TechGirl

TechGirl Festival

Your ideas, your impact, your future.

Join the community

28th August at Cambridge United FC

The HotTopics TechGirl Festival 2025 is a high-energy event designed to inspire, challenge, and connect the next generation of female leaders in technology.

in partnership with
Ping Identity

The ultimate tech challenge for future female leaders

The HotTopics TechGirl Festival 2025, in partnership with Cambridge United FC, is a high-energy, hands-on event designed to inspire, challenge, and connect young women aged between 16 - 21 in education who are passionate about technology.

This is your chance to work alongside industry mentors, solve real-world digital challenges, and showcase your ideas in a high-profile competition. The winning solutions will have the opportunity to collaborate with Cambridge United FC to bring their ideas to life across 2025 and 2026.

If you’re ready to put your creativity and problem-solving skills to the test, this festival is for you.

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What is TechGirl Festival?

Designed to immerse you in innovation and leadership, the festival gives participants the opportunity to:

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Take on a real-world digital transformation challenge in teams

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Work with industry experts and mentors to refine your ideas

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Pitch solutions to senior technology leaders and Cambridge United FC

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Compete to have your idea implemented at the club

The Challenge

Hosted at Cambridge United Football Club (CUFC), teams will tackle a real-world digital transformation problem:

How can technology improve CUFC’s ticketing, fan experience, and food & beverage systems?

With mentorship from senior technology leaders, teams will develop innovative, practical solutions and present them to a panel of industry experts and CUFC decision-makers.

The winning idea will be developed with Cambridge United FC across 2025 and 2026.

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TechGirl Festival agenda

28th August at Cambridge United FC

09:30 → 10:00
Welcome to the TechGirl Festival
Cambridge United Football Club
  • Arrivals
  • HotTopics and CUFC Welcome
  • Event agenda rundown and digital challenge rules
10:00 - 13:00
Creative Sprint: Innovate and build
Cambridge Football Club
  • Introduction and challenge briefing
  • Team formation and strategy sessions
  • Hands-on mentorship and idea development
13:00 - 14:00
Lunch and stadium tour
Cambridge Football Club

Relax, network and enjoy a delicious catered lunch. 

If you're also interested in exploring the stadium, join us for a brief but exhilarating tour of the stadium grounds. Discover behind-the-scenes action and historic moments that have taken place right where you stand! Tours will commence at 1:35 PM and conclude at 1:55 PM, allowing you to dive back into the day's activities with time to spare.

14:00 - 14:45
Presentations and winner(s) selection
Cambridge Football Club
  • Team presentations to the judging panel (5 mins each)
  • Thought leadership panels and networking
  • Work experience sign-ups with HotTopics mentors
14:45 - 15:30
How to Build the Skills of Tomorrow, Today
Panel
Cambridge Football Club
Listen to executives, graduates and students compare notes on the skills needed to thrive in the modern workplace, how those are evolving, and the first hand accounts of what it's like to learn them.
15:30 - 16:30
A Better Industry Requires Inter-Generational Effort. How?
Fishbowl
Cambridge Football Club
What generational perspectives shine a light on how the industry works, and doesn't work, today, and how can they work better together to ensure the former?
17:00 - 17:30
Closing remarks and future vision
Cambridge Football Club
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Apply to join TechGirl Festival

28th August at Cambridge United FC

The TechGirl Festival 2025 is open to young women aged between 16 - 21 in education who are ready to challenge themselves, learn from industry leaders, and take their first steps toward a career in technology.

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Meet the TechGirl mentors attending the festival

TechGirl connects you with inspirational leaders across the tech industry. They’ve built careers at some of the world’s biggest companies, and they’re here to share their advice, experiences, and insights to help you succeed.

Avril Chester

Avril Chester

Chief Technology Officer, Royal Pharmaceutical Society

Lauren Dally

Lauren Dally

Director of Application Delivery, Ardonagh Group

Indhira Mani

Indhira Mani

Chief Data Officer, RSA UK

Mariana Reis

Mariana Reis

Enterprise Head of Data Governance, WPP

Nareni Hourican

Nareni Hourican

Digital Transformation Director - Global Head of Digital & Innovation, Brown-Forman

Lydia Nicola

Lydia Nicola

Head of IT Operations, Amnesty International

Lauren Wilson

Lauren Wilson

Field CTO & Strategic Advisor, Splunk

Sara Mubasshir

Sara Mubasshir

Head of Digital Change, London Business School

Steve Brown

Steve Brown

Vice President, Cybersecurity & Resilience, Mastercard

Rubi Kaur

Rubi Kaur

Chief Enterprise Architect, Lloyds

Jevern Partridge

Jevern Partridge

CIO, Rexel UK Limited

Helen Rabe

Helen Rabe

CISO, BBC

Alex Butler

Alex Butler

Transformation Director, United Response

David Thomas

David Thomas

CIO, Magellan Point

Christina Tueje

Christina Tueje

Strategy Director: AI, Data and Technology, GRC Information Management

Priya Bhola

Priya Bhola

Technology Service Owner, Ericsson

Grace Tattersall

Grace Tattersall

Partner, Anderson Quigley

Lara Burns

Lara Burns

Chief Digital Officer, Former Scouts

Nadia Volkova

Nadia Volkova

Global Digital Commercial Director, Diageo

Eugi Bartolo

Eugi Bartolo

CPTO, Sifted

Rich Corbridge

Rich Corbridge

CIO, Segro

Eileen Jennings-Brown

Eileen Jennings-Brown

Chief Operating Officer, Exergy3 Limited

Danny Attias

Danny Attias

CDIO, London Business School

Rachel Scully

Rachel Scully

Digital Capability Director, Shell

Ann Walker

Ann Walker

Senior Vice President, Major Programmes and Strategic Initiatives, Mastek

Anna Barsby

Anna Barsby

Founder and Managing Parnter, Tessiant

David Germain

David Germain

NED, Board Advisor,

Giles Lindsay

Giles Lindsay

Chief Information Technology Officer, Lif3away inc

Darryl Beckford

Darryl Beckford

Director of Architecture, BT Group (EE, Plusnet)

Gregory Dumont

Gregory Dumont

CISO | DPO, SBE

Teskeen Nasser

Teskeen Nasser

Technology Portfolio Manager, Chelsea Football Club

Graham Thomson

Graham Thomson

Chief Information Security & Innovation Officer, Irwin Mitchell

Helen Cocks

Helen Cocks

Assistant Director of Digital Transformation and Engagement, University of Exeter

Kimberley Miles

Kimberley Miles

Head of AI Governance, Howden

Chelcie West

Chelcie West

Head of IT, Chelsea Football Club

James Grove

James Grove

Director of Technology, Chelsea Football Club

Stephanie Tajbhai

Stephanie Tajbhai

Group Head of IT Services Management, FirstGroup plc

Who is behind TechGirl?

TechGirl is powered by HotTopics, the global C-suite community connecting 19,000+ senior executives from the world’s biggest companies.

That means when you join TechGirl, you’re connecting with leaders who shape the industry today—and can help you shape it tomorrow.

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Thanks to our partners

Ping Identity
Cambridge United FC-min

 

This TechGirl Festival has now passed, but you can still join the TechGirl community below to be ready for the next event