We exist to empower the next generation of women and nonbinary tech leaders.

In 2015, a few Silicon Valley companies came up with the idea for a cross-company mentorship program for women in tech, to help women navigate their careers while broadening their network. Although the feedback from participants was positive, there wasn't a scalable model for continuing the program at the time, so it was shelved.

However, Heidi Williams, a Director of Engineering at Box, couldn't shake the idea that there was real value in mentorship for women, especially mid-career women, who are leaving tech at twice the rate of men. While many programs are aimed at getting women into tech, WEST works to retain and develop the women who are already here, helping them become our next leaders and role models.

In 2016, Heidi left her position at Box to develop a cross-company mentorship program, for women engineers, by a woman engineer. Since the first WEST cohort began in November 2016, we’ve made 450 mentoring matches across 80+ companies with a 93% satisfaction rate. If you'd like to join as a mentor, mentee, or corporate partner, we'd love your help to create and sustain diverse and inclusive environments in tech. 

Our Leadership Team

Our Advisors

Special Thanks to past WEST Team members...