Donna Smith, the Managing Director of Rise, the global advocacy membership organisation supporting gender diversity across the media technology sector, has had a career that has cut across a broad swathe of the media industry, writes John Maxwell Hobbs.
Smith’s experience covers working in the digital gaming industry, through to senior roles with companies like Rovi and NBCUniversal. This gives her an extremely well-informed perspective on the issues facing women working in media.
Primary obstacles
Over the past few years, there has been a lot of discussion about the lack of skilled applicants for broadcast technology roles, particularly among women. Smith believes that the main reason for this is a lack of awareness of the roles that are available. She also feels that the messaging around this needs to focus on more than just young people. “Parents aren’t aware that there’s a career path and good career development in the broadcast industry,” she said. “It’s an educational piece at a parents’ level, rather than a young adults’ level.”...
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