Every year, the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) holds multiple WE Local conferences around the world to create connections among engineers, thought leaders, industry partners, and employers.
Each WE Local offers a career fair/networking exhibition, networking opportunities, professional development sessions, memorable speakers, and a collegiate poster competition. You can find the winners of the 2024 WE Local Collegiate Competitions in this blog post.
SWE has a long history of holding WE Local conferences in India, as the first was held in the city of Pune in 2016. After three years in Pune, the conference moved to Bengaluru, which is one of the world’s fastest-growing tech hubs.
From April 18-19, over 1,100 attendees gathered at the Sheraton Grand Bengaluru Whitefield Hotel & Convention Center for this year’s WE Local Bengaluru conference.
Dr. Alexis McKittrick, FY24 SWE president, moderated a “Live Without Limits” panel discussion featuring speakers who are breaking boundaries in their respective STEM fields. These panels were held at every WE Local conference throughout 2024 with the goal of highlighting SWE’s annual theme and amplifying the stories of women leaders.
2024 WE Local Bengaluru: By the Numbers
Within India, WE Local Bengaluru had a vast reach with over 17 states and unions represented across India. Additionally, WE Local Bengaluru had a strong global presence and attracted attendees from Australia, Dubai, South Korea, Singapore, Seoul, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.
The largest proportion of WE Local Bengaluru attendees identified as individual contributors (23.2%), while a smaller group represented mid-level managers (15.9%), followed by technical specialists (13.3%) and senior technical specialists (10.5%).
“It was a great experience! I got inspiration to grow in my career and personally. Also, it is a great platform to network with fellow engineers.” — WE Local Bengaluru attendee
WE Local Bengaluru had a high proportion of mid- and late-career professionals. The largest category of registrants had 11-15 years of experience (21.6%), with a slightly smaller percentage having 6-10 years of experience (20.2%).
When it comes to engineering disciplines, the highest field represented at WE Local Bengaluru was electrical and electronics engineering (16%), followed by computer science (12.1%) and computer engineering (10.6%).
The event included 31 partner organizations and 37 educational sessions. Keynote speaker Dr. Anuradha TK of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) opened the conference, and Nirmala Menon of Interweave Consulting closed the event with her keynote talk, “In It To Win It!”
Couldn’t make it to Bengaluru this year? Explore over 1,400 photos in our Flickr album to relive the excitement!
You can also read our recaps of the three 2024 WE Local U.S. conferences here and WE Local Munich here.
Want to join SWE at our next WE Local conference? Wondering if we will hold a WE Local in your area? Visit the WE Local website to find updates on future WE Local conferences, including the dates and locations for 2025!
