Sustainability Performance Company, Northshore, visit The University of Kent as part of Inspiring Women Week.
Last week The University of Kent’s Careers and Employability Service are put on a range of events focused on the topic of inspiring women. Inspiring Women Week (4th – 8th March) coincided with International Women’s Day on the 8th March, and featured external speakers from range of industries.
It was fantastic to have Niovi Papanikolaou (pictured), an Energy Modelling Manager, and Nell Herbert, Head of People and Culture from Northshore on campus for our Women in Engineering session. The session looked into the challenges that can be faced by women in STEM, both from a self-imposed and industry perspective. Both speakers talked openly about their experiences throughout their career so far and gave valuable tips on how you can set yourself up for success.
Our first speaker, Niovi, opened the talk by bringing perspectives of her experience as a woman in engineering. Niovi has more than seven years of experience in energy management and efficiency optimisation projects. She has been responsible for performance improvements of large-scale energy centres and has designed energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects. She holds an MEng in Mechanical Engineering and MSc in Sustainable Energy Futures.
Niovi shared her firsthand experiences navigating a predominantly male-dominated industry. She shed light on the issue of unconscious bias and its detrimental impact on women in the workplace. Despite often being unintentional, she highlighted how this bias can lead to the exclusion of women from informal team activities, simply because these activities tend to align with traditionally male interests. She also noted that when women are interested in these activities they can often be overlooked as stereotypically women are not always considered to be interested in them.
Furthermore, Niovi delved into the profound effects of the lack of role models and the phenomenon of ‘tokenism’ within STEM fields. She emphasised the importance of diversity in leadership roles, as diverse perspectives foster innovation and contribute to a more inclusive work environment.
Niovi also challenged the notion of superficial diversity, noting that having a female CEO does not necessarily equate to true diversity if the broader leadership team remains predominantly male. True diversity encompasses representation at all levels of leadership, ensuring that women have equal opportunities to influence and shape the direction of their organisations. The motivation for women to forge a career in STEM also requires that they have the confidence to do so, Niovi remarked how representation and just seeing other women succeed in leadership can have a profound effect on attracting women into the industry.
She also presented some interesting statistics. Most notably, it is remarkable to see that just 35% of university students in STEM subjects in the UK are women. The number of women engaged in the field then drops by an average of 18% between graduation and employment. Niovi expressed her desire for this trend to change, emphasising the immense opportunities available within the field. She spoke passionately about her own enjoyment working in the sector, the value of building a network and encouraged more women to pursue careers in STEM, advocating for a proactive “if you want something, go and get it” mindset. Niovi underscored the importance of confidence, noting that women should not hesitate to pursue career paths or promotion opportunities, as they bring valuable perspectives and contributions to the table equal to their male counterparts.
Nell then added valuable perspectives to the discussion from a HR standpoint. After studying Law at University Nell noted her various career roles prompted her to pursue an operational role. Nell is passionate about women entering into STEM sectors and wants to see the playing field level. She noted how the attitude towards women in STEM is changing and, thanks to businesses like Northshore, it’s becoming more natural for women to find their voice in the workspace. She encouraged women not to be put off and help fuel change.
Nell delivered intriguing insights into gender dynamics within the world of work. She underscored the tendency for men to be more inclined to apply for positions for which they may not meet all the listed qualifications, contrasting with women who are 16% less likely to pursue opportunities after reviewing them. Additionally, Nell pointed out that women typically apply to 20% fewer positions than men due to a perception that they do not fully meet the criteria. She urged more women to go for opportunities and that ‘you’ll only know if the role truly fits you and your skills when you are in the recruitment process (or in the job)’
Other tips Nell shared included:
- Consider sending a cover letter. CV’s often focus on your past but Cover letters can showcase your aspirations, interest in the job and suitability.
- Treat interviews as a discussion: it’s as much about whether the role and business fits you as it is vice versa.
- Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method to showcase your experience, both in pursuit of a role, and during it.
- When in a new role, ask for feedback as often as you feel comfortable. Show them you’re interested.
- Recognise success in others; It’ll empower people to do the same for you.
Wrapping up their talk the speakers left the group with the following advice which students found rather empowering. They stated:
“You are uniquely you. You are intelligent, qualified, and bring a lot to the table. Utilise that. You’ll miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. So whether applying, professing or advocating, take a shot”
If you would like to find out more about Northshore, you can find out more about on their website: https://northshore.io/
You can also talk to them in person at our Spring Careers Fair on the 19th March, 10;00 – 15:00 on the Colyer-Fergusson Concert Hall, Canterbury Campus.
If you have been inspired and want to talk to a careers adviser about routes into STEM or your career in general we highly recommend checking out The Careers and Employability Service. We offer one to one appointments, as well as workshops and other events to enhance your employability whist you study at Kent and three years after your graduation.