Importance of Diversity in STEM

At Covernet we have always been fully committed to achieving gender diversity in our workplace and are proud to have many talented females in senior positions, playing a key role in the growth of our company.

In the last 12 months alone, we have welcomed 5 graduates, 3 of which have been female. It has been well documented in recent years that women are under-represented in STEM occupations, with 19% of IT course applicants and only 15% of graduates being women.* Aspiring to and maintaining this diverse workforce is championed throughout the company and in particular is integral to our Graduate Recruitment Programme. Through our academic partnerships with local universities including work placements and graduate roles, we are delighted to offer careers in the tech industry, based locally but working for national and global brands. Following induction, our graduates are given the opportunity very early on to immerse themselves in client projects under the guidance and mentorship of our skilled Team Leaders and Managers.

We have been extremely lucky to welcome a number of graduates through our doors over the years, many who are still with us today. Gemma Laird joined Covernet as a Graduate three years ago and has been quick to meet every challenge presented to her, as she works through the software development path of our career development framework. Not only is Gemma actively working towards another step on the framework with her role, she is working her way through the modules for her Professional Training to attain her certifications from the Institute of Insurance. In addition to this, Gemma also helps lead the Student Placement Programme and has a lead role in the training and mentoring of the new Graduates joining Covernet.

Covernet’s Development Manager, Jenny Beattie, is another leading female within the company. Jenny joined Covernet in 1999 after taking the less typical path into a STEM workplace, demonstrating that there are many different routes of entering the world of Tech. With a background in English Literature, Jenny enrolled in a conversion course and took up a placement position in Covernet and her love of programming began! Jenny heads up several client projects and plays a key role in mentoring new Graduates joining the company, imparting lots of learnings along the way.

While 2020 has been a year like no other, we are very proud of our commitment to the Graduate Programme and we very much look forward to providing more Graduate roles within the company in 2021 and continuing to develop our diverse and multi-skilled STEM workforce.

Source: Stemwomen*

Pictured at Downhill beach for September beach clean up month.