Juliette van der Laarse

Creating your own path and opening doors for others. For Juliette, this has been the central theme of her life. Since she was eleven, IT has been her passion, and she has followed her own path in it. At nineteen, she started her first IT company, giving other talents opportunities as well. At NN Group, she quickly advanced to a management position. What she is most proud of is being a role model for women in IT, inspiring others to push their boundaries.

Speaking of being a role model, you’re almost a celebrity!
 "Haha, I wouldn’t call myself a celebrity. But indeed, I’ve been inspiring women in IT for years, even though I’m still young. I was the face of a European campaign to get more girls interested in technology. Microsoft Netherlands named me a role model in this field, and I was a guest on Radio 1’s news program and the NOS Tech Podcast."

"In 2023, I was asked to host the prestigious Women in AI event and present the AI Entrepreneur Award. By then, I was already working at NN Group – I’ve been here since 2021 – and I wanted to involve the company. The management was immediately enthusiastic and became one of the main sponsors of the event. That made me proud. It shows that the organization doesn’t just talk about diversity but truly invests in change."

NN calls its employees ‘supporters of change’. That definitely applies to you. 
"Absolutely. Change starts with yourself, and I firmly believe in that. This belief has helped me achieve a lot, both for women in IT and in my own career. As a child, I taught myself to program, and since then, I haven’t shied away from any challenge. This has led to many unique opportunities and projects, such as developing AR and VR simulations to train government agencies on how to tackle terrorism in urban areas. I had my own company and was doing great, but the COVID-19 crisis changed a lot. Subsidies stopped, and many organizations invested less in new developments. At that moment, I came across a job opening at NN. I had never considered working for a corporate organization before, but I was open to it. The position – a six-month role to write learning paths for IT professionals – intrigued me. I got the job. That was in 2021. That six months turned out to be a bit longer, haha."

Currently, I work as an engineering manager on various solutions and lead a team of ten colleagues. Additionally, I have the space to work on my personal drive: women in IT.

Can you tell us more about your efforts for women in IT? 
"I have long believed that more attention and support are needed for women in the IT sector. Did you know that many women leave the IT sector within five years? This is often due to a lack of career development and gender bias. And that’s a shame because we need women in IT."

Can you explain why we need more women in the tech industry?
 "There are countless reasons! Firstly, a greater presence of women in the tech sector leads to better team composition. Even though it may seem that men and women contribute the same fundamentally, the reality is that there are many unfilled IT positions. We are moving towards a future where IT becomes increasingly central in society. It would be a waste not to actively involve the other 50% of the population and give them the chance to join. More women in tech is not only good for us as employees but also for our customers. Without representative teams working on our projects, we cannot ensure that we are adequately serving the female end-users of our products."

At NN, we are truly committed to this. I am actively involved in initiatives aimed at attracting and supporting women in the tech industry. Through these efforts, we aim to create a more inclusive and diverse work environment, which ultimately benefits us all.

By specifically addressing the challenges women face in the IT sector and providing them with the necessary support, we can ensure that more women feel valued and supported. This contributes to them staying longer in the sector and actively contributing to a more diverse and inclusive work environment.