and what is happening within my market at that point in time, it’s everything from speaking to new candidates on the job boards, reaching out to Java developers on LinkedIn and building relationships, arranging coffee meetings to get a better understanding of what someone is looking for in a more personable way. Other day-to-day things include, reading up on TechSpark and TechNation to stay up to date on things happening within the industry. Lunch times usually consist of a walk around Castle Park if I fancy getting out of the office, I love working in the centre of Bristol because pretty much everything you could possibly ‘fancy’ for lunch is right there!

WHO IS YOUR ROLE MODEL?

My role model would have to be my mum, she inspires me to work hard for everything that I want in life, has always supported me with any choices I have made and is one of the main reasons I love to stay fit and healthy as she’s always motivated me to be! She’s great ????

WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS AND AMBITIONS FOR WOMEN ROCK?

I’m so happy to be one of the 5 Ambassadors of Women Rock, I’ve actually always wanted to get more involved with writing a blog or being part of some kind of growing movement. So women empowerment and promoting diversity in the work place is something that I’m very happy to be a part of. I guess my biggest ambition for us this year would be for Women Rock to be the ‘go to’ face of Diversity within Tech in Bristol. I want us to become a well-known name in all the tech offices across the city. I have plans to arrange more communities’ meetings for the people who support Women Rock and even arrange some activities to raise money for charity, a girls running club or something like that. I’ve also just taken over managing the Women Rock Instagram account, so I’m feeling motivated to reach a wider audience on there for us. I better start getting the hash tags out!

WHAT DO YOU THINK THE CHALLENGES ARE FOR THE WOMEN IN THE INDUSTRY?

I think the main challenge is there aren’t enough women leaders in the industry. When there’s a woman leading from the front, a lot of greatness can happen. When a man is leading from the front, greatness can also happen. So we need to drive the thought process that it’s important to have an equal number of both genders leading and managing across the city so that we can all do even bigger and better things.

WHAT DO YOU LOVE TO EAT AND DRINK? THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.

I absolutely love a curry; my favourite curry house in Bristol is the Brunel Raj in Clifton Village. Other than that, I would say a really good stone baked sourdough pizza, current favourite is an artichoke pizza at Bosco! When it comes to drinks… If I were going to select any cocktail it would have to be something made with Gin and Rhubarb. If it’s a hot summers day then 100% coronas and lime.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE IN THE WORLD?

I absolutely love Bristol, it’s such a cool city and even though I’ve grown up here my whole life, as I get older it just seems to get better and evolve into somewhere even more fantastic. But, my favourite place in the world has got to be Sydney, Australia. I lived there for 2 years on a working holiday visa and pretty much was living the dream out there, I miss the sunshine!

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY DOING OUTSIDE OF WORK?

Singing, I love to sing. Anywhere really, I would love to be involved in more open mic nights across Bristol. I enjoy staying fit and healthy, going to gym and making myself stronger is something I have been really motivated to do over the past 8 months. Other things include, seeing friends, going out for brunch/lunch/dinner (I’d eat out for all three everyday if it was feasible). I love a good festival with a group of friends, long walks in the countryside, going to the cinema – The Everyman is my favourite, got to love having your own sofa in the cinema.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE QUOTE?

“This too shall pass”.

WHO’S YOUR SQUAD?

My ultimate squad would have to be my best friend Jenna, because she’s hilarious and pretty much all of my music on Spotify comes from the playlists she makes me. The family member would be my younger sister Lucy, we’re 8 years apart but now she’s at the age where we are like best friends. When it comes to celebrities… it would have to Miley Cyrus, I actually met her once, but forgot to ask her to join my squad.

Thanks girls

#womenrock

a voice of diversity in tech

@womenrockbristol