The Most Influential Women in Web 2.0

ACM CareerNews Alert summarizes The Most Influential Women in Web 2.0:

While women are still underrepresented within the broader computing field, a growing number of women are emerging as influencers within the world of Web 2.0. With the goal of finding the most influential and innovative women changing the way that we interact online, Fast Company profiles some of the biggest names in the social media space – including entrepreneurs, technologists, and technology evangelists. Some are leaders at established companies such as Google, while others are superstar executives at emerging start-ups in Web 2.0 areas ranging from blogging to social networking to video.

Within Silicon Valley, one of the best-known names is Marissa Mayer, Google’s Vice President of Search Products and User Experience. During her ten-year stint at the company, she has been a major player behind many of the company’s most popular products and services. Within the social media space, Caterina Fake is the co-founder of Flickr (now owned by Yahoo), which pioneered the online photo-sharing model, while Mena Trott is the co-founder of blogging company Six Apart. Other influential women include Leah Culver, founder of social networking site Pownce; Rashmi Sinha, CEO and co-founder of SlideShare; Dina Kaplan, co-founder and COO of blip.tv; Arianna Huffington, founder of The Huffington Post; and Gina Bianchini, co-founder and CEO of social networking platform Ning.

These successful women have shared a number of lessons for their peers entering the world of Web 2.0. Unlike some technology jobs, they say, Web 2.0 positions typically offer a number of ways to combine both social and technical skills. Secondly, if you choose a corporate employer rather than a start-up, don't just look for a role that will suit you -- find a company that will help you grow. Thirdly, don’t hesitate to start evangelizing about your company or brand, whether it’s by writing a blog or communicating using other social media.

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