We caught up with Nicki Harkings-Emberson, a woman leading in tech at Cambridge University Press & Assessment to discuss her journey and offer advice to those aiming for leadership roles.
Can you share your journey into tech leadership?
My first role was at Barings bank. I became familiar with formal memos in sealed envelopes and mail merge letters that needed two people to physically check each one before it could be sent. Realising that asset management was not for me, my next entry level role was in supply chain in an organisation I stayed with for 20 years.
I cut my teeth with learning procurement, customer services, ran marketing and communication along with tele-sales, was a product manager, a global process owner and lead Quality with a big Q.
I remember being taught to use a facsimile (fax), learning that if you put the paper the wrong way up, you send someone a blank sheet! Now that would be like forgetting the email attachment or sending a URL that someone can’t access.
Being very methodically minded, I was always doing mini projects alongside global operations. In those 20 years I was part of or lead many transformation programmes including global rollouts of Oracle.
Leading SAP global rollouts at Cambridge, this led me to the Portfolio Office where we facilitate strategic initiatives which lean on Technology support.
How did mentors, networks, or sponsorships help along the way?
As a green, new-to-work employee, I remember being quite terrified of management, especially a confident female director, Jill. I learned so much from her and only realised 10+ years later that she had mentored me, toughened me up for the commercial world but also imprinted upon me expectations of professionalism. Jill made it possible for me to take part in EMEA initiatives with extensive travel and directly challenged some of my insular viewpoints.
I now have a great network of current and past colleagues. My diary will have regular meetings called “Natter” or “Coffee” where I exchange ideas or work through problem solving with others. One of us always has a topic ready to go and we’ll chat on how to tackle it, ways to approach others to help and how to simply get things done.
At Cambridge, I regularly attend both the project management and change management community of practices as well as our managers’ network. Our portfolio management community of practice is launching this year.
Have you experienced bias or barriers as a woman in leadership?
I am not, conscious of being treated differently to male colleagues in similar roles in professional terms. If I observed any concerning behaviour towards myself or others, I would immediately seek to call it out in a friendly, constructive manner.
What leadership qualities do you think are essential in tech?
I feel that many have a stereotypical view of technologists, fostered by movies portraying a tech-savvy characters in adarkened rooms with multiple brightly lit screens.
How do you foster diversity and inclusion in your team?
Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (EDIB) is a key part of our Cambridge make-up. As well as training which helps us identify conscious and unconscious bias, awareness events and tools help this remain top of mind, including simple solutions such as using mixed interview panels and standing desks or special office chairs. One member of my team has a desk sign to remind colleagues that they cannot hear if you stand behind them – you must be facing them. We have one team member who helps review important written content for accessibility and another who is leading an initiative with external partners from their homeland leveraging shared cultural context and native language. Two female team members are progressing extremely well through their AI apprenticeships.
What advice would you give to women aiming for leadership roles?
To be a leader, you must have followers – immerse yourself in opportunities to learn and growth, observe the behaviours and standards of others. Every piece of learning, practicing with each step you take forward is taking you closer to being a good leader.
I recommend surrounding yourself with diverse professional buddies, your personal network, who can help you remain your authentic confident self as your career progresses.
What’s been your most rewarding career moment so far?
It is sad but true that the greatest compliment is when someone you mentored outgrows your team. It is bittersweet! I have had team members develop from entry-level skills to leading their own teams with kindness and sincerity whilst keeping their team accountable for their quality of work.
Just today I had a regular natter with someone outside my team I am mentoring. They have found their role and expectations upon them challenging. We’ve evaluated tactics, explored different ways of working and communication styles. Today, they smiled for the first time ever when I asked them how it was going and immediately told me two things we had discussed were working for them. That felt just wonderful!
What changes would you like to see in the industry?
To those who may be a little sceptical if gender bias really is a thing, play a little with AI. Ask it to create an image of a scientist, a technologist, a doctor or a nurse. You can tell swiftly if the developer or engineer has a gender bias by the outcome it creates.
Perhaps also take a moment to search for images of a confident female leader in technology. I suspect you will find stereotypical images with long hair, slender physiques and limited ethnic diversity. This is the world we live in, where we are judged by how we look.
According to Grant Thornton’s International Business Report “Globally, women hold 32.0% of senior management positions in the tech sector, below the global average of 33.5%”. In the most basic terms, we need to improve how we recruit, manage our pipeline of talent and portray women in technology.
Opportunities such as flexible working is a start. However, whilst we might attract applicants, we must ensure that our interview process and then employee experience is balanced and fair. We as women must stand up, making ourselves visible and showcasing ourselves as achievers – this is a time for celebration, not modesty. We need to inspire others to know that they can do the same and better.
How does your organisation support women in leadership?
At Cambridge we launched our equality, diversity, inclusion and belonging strategy in 2022 and continue to champion global priorities such as accessibility, closing the gender pay gap, diversity and inclusion training, internships and our EDIB academy and global network. As well as showcase events internally, we promote mentoring which is equally rewarding for both the mentor and mentee. Building and maintaining confidence is key so we also encourage networking outside of our organisation.
Work life balance is also important – firstly flexible working enables responsibilities such as the school run to be easily accommodated. We can also work from home 40% of our time. Hybrid working can ease a little pressure dealing with household chores during a break and avoiding a commute, whilst still providing face to face time for aspirational role-model observations around the office, practicing skills or simply demonstrating what good looks like.
To find out more about working with Nicki and the team at Cambridge University Press & Assessment.
