Mar 2023
IWD - Annabell Frewin-Wood
Annabell Frewin-Wood is a Service Desk Engineer in our Managed Services team.
As part of International Women’s Day 2023, we’re sharing insights from our team about their experiences, their role models and their goals for inspiring others as, or about, women in tech and business.
How did you become a woman in tech?
I have always had a passion for technology.
At college it was hard to stay focused as it was a very male-dominated environment – I was the only female in the entire department, so I was brushed off and told I would never achieve anything.
It did put me off working in tech, but then I noticed a lot of women in the tech and computing industry on LinkedIn which gave me a bit of hope to study in my own time, and give myself a chance to understand more before attempting to go back into a tech environment.
After a few IT placements, I found the apprenticeship with Waterstons honestly it was one of the best choices I could have made.
What advice would you give to the next generation of women starting their careers?
Just go for it; you are more supported than you realise! If you are passionate about it, do not care what other people may have to say about it, it will improve your confidence so much and you will surprise yourself with how much you know.
There was a lot of knowledge I believed I did not have until I started working in tech, and I still get surprised to this day about how much I know compared to what I thought I didn’t.
What have you learned from the women you have worked with in your career so far?
Everyone is so supportive of each other, and they want to see each other succeed.
Yes, there are fewer women in the tech workplace compared to other industries, but these women want to support each other and want to watch each other succeed. You won’t get anywhere in life putting someone else down, teamwork is the best support you can have, and I have realised since working in this sector that women just want to support each other, and we all want to help each other out.
Find out more about Annabell here.
Read more IWD stories from our team at the following links.