Women tech leaders urge shift from mentoring to sponsorship

Senior women leaders in cybersecurity and enterprise software are calling for structural change in the technology sector, arguing that genuine sponsorship, trust-based cultures, and deliberate knowledge sharing are essential to retaining female talent and sustaining growth.

The comments come as this year's International Women's Day theme, "Give To Gain", highlights reciprocity and collective progress, amid studies showing that more than half of women leave the tech industry by mid-career.

Executives from KnowBe4 and Flexera say practices such as sponsorship, skip-level engagement, and outcome-focused management are beginning to reshape leadership norms in a field that still struggles with attrition and advancement gaps for women.

Leadership practice

Caroline Soo, VP Customer Success, APJ at security awareness firm KnowBe4, has embedded sponsorship into her day-to-day leadership approach rather than treating it as an add-on.

"In leadership, 'Give to Gain' is quite literally the practice of investing in our team members to achieve scalable success. I can't reach our ultimate goals just by tasking people to execute; we only scale when we learn to do things smarter and wiser. "In essence, the 'hustle' of my own career includes intentionally sponsoring and opening doors for my team. With a team of about 20 people, I hold monthly skip-level meetings with each rep. This isn't just a check-in; it's designed to create absolute clarity on their professional goals and reinforce that leadership is a true partner on their journey."

"My time here at KnowBe4 has taught me it's best to work alongside human nature. The trick to the balancing act is making sponsorship as frictionless as possible by finding natural synergies in your daily work. My external ventures have flowed from the connections I've made across the cyber, customer success, and coaching spaces. I serve as an Ambassador with ISACA SheLeadsTech, a mentor with MentorsHub, and an Executive Sponsor for a SaaS Customer Success Leader here in Singapore-not as a distraction from my career, but as an extension of it."

Her comments reflect a broader push for leaders to make developing others a core responsibility, rather than leaving it to informal networks.

Mid-career drop-off

Soo also addressed the persistent mid-career exit of women from technology roles-an issue many organisations have struggled to reverse despite gains in entry-level hiring.

She cited the collision of rising professional demands with major life stages, and argued that traditional models of performance and visibility often fail women at this point.

"Fundamentally, we have to address the 'whys' behind the mid-career drop-off. This phase is often a collision course: peak professional demands hit at the exact same time as peak personal life shifts, such as starting a family or caring for aging parents. The cultural shift we desperately need is a move from performative flexibility to structural trust. We need to stop penalizing boundaries and confusing 'always on' with 'high performer.' Structurally, this means auditing how we promote. Are we promoting the loudest voice in the room who works 80 hours a week, or the highly efficient leader who delivers incredible results and logs off at 5 PM?"

"We also need a massive shift from mentorship to sponsorship. Women are over-mentored and under-sponsored. To keep women through to the executive level, current leaders must be willing to spend their political capital to advocate for women when they aren't in the room-actively pulling them into the C-suite pipeline rather than waiting for them to navigate the maze alone."

Her call for structural trust aligns with a wider reassessment of presenteeism in hybrid and remote work environments, where hours worked are increasingly a poor proxy for impact.

Navigating uncertainty

For women entering the sector, Soo described discomfort and uncertainty as inherent to modern technology careers, especially in cybersecurity.

She is taking this message to an ISACA SheLeadsTech session for students considering a path into tech.

"I am facilitating an ISACA SheLeadsTech fireside chat on March 6 with two tertiary students focused on 'Navigating the Unknown with Confidence.' It's not the unknown itself that holds us back-it's the fear we won't be good at navigating it. Think of it this way: we know running a marathon is going to be painful, and finding the right spouse usually means dating a lot of frogs. Are we going to complain about it, or accept the journey for what it is? "The best way to prepare for the future is to become comfortable with being uncomfortable. It is no one else's job to make things cushy for us; it is up to us to interpret reality as it is."

"Lean into the discomfort and take the most pragmatic next step to reduce it. Break massive challenges into tiny, conquerable bits and build your confidence along the way. In fast-paced cybersecurity, the landscape changes so rapidly that everyone is constantly learning-no one has it all figured out. Your unique perspective is an asset, not a gap you need to hide. Build your personal board of directors early: peers who support you, mentors who advise you, and sponsors who will fight for you. Take up space, trust your competence, and remember your voice is exactly what this industry needs to move forward."

Her comments highlight a growing emphasis on psychological readiness and support structures for those starting careers in volatile technology markets.

Flexera leaders

Senior executives at IT asset and cloud management firm Flexera echoed the "Give To Gain" theme, linking sponsorship and knowledge sharing with both individual progression and organisational outcomes.

Becky Trevino, Chief Product Officer at Flexera, described how early-career managers who prioritised trust and outcomes over presenteeism shaped her leadership approach.

"Early in my career, the biggest gift I received was managers who gave me trust and cared about outcomes, not optics. They put me in the room, gave me real ownership, and supported me while I learned fast. I try to pay that forward by mentoring and sponsoring women for high-impact work. I share context, open doors, and advocate for them to lead. When we invest in people and teams, everyone gains."

Her focus on "real ownership" reflects a wider shift toward placing women in visible, revenue-linked roles rather than confining them to support functions.

Shared growth

Other Flexera leaders described reciprocity in leadership as a driver of innovation and resilience in technical teams.

"Give to Gain is how we turn individual progress into collective momentum. Building and successfully exiting a data cloud optimization platform taught me that the most durable breakthroughs come from generous practices: sharing hard-won lessons, mentoring with specificity, and sponsoring others into visible roles. When leaders give time, context, and opportunity, teams move faster, systems run leaner, and innovation becomes a shared asset that lifts everyone."

Preeti Shirmal, Executive Vice President at Flexera, linked inclusive leadership practices with operational performance in data and cloud environments, where cross-functional collaboration is critical.

Flexera's VP of Data Products, Frances Zhao-Perez, described similar patterns in her work mentoring and coaching leaders through technical transformation.

"I've seen firsthand that the most meaningful growth in tech happens when we lift others as we grow. I've also had the privilege of mentoring, coaching, and supporting many leaders-especially women leaders-on their path to success. Taking time to share knowledge or create opportunities doesn't slow us down; it strengthens our teams and expands what's possible. When we invest in each other, we don't just support individuals; we move the entire industry forward together."