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At Topo, we are committed to championing gender diversity in the workplace and empowering women in tech. In line with our corporate strategy and vision, Topo has invested in recruitment supporting gender diversity and equality, and we’re proud to announce that last year, 42% of our new recruits were female.
Our COO, Tobias Grabler, said: “We strongly support and invest in women in tech and have been taking actionable steps to see our vision for a more gender-balanced, and diverse workforce come to life.”
“We have enjoyed a strong 2022 with significant growth, more than doubling the size of our team, which has enabled us to push ahead with our purpose of making supply chain management more user friendly, efficient, collaborative, data-driven and sustainable”
As we celebrate International Women’s Day this year, we sat down with some of the amazing women in tech at Topo to hear about their experiences, advice for younger generations and what it’s like working at Topo. Read more to know about these inspiring individuals.
What is it like working at Topo?
My favourite aspects about working at Topo are the diverse team and the great leadership. The positive vibes in Topo directly influence the team’s attitude and motivation.
Why did you choose a career in tech?
Simply the satisfaction you get once you solve a puzzle, directs me to become a developer. So I could create solutions to help people do their jobs as efficiently as possible. My brother motivated me to achieve this goal.
One inspirational woman in your life
Similar to the story of many girls, my mom. She is such a strong human spirit, born with polio but never gives up. She is the best example of Choosing better and forgetting bitter.
One advice you would give to other young women looking to break into tech
Girls, follow your passion, Do it, Love it, and learn as much as you can.
What is it like working at Topo?
In a nutshell, Topo is my home away from home.
On the outside, Topo may seem like any other tech company, but on the inside, I can say that the people at Topo makes work meaningful. I work well with my colleagues, and I feel heard. We build upon each other and improve on our weaknesses together as a team. Flexibility is another key aspect at Topo that I wasn’t able to find anywhere else – there’s a lot of trust within the team, and we rely on each other knowing that everyone will deliver their parts at the end of the day.
Why did you choose a career in Tech?
I never really choose a career in tech, but I somehow found my way into this world. It’s inevitable for tech to be an aspect in someone’s career – my career just so happens to be immersed in tech. When I first stumbled upon this industry, I was extremely fascinated by the ideas and the innovations that people have come up with. There were, and are extremely bright people in this industry, and it continues to inspire me to work with them.
At Topo too, I’ve met individuals years my junior who keep surprising me with such cutting-edge solutions to difficult problems. I’ve also worked with bright minds who think of things beyond most people’s realms. That may not be what has gotten me into tech, but that’s what’s keeping me in tech.
One inspirational woman in your life
Here’s the classic answer – my mum. She’s always been a north star in my life, and is a big contributor of my career success up to now. I’ve learned a lot from her life; the good and the bad, the mistakes and the learnings. She’s a force of a woman, and I’m glad that she is a big part of my life even today.
One advice you would give to other young women looking to break into tech
Think like you’re there, and never settle for less.
And this applies to everyone who is marginalized or is the underdog. Being a Vietnamese woman in HK tech means being underestimated, and I quickly learned that you don’t have a seat at a table unless you drag a chair and take your place. If it works for me, it’ll work for all of you too!
What is it like working at Topo?
I have been really enjoying working at Topo. It is an especially nice group of people who truly all work together which is a nice environment to be in. The technology is different than what I have done in the past, so I am also enjoying learning a lot of new things. Because Topo is still relatively small, everyone gets to wear many hats and I like that very much.
Why did you choose a career in tech?
Like Maddie, I did not really choose a career in tech. My background is in textiles and apparel. I am very type A minded and love to solve problems. I spent many years working in supply chain management and compliance as some of the regulations were ramping up 10-12 years ago. I found the product compliance world to be interesting and challenging. I implemented a software on the business side which led to a move to the tech side. When I was debating leaving the apparel industry for tech a mentor said to me, “you’ll either be an apparel industry expert with a focus on technology or a technology expert with a focus in the apparel industry”. Her point was that either one was a good place to be. More years than I want to admit later, she was entirely correct.
One inspirational woman in your life
I can say my mother. She passed away 15 years ago but was a good role model. She was a teacher in inner-city Brooklyn in the early 70’s, not a typical choice for a woman at that time. She loved what she did, made a big impact on her students, and they did on her as well. She also traveled the world as a single female back then, also not typical. She ignored all the naysayers and lived as she chose. As a mother she taught me to think outside the box, never question my ability to do something, and be fearless.
One advice you would give to other young women looking to break into tech
This would probably be the same as the above. Don’t ever question your ability. Jump head on into whatever it is that interests you and figure out the rest as you go. Even though I think women do face hurdles in business I don’t like to think of it in terms of male vs female. We should all do what interest us most, work hard, and leave the rest to the side. The person who questions your ability based on gender has a narrow mind, let them have it, look forward, and keep yours open.
What is it like working at Topo?
In my time at Topo, I’ve always had fun. There is never something not exciting happening; be it the work or the conversations. I have always felt respected here, by the diverse and energetic team members. The best part, though, is being able to make an impact.
Why did you choose a career in Tech?
The tech career chose me. Initially, as my parents did not allow me to travel to another city for graduation, computer science was the only branch in my city that I could get into. However, four years later the tables had turned: it was the beginning of the dot com boom and computer science was a highly coveted branch. Numerous electrical and mechanical graduates were also moving to tech jobs. Despite of the way I landed into this career, I have always loved coding and the intrigue of how it all works keeps me wanting to stay in this dynamic and ever changing field.
One inspirational woman in your life
A colleague from my previous job who has stayed like a mentor for me. The ‘tech’ field back then was not the best for women, and having someone like her has kept me inspired. I am always aspiring to be like her whether it is her dedication, work ethics or values.
One advice you would give to other young women looking to break into tech
Tech is a great field to be in, it keeps you on your toes. In fact is difficult to stay away from tech nowadays. In any fields that you end up being in, you will need to have understanding of technology. Take marketing , finance, mechanics, biology, HR and so many others for example. So why not make it your career? I believe this industry has a lot of scope and young women anywhere should take the opportunity to get into it early.
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