Celebrating Women’s Day 2024 at Swappie

“Startups & technology … are ways to drive change fast and solve meaningful problems at scale.” Emma Lehikoinen, COO

International Women’s Day is a global event dedicated to honoring the achievements and contributions of women throughout history. It also serves as a call-to-action for gender equality and women’s rights, as another opportunity to raise awareness about issues women face worldwide, and a chance to celebrate their accomplishments. 

To celebrate Women’s Day 2024, we’re putting the spotlight on female figures across our organisation. Swappie requires an incredibly diverse mix of talent to function, and we’re delighted to share in-depth interviews with women in a selection of roles at the company.

Read on to hear how our interviewees stay motivated, solve problems and wind down after work – as well as perspectives on how to improve gender equality in the industry.

Creating early opportunities for careers in tech

Statistics say the ratio of men to women in tech is roughly 3:1*, which means there are still huge opportunities for improvements in gender equality in the industry. But as Tiia Willman, Swappie’s Head of Talent Acquisition notes in her interview – introducing girls and young women to the industry early is key. 

It’s also important to promote the diversity of roles available sooner rather than later, so that working at a tech company feels like less of a mystery when the time comes to apply: “The tech industry is nothing to be afraid of,” she explains,”it is a wonderfully data driven, impact oriented industry that has a bright future.” 

We couldn’t agree more! Tiia and her team work tirelessly to find and place talent at Swappie, ensuring that individuals get the best chance to contribute in a way that’s meaningful to them and valuable to the company.

Solving meaningful problems at scale

As Swappie’s COO, Emma Lehikoinen makes crucial decisions about the future of the business every day. Emma got her start at Slush, a student-led startup conference, roughly ten years ago but it’s the scope of Swappie’s mission that keeps her inspired: “…working on something that will reduce the CO2 emission and e-waste of the global smartphone industry feels extremely meaningful.” Get valuable insight on her role at Swappie and life outside of work in her Women’s Day interview.

Recognising unique barriers women face in the workplace

Swappie provides an end-to-end refurbishment process. This means the company uses it’s own trained technicians in Europe to refurbish it’s iPhones, resulting in a uniquely high standard of service within the refurbishment industry. 

Manjinder Kaur is a Senior Production Specialist at Swappie’s Tallin OPS site, and a figure fundamental to the quality of this process. In her interview she touches on the unique challenges faced by women in the workplace – often regarding childcare responsbilities, noting how, “… offering flexible work schedules can serve as a pivotal step in breaking down barriers that hinder (women’s) advancement.” 

Creating a modern workplace that takes the individual’s particular concerns into account has been key to Swappie’s success, allowing for individuals to shape their work in a way that works best for them.

To read the full interviews, and hear more from female talent at Swappie – including our very own COO Emma Lehikonen, click on the photos below!