In Cahoots

Amazing things have been happening to me, in that doors have opened as my mind and soul have healed and rejuvenated, I didn’t realise how broken I was when I first left the UK after nearly 25 years working in Corporate IT. All my passion, motivation and enthusiasm had been slapped down so many times I had lost my way and with it any excitement I once felt for the art of Information Systems design.

It all started with watching ‘The Social Dilemma’ on Netflix, despondent and overwhelmed by its contents I starting researching the Centre for Humane Technology, which was advocated at the end of the documentary. I stumbled across their Principles of Design only to be hit by a thunderbolt. This was exactly what me and a colleague wrote about in 1997. Yes fucking 1997 – what the actual!!!

Back in ’97 I was just finishing my degree in Systems Analysis and worked with a fantastic group of inspiring women. Through our research and studies we came to realise the importance of people- centred approaches to Information systems development. My colleague and me decided to devize a framework called People-Centred Information Systems Design’ or as it was affectionately called ‘taking the PISD approach’. We were sick of the while male western world perspective to design and were honoured to present our paper at 2 conferences EthiComp98 – Ethics in Computing in Rotterdam and Women in Computing at DeMonfort University in Leicester.

I no longer had a copy of my paper so did some digging around in the web. I found an extract of it on the Southern Connecticut State University – Research Centre on Values in Emerging Science and Technology, but was unable to get the complete paper. I then tried the Ethicomp conference site and lo and behold got hold of a copy. I was also asked if I would be interested in participating in the Centre for Computing and Social Responsibility – I said Bring it On!

It was the biggest lightbulb moment ever! I had forgotten what an amazing raging radical feminist I was, and in fact still am. All the knowledge, skills, experience and time that I had invested in the IT arena flooded into me and reminded me – I am a clever bitch and NOW is the time to use it. Fuck the big tech companies, there is a better way,

At the same time I was being asked by new contacts, could I do this, could I do that, for them to get online. My wonderful Mother connected my up with someone wanting a website and so it began…

I’m now looking at setting up a collaboration of women (mainly) to work on a variety of IT projects and so InCahoots was born.

There is more to come and you will be the first to know…..