The Técnico alumnae Cristina Dias, Mariana Santos Silva and Joana Pinto won the Portuguese Women in Tech awards 2021 (PWiT Awards 2021) in different categories. The names of the award winners were announced this Wednesday, July 14. In total, more than a dozen women were awarded in 14 categories, including innovation, digital transformation and activism.

Cristina Dias (Electrical and Computer Engineering) was awarded in the “Systems and network engineer by Cisco Portugal” category. She is currently Senior Tech Consultant at Deloitte, where she has already worked as an engineering analyst and tech consultant. She got promoted in September last year. Before joining Deloitte, in September 2017, the Técnico alumna worked at Vodafone and NAV Portugal.

Mariana Santos Silva (Information and Communication Networks Engineering) was awarded in the “Data & Analytics Expert by Bosch Portugal” category. She is currently senior manager at Deloitte, where she has been since September 2008.

The entrepreneur Joana Pinto (Biomedical Engineering) was awarded in the “Founder / Co-Founder by OLX Group” category. She is the co-founder and CEO of Clynx, created at JUNITEC. Joana Pinto was the project manager. Before this successful project, the Técnico alumna was a professor at Happy Code Portugal and a junior research fellow at Instituto de Telecomunicações (IT).

Sensei, a startup founded by a Técnico professor and three Técnico alumni, won the award in the “Best Startup in Portugal started by a Woman” category. The Técnico alumna (MSc and PhD) Joana Rafael is one of the founders and also Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Sensei.

Launched in 2018, these awards aim to support women in technology by providing visibility, networking and mentorship, and to inspire the future generations.

The virtual PWIT Awards 2021 ceremony will take place on 17th July.