{"id":6927,"date":"2025-07-29T09:05:48","date_gmt":"2025-07-29T09:05:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sr2rec.com\/?post_type=womenrock&p=6927"},"modified":"2025-07-29T09:05:49","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T09:05:49","slug":"women-tech-leadership-georgie-steele","status":"publish","type":"womenrock","link":"https:\/\/sr2rec.com\/en\/womenrock\/women-tech-leadership-georgie-steele\/","title":{"rendered":"The Impact of Leadership in Climate Tech with Georgie Steele"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

From McLaren F1 to pioneering AI, discover how this inspiring CTO is building inclusive tech and tackling climate change.<\/strong>
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Diversity in STEM isn\u2019t just important\u2014it\u2019s urgent. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

These powerful words from Georgie Steele<\/a>, Co-Founder & CTO at climate tech innovator Maiven,<\/a> set the tone for an extraordinary career in Women in Tech Leadership.

From the intense world of structural engineering at McLaren Formula One<\/a>, Georgie made an inspiring pivot into software. This interview delves into how she shattered traditional career moulds,<\/strong> navigated deeply ingrained misogyny, and became a driving force for inclusive innovation. <\/strong>

Discover her candid insights on building diverse workplaces<\/strong>, the critical urgency of addressing AI bias<\/strong>, and invaluable advice for women aiming to thrive in tech<\/strong>, even when job descriptions feel daunting. Learn about her commitment to Women Who Code<\/a> mentorship and the vital tech skills for tomorrow’s leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hey Georgie, thanks so much for being part of Women Rock! Please tell me about yourself.<\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m Georgie, Co-Founder and CTO at Maiven<\/strong>, a climate policy AI platform that helps companies understand and navigate complex climate-related regulations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My career started in structural design engineering before I moved into software engineering. I previously worked at Tractable<\/a>, where I led engineering for their fastest-growing product in the US market. Later, I joined Sylvera<\/a>, a climate data and insights platform. That\u2019s where I met my Maiven co-founder, Larsen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What inspired you to start a career in STEM, albeit in structural engineering, initially?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve always loved science and maths, and I wanted to use them to create meaningful change. I had a brilliant physics teacher at school who truly helped me understand what engineering was about. I didn\u2019t have any family connections in the field, so I began internships at 15 to figure out my path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What truly excited me was the potential to build things, both physical and digital, that could positively impact the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What made you decide to switch from structural engineering to software?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I was working at McLaren in their Formula One team<\/strong> as a structural engineer. I became interested in automation and process improvement there. I started teaching myself Python and even ran lunch-and-learn sessions for my colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then COVID hit, and much of the Formula One industry went on furlough. I set myself the goal of learning to code properly. I aimed to get an interview in software within a month. I targeted a few specific companies and eventually ended up at Tractable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What were the biggest challenges in making the switch?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I didn\u2019t know anyone in tech, so I felt consistently behind. That feeling became a motivator, took on increasingly difficult projects to accelerate my learning. I started with data science tools like Pandas and watched loads of Harvard lectures online. I pushed myself to learn fundamental concepts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When I arrived at Tractable, I threw myself into a major integration project. This involved a language I\u2019d never worked with (TypeScript). Thankfully, I had amazing support from senior engineers. I also deliberately looked for companies that understood the learning curve for junior devs and were willing to invest in that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Were there any challenges you faced as one of the few female engineers at McLaren?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Yes, many. The physical workspace itself was an issue: glass staircases, glass lifts, glass walkways. It simply wasn\u2019t designed with women in mind.<\/em> The culture was also very male-dominated. Most of my colleagues had never worked with a woman before, let alone a young female engineer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a deeply misogynistic environment at times, and that shaped the way I now think about choosing the companies I work with or build. This experience truly shaped my dedication to Women in Tech Leadership<\/strong> and inclusive spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you find the software engineering side of STEM more culturally suited than the wider engineering field?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Definitely. In software, I\u2019ve been part of teams that were mostly women. I\u2019ve also seen a 50\/50 gender balance in leadership. That never happened in traditional engineering. People in tech are much more open about the need to do better, even if they don\u2019t always know how.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, challenges still exist, especially for women who are outspoken or lead with confidence. We\u2019re often perceived differently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is your proudest professional achievement?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

My proudest professional achievement is founding Maiven<\/strong>. It\u2019s incredibly rewarding to create something designed to meet a real and urgent need: empowering businesses to confidently navigate the complexities of climate policy. Although we’re still in our early stages, I\u2019m inspired daily by the potential positive environmental and economic impact we can achieve. This is especially true when I see the genuine enthusiasm from our early customers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Closely tied to the founding of Maiven has been building its exceptional team. It\u2019s fulfilling to cultivate a culture where talented individuals continuously challenge, support, and inspire one another. Witnessing colleagues grow together, both professionally and personally, has been especially meaningful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mentorship<\/strong> has also brought immense personal satisfaction. It\u2019s deeply gratifying to watch former mentees advance into senior roles at companies with cultures that enable them to flourish. Hearing from individuals who participated in mentorship schemes I set up years ago, now excelling in their careers, reminds me of the lasting value of investing in people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, being recognised recently in Forbes’ 30 Under 30<\/strong> represented an incredible milestone. This validated my professional journey and underscored the collective impact of these efforts in Women in Tech Leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking back, were there points in your career where more technical mentorship could have helped, and how do you now pay that forward?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Absolutely. Early in my career, particularly after transitioning into tech, I felt behind compared to my peers. I needed to rapidly build foundational technical knowledge. During that period, I was incredibly fortunate to have exceptional technical mentors. They helped bridge the gaps that weren’t easy to fill through daily project work alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even now, mentorship remains crucial to my growth. I continue to benefit greatly from ongoing mentorship. Notably, mentors like Henry Franks (CAIO at Climate Policy Radar)<\/strong> constantly push my technical knowledge and skillset forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because mentorship has been so significant to me personally, I actively pay it forward. I\u2019ve set up mentorship programs. I\u2019ve also mentored several individuals. I embed a strong culture of continuous learning and knowledge-sharing in every team I lead, especially to support emerging Women in Tech Leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Who have been\/are the most influential people in your career? You mentioned your Physics teacher\u2026<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

First, my Physics teacher, Richard Meanwell<\/strong>, was hugely influential during my early years. He opened my eyes to engineering as a career where you can create a tangible, meaningful impact on the world. His enthusiasm and encouragement were pivotal in steering me toward a technical career path.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, Henry Franks<\/strong>, our brilliant technical advisor at Maiven, has been invaluable. As Chief AI Officer at Climate Policy Radar, Henry brings deep technical expertise and a passionate commitment to ethical AI. Beyond providing technical guidance, he’s also been a consistently supportive, empathetic sounding board whenever I’ve faced challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another significant influence has been Tam Miner<\/strong>, a remarkable female CTO. Given the limited number of women in senior technical roles, having someone like Tam to look up to and learn from has been inspiring. She\u2019s authentic, strong, honest, and never afraid to speak her mind, qualities I deeply admire and seek to emulate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why is having a diverse team important to you?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Diverse teams build better, more equitable products.<\/strong> I\u2019m especially worried about the lack of diversity in AI foundation models. If the data sets used to build technology aren\u2019t representative, you get biased results, and we\u2019re already seeing that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If those early teams had been more diverse, we wouldn\u2019t be having the same problems now. We need to fix it, but that takes time and resources. Such issues could have been avoided with a more inclusive approach from the start. This is a core tenet of effective Women in Tech Leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How do you go about ensuring that your talent pipeline is as diverse as possible when you’re hiring?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We start by ensuring our pipeline is at least as diverse as the broader software engineering population, if not closer to society as a whole. Then we debrief as a team. We check each other\u2019s assumptions and call out bias.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What\u2019s been encouraging is that, as a diverse founding team, we\u2019ve naturally attracted a much broader range of candidates. Once you make that first hire, it changes who sees your company as a place where they could belong. This is crucial for building diversity in tech<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you implemented any internal tooling or frameworks that promote inclusive coding practices or reduce bias in development workflows?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Yes, we’ve implemented several practices at Maiven aimed at promoting inclusivity and reducing bias, especially within our hiring processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, we structure technical interviews into two parts:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n