Shortlist for 2026 Scotland Women in Technology Awards Revealed

We are delighted that ScotlandIS has been shortlisted for a Scotland Women in Technology (SWiT) 2026 award for our Scholarship in partnership with The Education Academy Scotland and Telefonica Tech. Our valued board member, Sheryl Newman, has also been shortlisted for Inspirational Woman of the Year.

The shortlist was announced at an event hosted by headline sponsor Morgan Stanley at its Glasgow office. It reflects the breadth of Scotland’s technology ecosystem, celebrating the achievements of 27 organisations in 10 categories across financial services, artificial intelligence, data, cybersecurity, software engineering and STEM education.

Now in their ninth year, the awards recognise contributions at every career stage – from rising stars and career changers to mentors, innovators, everyday leaders, gender diversity allies and female innovators. Organisational categories also celebrate outstanding diversity initiatives and inclusive recruitment practices.

Silka Patel, Founder and Chair of Scotland Women in Technology said: “Since founding SWiT 18 years ago, I have been a big believer in the position that if you cannot see it, then you cannot be it. This year’s incredible shortlist which includes computing teachers, tech associates, company founders and vice presidents at globally renowned firms highlights that representation does indeed exist, and gender championship is happening across the breadth of roles that exist within the tech sector – from the grassroots to global networks. I cannot wait to celebrate each of our finalists in November.”

The winners will be announced at a prestigious awards ceremony at the Glasgow Marriott Hotel on Thursday 5th November. Morgan Stanley is the 2026 awards headline sponsor and The Royal Bank of Scotland are gold sponsor.

Marina Carson, Executive Director at Morgan Stanley said: “When women thrive in technology, innovation thrives. Morgan Stanley is proud to headline sponsor the Scotland Women in Technology Awards, recognising those breaking barriers, driving change, and shaping the future of our industry.”

The full shortlist of nominees for the SWiT Awards 2026 include:

Category	Name	Organisation	Role
Inspirational Woman of the Year Award – sponsored by Harvey Nash	Sheryl Newman	Appetite for Business	Founder
	Ivona Voroneckaja	Hypercube	Product Manager
	Toni Scullion	dressCode & West Lothian Council	Founder & Computer Science Teacher
	Emma Mackenzie	ScottishPower	Cyber Governance Lead
Unsung Hero Award – sponsored by Tesco Insurance and Money Services	Lora Barclay	John G Russell Group	Group Business Systems Manager
	Jessica Saridakis	Morgan Stanley	Vice President
	Sowmya Ramesh	2i	Customer Success Manager
Female Innovator Award – sponsored by Avaloq	Alex Sheach	StructuredAF	Founder
	Colette Robinson	Morgan Stanley	Executive Director
	Megan Reutin	Grünenthal	Global Head of Data Science, Advanced Analytics and AI
	Esma Benssassi	AffectiveHalo	Founder and CEO,
Career Changer of the Year Award – sponsored by Leidos	Chloe Masterson	Modulr	AI and Automation
	Clare Parry	Head for Data	Head of Operations
	Chloe Urquhart	2i	Junior Quality Engineer
	Katherine Lavery	NHS Public Services Delivery (PSD) Scotland	Cyber Security Operations Analyst
Diversity Initiative of the Year Award – sponsored by The Data Lab	ScotlandIS Scholarship with Education Academy Scotland	ScotlandIS
	Hopper Awards	dressCode
	Ada Scotland Festival	Ada Scotland
Mentor of the Year Award – sponsored by FanDuel	Linda Scott	Connexus	Fractional Consultant
	Andrea Rosales	MosAIc	Co-founder
	Natasha Kydd	Morgan Stanley	Vice President, Cyber Security
	Shruti Nagaraj	JPMorganChase	Associate
Inclusive Recruiter of the Year Award	Lloyds Banking Group
	Leidos
	Gigged AI
Gender Diversity Ally of the Year Award – sponsored by 2i	Jack Walker	St George’s School	Lead teacher of Computing
	Derek Shanks	Lloyds Banking Group	Technology Director, Wealth & Insurance
	Joe McGonagle	JPMorganChase	Executive Director
Everyday Leader Award – sponsored by JPMorganChase	Meg Sutton	Kaluza	Senior Software Engineer
	Anushree Sarvey Sathish	1datapipe	Senior Data Engineer
	Natalia Kajdas	Adobe	Technical Account Manager
	Natalie Nicholas	Dropbox	EMEA Channel Sales Manager
Rising Star Award – sponsored by Flow	Chloe Masterson	Modulr	AI and Automation
	Asha Mullen	Storm ID Ltd	Associate Digital Consultant
	Bolu Omosowon	JPMorganChase	Software Engineer

More information on the awards can be found here: https://www.scotwomenintech.com/swit-awards2026

Additionally, it was confirmed this week that Margaret Totten, Chief Revenue Officer at Yavrio, had been appointed as Vice Chair of SWiT. A board trustee since 2019, Margaret previously served as SWiT Treasurer.

Source: DIGIT