What if your gender never limited your career choices?
Sara Leggese grew up without any tech influences, yet she never ruled out engineering simply because she was a girl. In this episode, she shares how mindset, role models, and visibility shape who enters the industry and why normalizing diversity in tech starts with changing how we see opportunity.
Key Takeaways from the episode
In Episode 86 of Women Disrupting Tech, Sara is our guide as we explore how mindset changes career paths for women in tech. We learn:
🧐 How Sara discovered tech without early exposure
🚀 The mindset shifts that help break barriers
👩💻 Why active, visible role models are key to inspiring future generations
Tune into the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts, or hit play below.
Why You Should Never Exclude Opportunities Because of Your Gender with Sara Leggese | Ep. 86 – Women Disrupting Tech
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- Key Takeaways from the episode
- Want to help build a more inclusive tech industry? Change starts here!
- The Magic in This Episode 🪄
- The Two Zero-Cost Ways to Support Women Disrupting Tech
- What Stood Out to Me
- About Sara Leggese
- About Nexperia
- About Role It Out
- Your Opinion Matters!
- What’s coming up?
- More episodes like this?
The Magic in This Episode 🪄
“I’d like to learn of women who used to play with dolls but ended up in tech.”
This thought-provoking request on LinkedIn came from Sara Leggese. And it turns out that she is one of those women.
Sara didn’t grow up surrounded by tech, yet she never saw her gender as a reason to exclude opportunities. In this episode, she shares how mindset, role models, and visibility shape who enters the industry and why normalizing diversity in tech starts with changing how we see opportunity.
Together, we explore:
💡 How upbringing influences career paths
👩💻 Why women in tech must be visible role models
🌱 The mindset shifts needed for future diversity
🎧 Ready to learn why you should never exclude opportunities because of your gender? Tune in on Spotify.
The Two Zero-Cost Ways to Support Women Disrupting Tech
When you’re ready to support my guests in making DEI obsolete by the end of 2032, help out by doing these two things:
- Use the share buttons below to share the podcast with friends, family, and co-workers. This way, you give the women disrupting tech the platform they need to make it happen. Use the buttons below to share.
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What Stood Out to Me
We have a fascinating discussion about role models. Sara argues that everyone around you is a role model but that there is a difference between active and passive role models.
She feels that active role models, women who have done something that few have done before, have an obligation to become visible to others and that it is possible for others too. And the more role models do that, the more normal it becomes to go into tech.
And she encourages her fellow Role It Out role models to take up that role. But that has not always been easy for her. Until five years ago, she did not feel at ease telling others what she was good at.
Right now, she believes that her visibility comes with a ripple effect: it will inspire other women and promote diversity in tech.
When I ask Sara what is needed to make DEI in tech the new normal, she has one of the shortest answers I have received to date: “Change the mindset. Our kids can do anything they want that they set their minds to, and we should not restrict them in any way because they’re a boy or a girl.”
🎧 Ready to explore how active role models can shape diversity in tech? Tune in to the episode on Apple Podcasts using the button below.
Or click the image with the quote to watch the episode on YouTube.
“Our kids can do anything they want, whatever they set their minds to, and we should not restrict them in any way because they’re a boy or a girl.”.
Sara Leggese, Manager Project Management at Nexperia and board member at Role It Out
About Sara Leggese
Sara Leggese is on a personal mission to entice more women to come work in tech. She is a Manager Project Management at Nexperia and a role model and Board member at Role It Out. You can connect with her on LinkedIn.
About Nexperia
Nexperia is a global semiconductor company with a rich European history and over 15,000 employees across Europe, Asia, and the United States.
You can check out their website for more information and open positions. And you can follow them on LinkedIn.
About Role It Out
Role it Out is a Role-Model Agency for Women. It offers training and education to women working in tech and helps them become effective role models.
You can learn more about Role It Out and their Role-Model Program by visiting the website and following their journey on LinkedIn and Instagram.
Your Opinion Matters!
Did you ever play with dolls when you grew up? And did that impact your career choices? Let me know what you think in the comments.
And if you would like to suggest a guest or a theme for the podcast, please let me know via email or send a DM on LinkedIn.
What’s coming up?
I’m proud to say that we have some amazing episodes coming your way in the next few weeks.
In episode 87, Professor Hanneke Takkenberg is my guest to talk about how male biases influence decision-making in healthcare and leadership.
After that, Dieuwertje Drexhage comes on to share how her company, Layco Medical, is designing for sustainability and equality in childbirth.
So, stay tuned for more inspiring stories on Women Disrupting Tech! And if you want to be the first to learn about new episodes, subscribe to updates.
Until we meet again in the next episode, keep being awesome.
More episodes like this?
Besides being a role model, Sara is also a board member at Role It Out. If you’d like to be inspired by other role models from Role It Out, you can check out the following three episodes:
– In episode 67, Mitra Gilasgar shares how we can inspire the next generation of women in tech.
– In episode 58, we hear from NXP’s Carlota Salamat why diversity is a game changer in deep tech.
– In episode 43, Leonie Wiggers-Frijters gives a masterclass on how to get started as a female role model in tech.
Women Disrupting Tech | The Podcast 