Leading as Yourself: Why Authenticity Matters for Women in Tech

Alice Nicholls, Data Consultant at Principle One, interviews three colleagues on their approach to authentic leadership as women in tech.

Authentic leadership is often described in abstract terms – being true to yourself, maintaining integrity, creating space for others. For many women in tech, authenticity means constantly negotiating identity, confidence and credibility in environments not built for them. Wanting to explore this more, I sat down with colleagues Monica Mensah, Chiara Pascucci and Chandni Tailor to reflect on why leading as yourself matters so deeply.

Principle One is full of people who didn’t start in technology, and that diversity is one of our strengths. Chiara began her career in financial compliance after studying economics and politics. Evening coding classes provided a pathway to retrain, and she now leads a team of developers for a government customer. Chandni studied maths and joined Vodafone’s graduate scheme before moving into consulting, where she provides technical leadership in the application of AI in Defence. Finally, Monica started her career in financial services after studying business, law and marketing. She retrained in Data Science and AI during the pandemic and now leads data science teams. Although their routes differed, each has progressed by grasping every opportunity presented to them. As Monica puts it, “you’re the orchestrator of your own career.”

If typical images of leadership are based on asserting control, these women don’t fit that stereotype – nor do they try to. Chiara describes her approach as “adaptive,” believing that people need different forms of guidance and rejecting ‘one size fits all’ leadership. Monica sees herself as an advocate rather than an authority figure, encouraging challenge and treating leadership as a shared commitment to collective goals “If people think I’m wrong, I want them to say it. I'd rather we challenge ideas than defer to hierarchy.” Chandni adds that “leadership isn’t a title. You can demonstrate leadership from day one of your career.” She leads through high standards and thoughtfulness, focusing on quality, wellbeing and supporting junior colleagues.

All three described moments where their credibility was questioned more than their male peers. Monica describes entering new organisations feeling she must establish credibility before being taken seriously, aware that first impressions can trigger subconscious assumptions. This experience can influence how women view progression, forcing them to hold themselves to higher standards, mask uncertainty or adopt behaviours that don’t feel natural. As Chandni notes, “Confidence plays a part, but culture plays an even bigger one.”

Despite this, each woman has developed ways of building trust authentically. For them, trust is earned not through performance but through presence; asking questions, showing curiosity and demonstrating care. Chiara speaks about learning to ask “why” without worrying it signals inexperience, but doing so to build trust. Monica emphasises rapport and realism, reminding herself, “You worry you’re being judged, but sometimes people just aren’t thinking that deeply. I tell myself – get out of your head.” This helps her to stay present and focus on outcomes rather than perception.

When asked what would help women progress, all three point to organisational culture: psychological safety, flexible working, supportive networks, managers trained to recognise bias, and environments where women feel comfortable showing up authentically.

Leadership styles like theirs – adaptive, collaborative, empathetic – can be undervalued in workplaces that reward traditionally masculine behaviours such as assertiveness or dominance. Chandni reflects, “organisations should understand and reward a wider range of leadership qualities.”

Authenticity can only thrive in environments that welcome it. The experiences of Chiara, Monica and Chandni show that women progress when they can lead from their own strengths. Real change is achieved not through asking women to mimic ‘traditional’ leadership, but in recognising that a diverse workplace will thrive from valuing the different models of leadership that women bring.

About the campaign

techUK’s March TechTogether campaign continues with a focus on ‘empowering women in tech from classroom to c-suite'. Following International Women's Day our insights this week focus on female retention and growth in tech workplaces, spotlighting successful female tech leaders, gender pay disparities in the tech world, and addressing workplace biases and strengthening DEI initiatives.