Vogue Codes 2021 speaker Pip Marlow provides tips on mentoring women into tech careers

The CEO of Salesforce says there was one thing that stopped her from quitting the industry years ago and is hoping more women follow in her footsteps.

Cara JenkinCareers editor

@V8GirlCara

4 min read

June 10, 2021 - 6:21PM

News Corp Australia Network

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Without the support and guidance of others, Pip Marlow may never have stayed in the technology industry beyond a few years.

Navigating her way through the heavily male-dominated industry in the 1990s, she considered quitting Microsoft twice and now proclaims she “survived” the industry at the time, rather than “thrived” in it.

So Marlow, the chief executive at software company Salesforce Australia, New Zealand and ASEAN, is now a big advocate for mentoring, particularly those from non-traditional backgrounds in a given field, to ensure they do not walk alone.

“There were people who helped me get through a lot of rough experiences and challenges,” she says.

“I didn’t really think about them as mentors at the time, but that’s what they were.”

Pip Marlow had a challenging start to her career in the tech industry.

This month, Marlow is one of 18 speakers who will provide guidance to participants at the Vogue Codes Summit.

It aims to motivate women to navigate the digital landscape in new and innovative ways, particularly as technology touches more roles and careers than ever before and continues to open up new areas of opportunity.

LEARN FROM EXPERIENCE

Today’s women can gain from those who broke the glass ceiling before them by following in their footsteps.

But mentees can learn and gain support from anyone who has experience in anything they seek, whether it is to craft a certain career path, gain industry knowledge, or even improve soft skills such as confidence.

“(When I moved into financial services) I was deliberately looking for someone with capability and knowledge and experience that I didn’t have,” Marlow says.

“(A mentor) may be someone who is younger than me at a different career stage that can help me.

“I always look to hear from people who have a completely different lens and lived experience to me.”

For example, the first female on a particular board may want someone with that experience, or an individual moving into a manager role for the first time may want someone who has done the same thing.

Marlow has noticed an increase in people proactively seeking a mentor.

“People ask someone because of their title, such as CEO or chair,” she says.

“Before I say yes or no (to those who ask her), I ask them to tell me what you’re seeking from a mentor.”

They should also be mindful learning can come from all directions, she says.

She says, for example, her father was a great mentor for her when she was considering career shifts.

CHAMPION YOUR ABILITIES

Not having confidence in their own abilities, to put their hand up for opportunities, or to pursue new challenges is a typical trait of women.

So a mentor can act as a sponsor to put the mentee’s name forward for promotion, or provide the encouragement for them to do it themselves.

They also can help the mentee push through situations they may initially feel are too challenging.

“When I reflect on growing up in this industry, I needed some help to navigate and stay in it,” she says.

“If you’re going to realise your potential, you’re going to need people to help you.

“I have benefited greatly from having 1) people believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself; 2) to hold up a mirror to me when I needed a mirror held up to me; and 3) to sponsor me for opportunities that I didn’t know existed, or was in a situation where I wasn’t sponsoring myself.”

Pip Marlow says many workers need help to realise their potential.

PROVIDE HELP IN RETURN

Mentoring does not just work with those who ask for it and may require mentors to make the approach.

“Early in my career, I didn’t seek out mentorship,” Marlow says.

“I didn’t really know what mentoring was, I wasn’t labelling it like that.”

She says the technology industry, in particular, needs more mentors to be proactive with females who are considering careers as well as early in their working lives to improve their workforce participation so it is equal to that of males.

“The higher you go up, the lower the representation (of women),” she says.

“We’re committed to pay equity, promotions, really pushing to do everything we can but we’ve got to be hiring in really well and at a focused rate to go from a third (of the workforce being women) to 50/50 – the pace of change isn’t fast enough.

“Organisations are doing things more and more – mentoring is one of them, but we still have to look at other systematic changes we need to do to encourage participation.

“We need to make sure women go through their education and are excited and see the potential around the roles that come from having STEM skills.”

Actor Geena Davis is one of the speakers at the 2021 Vogue Codes Summit.

Vogue Codes 2021 is a series of live and virtual events running until July 29 to empower future female innovation.

Vogue Australia, in partnership with Optus, will present the sixth annual Vogue Codes Summit on June 18.

Women at every career stage, from early-stage start-up founders to chief executives, in industries including fashion, beauty, design and women’s health, will provide insights.

Via Q&As, keynote presentations and in-conversation sessions, they aim to motivate women to navigate the digital landscape in new and innovative ways and give practical tips, whether founding and funding a business, developing the skills needed for future success, or making a career pivot.

SPEAKERS

Geena Davis, Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media

Kinjil Mathur, CMO, Squarespace

Pip Marlow, CEO, Salesforce ANZ & ASEAN

Sarah Neill, founder & CEO, Mys Tyler

Danielle Statham, co-founder, Fibretrace

Audrey Khaing-Jones, co-founder, GlamCorner

Carla Oates, founder, The Beauty Chef

Nicole Liu, founder, Kin Fertility

Solange Cunin, senior product manager, Amazon Australia

Jane Abernethy, senior software engineer, Canva

Nicola Kilner, CEO, Deciem