These women are disrupting their industries one click at a time

When it comes to emerging technology we don’t always think of women in lifestyle. Instead, our minds dart to computer programmers, IT gurus and software developers. 

Thanks to these forward-thinking female entrepreneurs however, that’s all starting to change. They’ve turned their hard work and determination into thriving businesses – all thanks to a bright idea, and a helping hand from the right devices. 

These days, if you’re a busy content creator or a business mogul in the making – there’s nothing more important than having the best tools. But how do you choose which products to go with? Easy – you go with the ones that help you do your best work. 

Enter the new MSI PS42 laptop. This slim and portable tool of greatness is crafted in ultra-light chassis and hair-brushed aluminum and even has an illuminated white keyboard – because let’s be real – why bother with a new laptop if it isn’t going to match your aesthetic? 

Best of all, the PS42 gives you up to 10 hours battery life so you can work on the go, a built-in fingerprint sensor for privacy protection, and a super thin 5.7mm bezel for more big screen goodness. 

Keen on the new MSI PS42 but need a bit of inspiration to kick your business brain into gear? Just take a tip or two from these savvy and smart women who’ve embraced emerging technology while building their game-changing businesses.  

Lorna Jane, Founder of Lorna Jane

Entrepreneur, wellness guru, queen of active wear – these are just three terms commonly used to describe Lorna Jane. With close to 30 years in the industry, Jane is still the driving force behind her company’s creative direction, philosophy and products.

Taking a unique approach to business and industry

“We still have the mindset of a smaller entrepreneurial business at Lorna Jane. We spend our time focused on what we want to do and trying new things rather than being influenced by what’s expected of us. We’ve been unique from day one because we effectively created a category that never existed before when we combined gym wear, fashion and lifestyle into the blend that has become ‘Activewear’.”

Embracing emerging technology

“From our technical fabrics and designs to the way we communicate with our customers and our global expansion, embracing technology is key to the growth of our business. We want our customer to have the best in everything from us – high performance and stylish products, accessibility, connection and great service. By being across emerging tech we can make the best decisions when delivering all of this to our customer in a way that suits her busy lifestyle.”

Accepting and adapting to change

“I remember saying that shopping online would only ever be for books and music and that women wouldn’t want to buy clothes that way – and boy was I wrong!”

Monica Wulff, Director and Co-founder of Startup Muster

What does a statistician do when they want to use the power of numbers to help initiate change on a nation-wide scale? Create a startup that uses a major survey to analyse the data of every startup in the country, of course! Startup Muster not only measures the progress, challenges and opportunities within the Australian startup ecosystem – it ensures all startups across the nation (no matter what category they fit into) are recognised and represented.

Turning the ordinary into extraordinary 

“We wanted to make the survey process fun and engaging but still provide businesses with direct benefits they could use to transform the way they operate or engage with their customers. We really wanted to focus on ensuring our business model was independent, unbiased and most importantly – producing useful and accurate insights.”

Embracing and chasing

“It’s super important for Startup Muster to be at the forefront of knowing and understanding emerging technology. For us it’s about understanding how that tech is going to be used and its impact on other people’s businesses, jobs and lifestyles.”

Turning the world into your office 

“I’m not locked-in to a specific place at a specific time each day so being able to work and still go with the flow is wonderful. Of course, it does require you to create healthy boundaries – it can become a bit too easy to just work, work, work.”

Roxy Jacenko, Founder and CEO of Sweaty Betty PR

There’s no better way to describe PR queen Roxy Jacenko than an ‘unstoppable powerhouse’. The busy entrepreneur and mother-of-two runs Australia’s most recognisable PR agency and has most recently founded the creative talent management group, The Ministry of Talent, and content agency, Social Union.

Evolving, growing, innovating

“There is too much competition to simply resist change – especially in my industry! If I’m using the same approach as my competitors, what’s going to make clients want to come to me? Pushing the boundaries can be a risk, sometimes you’re not sure how it’s going to be received. But I truly believe that not being innovative and growing is even more dangerous. If you stand still, the competition will overtake you, guaranteed.”

Making your mark

“Just be authentically you. I see so many people trying to emulate other businesses and it never works as well because it’s not genuine and authentic. If you passionately stand by your unique voice/concept/service/product, create amazing content for your website, social platforms, marketing. Be unwavering in your dedication and work ethic. You will make your mark and standout regardless of which market you’re operating in.”

Setting yourself up 

“I believe it is important to stay up to date with the latest and the best technology you can afford. If you’re trying to create sharp imagery for your Instagram account using a phone that’s four models out of date and everyone else is using the latest, it’s not hard to guess who is going to have the higher quality imagery. You don’t need to have every single gadget going, but invest wisely in the most current, high-quality technology that suits your unique business and needs.”

Christie Whitehill, CEO and Founder of Tech Ready Women

Christie Whitehill is a woman on a mission – more specifically, she’s a woman on a global mission to provide ladies around the world with empowering tech and business education through her organisation, Tech Ready Women.

Image: Christie whitehill

Turning your story into more

“Having been on the tech startup journey myself as a non-tech female founder, I had a good instinct about the service we needed to provide. Tech Ready Women was the first of its kind at the time of launch. Before us, there was no support for women who were starting a tech startup and what was unique was that we didn’t take equity, unlike most accelerators. This meant women were able to come and learn the startup skills, get access to world class mentors in a female and family friendly environment while still maintaining 100% of their company.”

Creating new opportunities

“We use most of the tech-based tools to help our business automate and scale. Our vision for Tech Ready Women goes beyond just delivering educational content – we see education being delivered in immersive experiences using virtual reality and more.” 

Changing the future

“I started in the tech startup space seven years ago and since then I have seen technology evolve at a rapid pace. How we work these days has changed dramatically and it wouldn’t be as possible if it weren’t for AI and communication tools. I’m seeing ideas come through our program that are solving amazing problems in the aged care industry using technology like blockchain and AI.”

Tess Corvaia, Co-Founder of Lack Of Color

At the forefront of Australian fashion and design, Tess Corvaia’s popular local label, Lack Of Color, produces an array of colourful men’s and women’s hats that have donned some of the most stylish heads in the fashion world – including Gigi Hadid, Emily Ratajkowski and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley.

Knowing yourself

“We’ve always wanted to have a strong aesthetic and imagery behind the brand. ‘Oh, cool here’s a hat – but how can I wear it?’ We love to show customers all the ways in which they can bring our brand to life, and we do this through imagery, cool shoots, beautiful customer shots and our global LOC community.”

Going your own way

“It’s always been online for us. People always ask if we are going to open stores, but being able to have that worldwide reach at the touch of a button is where it’s at.”

Making friends with transformation 

“With the advances in technology, there definitely is a push from customers, clients and consumers in general – they want everything, and they want it now. Being able to do emails on your phone or from anywhere in the world is definitely an advantage. I grew up in a time where we were forced to learn how to use computers, but I can still appreciate what life was like before this huge technological push.”

This article was presented by MSI and their new PS42 laptop, which provides unprecedented performance capabilities delivered through a super slim and elegant silver aesthetic suited to those who dare to create and innovate.