March 8th marks International Women’s Day 2026, and this year's theme, “Give To Gain” highlights the power of reciprocity. When people and organisations give generously, whether through time, support or opportunities, the benefits for women grow. Often, a single act of encouragement can transform a career.
For Catherine, a Digital Performance Analyst at DWP Digital, it was the gift of an event ticket where she gained the confidence to take her career to the next level.
I was convinced progression wasn’t for meI’ve been working in the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for twenty-four years now starting out as a Statistician and for the past ten years in the digital space as a Performance Analyst. During that time, I had been given a couple of opportunities to lead teams on temporary promotion. I did well at both of those roles, and enjoyed the challenge, but I was yet to be successful in permanent promotion.
I convinced myself that progression wasn’t for me: I didn’t need the money, I didn’t need the pressure. But being honest it was because I was too scared of failure to try for promotion again.
Fast forward to June 2025. I had been involved in some recent promotional work for DWP Digital and as a thank you was offered a ticket to the WeAreTechFestival, an event that brings women in tech together with talks, workshops, and networking. I hadn’t heard of it, didn’t do much research but said “yes please”, booked my train ticket and off I went.
A gift that changed everythingWhen I got to the festival that morning, I thought I’d made a dreadful mistake. I didn’t want to be there. It felt scary and corporate, but I couldn’t have known then how the next few hours would change my point of view.
The conference was about women working in the tech sector and focused on highlighting and sharing personal stories. Each speaker brought something different, from reflections on career pivots to navigating challenges in leadership. The thought of a “speed networking” session made me want to crawl into a little ball, but talking to all of the fascinating women about their experiences, and getting their advice, was invaluable.
The sessions were inspiring. DWP’s Head of Data Platforms, Jacqui Leggetter spoke about her wiggly career path. From another session, the quotes “no more waiting, I gave myself the lead role”, and “just because people aren’t vocal doesn’t mean they’re not impressed” stood out. I decided to take that advice to heart.
Learning to advocate for myselfThe day made me think about being my own advocate first before then finding others who would speak for me in the rooms I wasn’t in. This gave me time to think about who those people are and has really helped me to see that there were colleagues who would be vocal on my behalf.
I told my manager that I had decided I wanted to progress in my data career, and we talked about opportunities we knew were coming up. I presented my ideas for a new data role within our area to expand my work across the whole command, due to the positive impact it’s had within our team. My manager listened to my plans, helped me flesh out some of the detail, and we talked about priorities.
All of a sudden, there were two opportunities: both of which I was qualified for and excited about. I had my first interview for around ten years, and got great feedback about the examples being at the right level for leadership, because I’d taken cross-government opportunities and pushed myself professionally. And I felt valued and supported by my team.
Don’t let self‑doubt be the thing that holds you backFast forward a few months and I’m starting to put together a team of analysts to support Children’s Digital to better understand how the work we are doing is having an impact on our customer service and outcomes. This is the bit I love about my job the most – being able to show that things are getting better for people, and if they’re not, helping us to understand why not and fix that.
It turns out the festival I originally dreaded walking into very nearly became the best thing I ever said yes to. It gave me the inspiration, motivation and kick up the bum I needed. In giving me the opportunity to attend, I’ve gained so much.
So, take the opportunities, push yourself out of your comfort zone, even if you don’t think you want to. You might be the only thing holding you back. I know I was.
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seen at 10:48, 5 March in DWP Digital.