Tired of finding herself in the minority at computer conferences, Heidi Harman decided to set up a network of her own. So she co-founded Geek Girl, a social network for women who are into IT. Interest exceeded expectations and the group’s October meeting was over-booked within a week. Sweden.se met her to talk about women and the web.
Heidi Harman och Andie Nord. Photo: Private
Why did you set up Geek Girl?
– We were going to a lot of conferences and women were always in minority. We saw the need for a network of women you could talk code with, girls who know the web and business development. We wanted to be in the majority. So I sent Andie Nordgren a Twitter message and last fall we arranged two events at which a few of us met up and had some beers. Then, in March, we organized our first conference. It went really well, with 65 people attending even though we only had capacity for 50.
How many Geek Girls are there in Sweden?
– We don’t have any official members, as we’re not a formal organization. We’re a loosely connected group of women driven by a shared interest in the web, code and business development. We have room for 100 people at the conference. Where we differ from a lot of other events is that everyone who attends can run their own session about something nerdy that only they know about.
Does Geek Girl exist in other countries?
– All over the world! There are Geek Girl dinners and Geek Girl bar camps where you can hang out in a bar and discuss technology. We wanted to stretch that concept to a conference, to customize it in a way that’s best for us.
What will happen at Geek Girl Meetup 2 on 24th-25th October?
– There will be lots of lectures about business development, interfaces, and social media. We’re going to have a hack session in which you have to create something for the web in a short time. More than 20 teams have signed up.
Has the network developed in the way you imagined?
– It’s definitely exceeded our expectations. To have our meeting booked up in just one week is awesome and proves there’s a need for this. There have also been spin-offs, including a Geek Girl network in Malmö with 50 people attending their first meeting.
What do you do when you’re not busy with Geek Girl?
– I run my own start-up website, www.runalong.se. It’s for female runners and lets them find other women to run with. I received a grant of around 1 million SEK, which is divided between a researcher, a technician and me.
Have you been empowered by Geek Girl?
– Absolutely! I’ve developed my female network and I’ve been able to pass along job opportunities and have received offers myself. I’ve also discovered a wide range of consultants to work with.
Anna Sandelin
Anna Sandelin is a freelance journalist based in Stockholm. She’s always been impressed by people with good computer skills, and wishes she were more of a nerd herself.
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