"GO GIRL GO!" PODCAST - EPISODE 8 PETRA JENNER
Petra Jenner is one of the few women who have asserted themselves in the international tech world. Why is this so – and what did she do differently than other women? In the podcast “GO GIRL GIRL!” She talks to her friend Judith Williams about this special path and what young women today can learn from it. An open conversation about false hopes regarding the women's quota, the best network and which advice from her father the top manager has never forgotten.
If you look at the tech industry, the first thing you see is men. To be precise: a lot of men. The scene is still dominated by testosterone. It starts at university – almost 70 percent of MINT students are men – and ends in companies. The proportion of women in German IT companies is a meager 16 percent.
Petra Jenner is someone who has asserted herself in this male-dominated world like no other. She has been one of the leading women in the international tech scene for 25 years. The qualified business economist and business IT specialist headed the Microsoft national subsidiaries in Austria and Switzerland and has been in the European management of Salesforce, a US software company, since 2016.
In this episode with her friend Judith, she gives exciting insights into her career. What was it like to have only men-only courses at university? And why is it that women – especially in the IT industry – are still in the minority?
The top manager makes one thing clear in the podcast: the women's quota is not the solution for her. “For one reason only: We are creating more pressure than is good for women.” Men would assume that women only got the job because of the quota. “It hurts women.” And: It is a fallacy that the glass ceiling will disappear with the quota.
For Jenner herself, the quota was never an issue. At a time when “diversity wasn’t even talked about,” she made her career. She always had her father's motto in the back of her mind: “You can do anything you want.”
In the podcast, Jenner reveals what makes a good manager, what she admires about American companies, why everyone needs a good network (not to get jobs, but to develop) and what three things she regrets not having done. Curious? Then listen here for the open insights with one of the biggest women in the tech scene!
ALL TOPICS OF THE PODCAST WITH PETRA JENNER AT A GLANCE:
This is how Petra Jenner came into the tech scene (from 0 1:50)
Why lifelong learning is a necessity to get ahead in your job – and why opportunities are sometimes not used (from 06:00)
This is how the software company Salesforce works (from 09:20)
What makes a good manager? (from 1:40 p.m.)
This man – and his mindset – shaped Petra Jenner (from 16:27)
How do you get women back to work after maternity leave? And how are American companies ahead of us? (from 19:12)
About a compliment from an old friend – and why it moved her deeply (from 27:35)
Why mistakes are important, but you should never make them twice (from 29:49)
Everyone needs a network like this (from 35:05)
A digital boost in schools: What positive effects the Corona crisis has had (from 38:20)
Three things Petra Jenner regretted in her professional life (from 43:50)
How do you know you should change jobs and Petra Jenner's advice to her 16-year-old self? (from 48:13)
How does Petra Jenner feel about the women's quota? (from 52:18)