Creating Belonging: How Women are Transforming the Tech Landscape

Creating Belonging in 

In this insightful episode of FinTech’s DEI Discussions, part of the special 12-part #TurnToTech series, host Nadia welcomes an extraordinary guest, Katrina Young. A multi-faceted technology leader, Katrina holds the titles of Chief Technology Officer, Chief Digital Officer, Innovation Consultant, and AI Strategy and Digital Transformation Leader. Her unconventional and empowering journey into the tech world is the centrepiece of this episode, offering a vital narrative for FinTech professionals, employers, and anyone considering a pivot to digital careers.

Produced in collaboration with the City of London Corporation and the Women Pivoting to Digital Taskforce, this series was created to showcase real-life stories of resilience, representation, and reinvention. Katrina’s story is one of ambition, adversity, and absolute determination, a reminder that the FinTech sector must broaden its understanding of what technical talent looks like, and who deserves to be in the room.

A Career Built on Curiosity and Courage

Katrina begins the conversation with her trademark honesty, recounting her early interest in problem-solving and technology. From the outset, she describes herself as a bit of a nerd, someone who has always been drawn to creating solutions. But like many people from underrepresented backgrounds, Katrina didn’t enter tech through a conventional route. She started out in digital marketing, project management, and teaching as a sessional lecturer, roles that were adjacent to tech but didn’t offer the same formal recognition within the technology sector.

The turning point came when she needed software developed for a project and found that the available technical partner lacked the necessary business context. Rather than give up, Katrina started experimenting with low-code tools to solve the problem herself. It was a moment of both empowerment and realisation; she had the aptitude, interest, and experience to build tech solutions. This led her to explore coding further and eventually apply for a bootcamp through Coding Black Females, where she gained experience in cloud engineering, full-stack development, infrastructure, and Python.

While the bootcamp experience was transformative, it wasn’t easy. Katrina is refreshingly transparent about the financial and emotional cost of upskilling. Many high-quality coding programmes start around £5,000, and taking time off from paid work to study posed significant challenges, especially as a mother and head of a household. Nevertheless, she persisted, motivated not only by ambition but by a belief that she could and would succeed.

A CTO Who Doesn’t Fit the Mould

When she was first approached about the role, she admits she had to ask what it even meant. The imposter syndrome many women experience, especially in male-dominated industries like FinTech, was something Katrina had to consciously overcome. Her route wasn’t traditional, and her identity didn’t match the stereotypical profile of a Chief Technology Officer. She didn’t have a degree in computer science or decades of experience at legacy institutions.

Instead, Katrina brings a unique mix of technical skills, soft skills, and strategic thinking. She understands how to translate business needs into tech solutions, and how to lead teams in a way that prioritises belonging and innovation. She highlights that many bootcamps and tech programmes don’t fully explain the variety of roles that exist in the tech ecosystem, and many people think being “in tech” means being a coder and nothing more. In reality, FinTech organisations need a wide range of talent, from developers and engineers to communicators, architects, and problem-solvers.

For employers in FinTech recruitment, this distinction is crucial. At Harrington Starr, we help firms understand that job titles like CTO or CDO don’t require a one-size-fits-all background. Leaders like Katrina, who come from diverse personal and professional journeys, bring fresh perspectives that can drive meaningful innovation in finance and technology.

Breaking Stereotypes: There’s No One Way to Be in Tech

Throughout the episode, Katrina speaks passionately about breaking down myths associated with technology careers. She challenges the idea that you need to be a certain type of person, often male, white, and formally trained, to succeed in the sector. As she puts it, “You need everyday coders, everyday people in tech.” She urges listeners not to be put off by assumptions that you have to be “into computers” to work in digital transformation or FinTech.

She also debunks the idea that tech jobs are isolating. While it’s true that some coders work with their heads down, Katrina found her strength in doing tech “her way”, by leaning into community, mentorship, and collaboration. Her experience as a woman of colour in these spaces was not always comfortable. She often walked into rooms where she was the only person who looked like her and sometimes felt unsafe or out of place. But rather than letting that stop her, she created her path forward.

This commitment to doing tech on her terms is what makes Katrina such an effective advocate. Her story is not just about entering the industry; it’s about transforming it. She wants to normalise the idea that people of all backgrounds, ages, and educational histories can thrive in FinTech.

How FinTech Employers Can Rethink Talent Pipelines

A major theme of this podcast episode is the need for FinTech businesses to evolve how they attract and develop talent. Katrina argues that traditional pathways, degrees, unpaid internships, and years of experience are no longer fit for purpose. In a world where technology is evolving rapidly and AI is changing the way we build and deploy solutions, what matters most is mindset, adaptability, and lived experience.

During the boot camp, Katrina was grouped with traditional university students, many of whom had already studied computer science and software engineering. At first, this left her feeling behind. But she quickly adapted, using non-traditional resources like internet forums, user groups, and online tutorials. She embraced experiential learning and even paid out of her own pocket to be mentored one-on-one by a seasoned developer in React. It was a powerful reminder that learning styles vary, and that organisations need to support different learning pathways for their employees to truly thrive.

For FinTech hiring managers, this is more than a nice-to-have. It’s a business imperative. If you want to attract and retain the best tech talent, you need to move beyond outdated recruitment models and start investing in people who demonstrate grit, creativity, and a hunger to learn. As a FinTech recruitment specialist, Harrington Starr partners with firms that understand this shift and are building diverse pipelines of future CTOs, engineers, and AI specialists.

Advice for Career Changers and Employers Alike

When asked what advice she’d give to other women looking to pivot into digital careers, Katrina highlights the importance of determination, curiosity, and self-belief. She encourages people to do their research, look at which FinTech jobs are in demand, what salaries are on offer, and what skills are most relevant globally. But she also stresses the importance of enjoyment. If you don’t like what you’re doing, you’re unlikely to stick with it through the hard parts.

She recommends experimenting with projects before committing to a particular learning path. That way, you can assess whether the work is genuinely fulfilling. As she points out, it’s common to invest time and money into studying something, only to discover it’s not the right fit. By taking a more agile, experimental approach, you reduce that risk.

Katrina also advises seeking out communities, especially those tailored to people from underrepresented backgrounds. For her, joining a group like Coding Black Females made a huge difference in terms of access to mentorship, emotional support, and job opportunities. Whether it’s online forums, women-in-tech groups, or peer networks, surrounding yourself with people on similar journeys is a crucial part of long-term success.

To employers, she offers equally compelling guidance. Don’t just rely on HR departments to lead diversity and inclusion initiatives. Real change happens when people inside organisations take ownership, when managers, leaders, and executives advocate for those who are ready to rise. Something as simple as a lunch-and-learn session can become the spark that changes someone’s career trajectory. Katrina recalls going to one simply for the free pizza, only to walk away inspired to explore new coding techniques for Facebook ad campaigns.

A Reminder That It’s Never Too Late to Start

Katrina closes the conversation with a reflection that will resonate with many listeners: it is never too late to start again. She remembers a family member once telling her that she was “too old” to learn coding. Now, she frequently reminds them of that comment, especially as she’s just secured a place on a prestigious space innovation programme. “Most people in your phone book won’t know anyone doing space innovation,” she quips, underlining how far she’s come.

Her final message is one of radical self-belief: “People do not know your capabilities; they’ve never been where you’ve been. So don’t trust them. Trust yourself.” It’s a powerful call to action for anyone thinking about pivoting into FinTech, and a reminder for employers to look beyond the CV when hiring.

Conclusion: Making FinTech More Inclusive, One Story at a Time

This episode of FinTech’s DEI Discussions is a powerful contribution to the ongoing conversation about diversity, equity, and inclusion in financial technology. Katrina Young’s journey, from sessional lecturer to CTO, from marketing strategist to space innovator, is a testament to what’s possible when talent is nurtured, supported, and given room to grow.

For businesses looking to future-proof their technology and product teams, Katrina’s story offers a compelling case for hiring differently, thinking inclusively, and reimagining what great leadership looks like in the digital age. And for those who are considering turning to tech, her journey serves as a roadmap for what’s possible, with courage, community, and the right support.

At Harrington Starr, we believe the future of FinTech is powered by diverse voices, unconventional pathways, and resilient leaders like Katrina. We’re proud to power initiatives like #TurnToTech and to partner with clients who are ready to hire for the future, not just the past.