Happy Women’s History Month! 

Each March, women around the world are celebrated for their unique contributions to society. From historical figures like suffragette Susan B. Anthony and Cleopatra to modern women who are making an impact in diverse fields, women have been getting it done for centuries, including right here at UrVenue. 

“Women play a vital role here,” said Tracee Nalewak, Chief Growth Officer. “Across the board, women are leading on change, inspiring their teams to set and exceed important goals, and enhancing the UrVenue culture in so many ways.”

Women in tech: current trends 

Women are closing the gender gap in the tech industry. Deloitte Global reports that large global technology firms will reach almost 33% overall female representation in their workforces this year, up by more than two percentage points from 2019. 

This may not sound like a notable increase, but as the research firm notes, moving the needle is difficult. Looking ahead, we can expect to see continuing, aggressive campaigns aimed at recruiting, hiring, retaining, and promoting women.

Like other industry leaders, UrVenue is focused on these important goals. We’re proud to recognize seven women who are thriving in the tech industry at UrVenue:

• Tracee Nalewak, Chief Growth Officer
• Emily Curtin, Director of Operations
• Janet Barboza, Customer Care Specialist
• Rachel Leitch, Customer Care Specialist 
• Mariasun Morena, Office Manager 
• Nancy Nitsche, Director of Sales 
• Kerry Osborne, Senior Enterprise Relationships Manager 

How women are contributing at UrVenue

Each of UrVenue’s “women in tech” has made significant contributions to the rapid growth of our organization by simply being herself.

When we asked women about how they view their contributions to UrVenue, we were amazed by the wide scope of answers, but we weren’t surprised — fostering diverse teams has been a priority for us from the start. 

Office Manager Mariasun Morena told us she draws on her experiences as a multilingual communicator, noting that her heritage and culture are key to communicating well across UrVenue’s diverse internal workforce as well as with outside clients. 

In addition to being fluent in Spanish, Morena speaks Italian and French, a skill that came in handy when communicating with clients in Quebec recently. “They were really happy to have some of the UrVenue staff able to communicate in their native tongue,” she said. 

We also heard about some of the other vital skills women bring to the table at UrVenue, including:

• Organizational and process-oriented skills
• Adability, especially in response to pandemic-related challenges
• Effective client communication
• Ability to keep up with constantly changing hospitality technology
• Agility, even at the last minute

What inspires the women of UrVenue?

Every UrVenue team member draws inspiration from their own unique perspective. 

Senior Enterprise Relationships Manager Kerry Osborne told us she draws inspiration from her own team. “Seeing your team grow and learn from each other, that’s true success,” she said. “We are all only successful by the people we choose to surround ourselves with.”

Director of Operations Emily Curtin turned the question around on us. “It’s really ‘who inspires me’,” she explained. “And…it’s my mom!” Curtin said her parents served as important role models who instill values like working hard, being honest, and trying her best. “Those values have always stayed with me and continue to drive me today,” she added.

Women of UrVenue also told us they are driven and inspired by:

• Making a difference
• Improving on the status quo
• Making an impact
• Their families
• People who overcome significant obstacles
• People who think outside the box
• Spirituality and nature

Unique backgrounds that led to technology

Women are making strides in the tech industry, but it’s still a male-dominated field. We wanted to find out what led UrVenue team members to take a tech-focused path. 

Our interviewees each remarked on their non-technical backgrounds as being integral to their careers in tech. Some of the “soft” skills women said they rely on daily include:

• Multitasking 
• Being detail-oriented
• Setting high standards and expectations
• Efficient communication, especially across UrVenue’s international workforce

Experiences working in the hospitality industry have also helped steer women into tech roles at UrVenue. “I have an extensive background working in hospitality and have had my share of using the software (and hardware) that has set the roadmap for hospitality and entertainment,” Osborne said. 

The future of women in tech

Looking ahead, it’s clear that women will continue making vital contributions to the tech field. Women in tech at UrVenue exemplify the kind of supportive, fostering mentorship that will no doubt inspire future generations of women to impact tech in myriad ways. 

“I would definitely recommend any young woman to consider a career in technology,” Moreno said. “I understand it can be challenging, but it represents the future. Women are smarter and stronger than they think.” 

Janet Barboza, UrVenue Customer Care Specialist, agrees. “The most important attribute is to be a leader, and to have the ability to inspire other women in the industry,” she said. “To support, uplift, embrace talent, be willing to share our knowledge — these are attributes that help define leadership.” 

The women we interviewed made it clear that for tech to continue to be a successful field in the future, diversity matters. “Tech definitely needs more voices,” Customer Care Specialist Rachel Leitch said. 

“Technology is the future,” said Director of Sales Nancy Nitsche. “Women should have a hand in deciding the direction of where it goes. Women are some of the biggest consumers of technology, so who better than us to be here contributing?” 

Nalewak is confident about the future of women in tech. “Technology is constantly evolving,” she said, “Women are uniquely equipped to face that evolution head-on, adapting and improving the way we interact with, and benefit from, technology. UrVenue, much like the tech industry at large, is stronger because of the impact of our female team members.”