Exciting News! EMMSTech Launches a New Brand, CEO Tells Us About It

Q&A With Samira Ali Gomes. Growing, learning, rethinking, rebranding: Samira Ali Gomes, co-founder and CEO of EMMSTech, tells us about the release of the new brand.

Q: What motivated you to create EMMSTech?

A: EMMSTech started for me when I entered higher education. Up until then, I was very used to seeing people that looked like me in different rooms that I entered, or seeing a mix of different people. But then I went to higher education, and I started meeting professional people and going to tech events, networking events, and female empowerment events, every time I went, I was the only black woman or the only woman of color there; the majority were white men. 

At the same time, I was hearing everybody talk about diversity and inclusion, but it didn’t reflect anywhere I looked, and that was my motivation.

It all happened very randomly. I had mentioned how I was feeling to Mariana, whom I had met for the first time, like an hour earlier. I told her that I would love to see more people like me in tech, and I would love to be able to do something about that. She told me she knew somebody that would like that as well. That's where she introduced me to Maryam and Éléonore, who are both also EMMSTech co-founders.

After meeting for the first time for fika, we decided to do a workshop. We contacted everyone we knew, and it went really well. We were able to give out good education, and beyond that, it was a great networking event. Seeing how powerful it was, and how inspiring it was, both for myself and for other people, kind of continued pushing me to this day.

I think our first two events were kinda what I hold there because it was the first time I saw people that looked like me in the room. It was just us, and we were not just tokens... we were not just there to show diversity.

“Seeing how powerful it was, and how inspiring it was, both for myself and for other people, kind of continued pushing me to this day.”

I think very fondly of our first two events because it was the first time I saw women like me in tech. It was just us, and we were not just tokens or there to show diversity.

Samira Ali Gomes, Founder and CEO of Emmstech

Q. Which values and beliefs is EMMSTech based upon?

A: I'd say the two main ones are sisterhood and equity. And regarding sisterhood, you don’t have to identify specifically as a woman; I think the core of sisterhood is the support system, knowing there are people there to support and empower you. Representation also comes a bit into that: seeing somebody else take a step or enter through a door and keeping that door open for you to be able to enter as well... I also tie it to equity: opportunities being created, for people that haven't had those opportunities before. 

People talk about "underserved communities", but those communities should be called "historically excluded"; they did not just so happen to be underserved or not to enter and get different opportunities: they have been historically excluded. Someday someone decided not to actively exclude them but didn't make any effort to include them.

Q: What does it mean to have a new image? To launch a new brand? 

A: It feels like a new chapter. I think it's very exciting because we have new people joining us, and also, we have new services and opportunities before launching, which I think we weren't able to do two and a half years ago when we started. We've managed to work and get enough resources to do it now. 

Also, I think our new brand is a lot more confident and fiercer than it previously was. I think we've always been very confident in what we do, but now I feel like we just have so much more behind us to back up that confidence. We also have a larger community now, we’re offering more activities and services, so it just feels like we're so much more than we were when we started. It feels like the right time to come up with a new brand, a fresh face. 

Q: Which aspects were considered crucial for the rebranding process?

A: I think the most important aspect was representing our community and their strength. Like I said, our new brand is a lot more confident and fiercer than before, and I think it really represents the women that join us whether they are in the beginning of their careers, heading into leadership positions or pivoting their careers after 30 years. There's always so much strength and resilience behind them, and we wanted to be able to reflect that… Also, sisterhood to me means, you know: “come in and if you don't have the confidence, come join us, and we'll make sure you do!”. 

“Opportunities being created, for people that haven't had those opportunities before.”

I always say that everything we do is for our community, and they need to be reflected in everything. I wouldn't be gratified leading an organization where we're only working with companies and helping companies change. Our community and the people that we work with are the most important part.

Q: What are the new projects for EMMStech this year? What collaborations are coming?

A: The main ones we are releasing are scholarships for women of color in the Nordics; they'll be able to use the money either for tuition, boot camps, or resources—for example, buying literature—. We're also working, in collaboration with certain tech companies involved in gaming and data, to deliver mentorship programs to women. 

In addition, we’ll be releasing our blog and more news on women of color in the Nordic tech scene, as well as continuing to deliver our activities—workshops and meetups—. We'll be expanding more internationally to the rest of the Nordics.

Q: What advice can you give to founders and leaders of organizations with similar goals to EMMSTech?

A: Have vision. I think it's important to have something big to work towards, because if you're working with, for example, diversity and inclusion, even though these are things that everybody's talking about, every once in a while, you are going to have people that question you, talk down on what you're doing, or try to minimize your work… you can't let that get to you. 

Personally, I don't like to explain myself to people about small things. Even with EMMSTech, sometimes people ask “why women of color” and I think I don’t have to explain that (as well). Nevertheless, I feel like it's one thing if people ask because they want to learn, and it's another thing if they're asking to judge your work. 

“Every once in a while, you are going to have people that question you, talk down on what you're doing, or try to minimize your work… you can't let that get to you.”

There will be people questioning you and it might bring you down, which is normal—we're all humans, we are social beings, and we're all affected by each other—but in that case, it's important to have certainty of the bigger vision that you're working towards in order to overcome those challenges and barriers.