Leading Women in Tech Podcast

Fractional leadership positioning is one of the most misunderstood — and most important — parts of building a successful fractional career.
In this episode Toni breaks down why so many senior women struggle to gain traction in fractional roles, how positioning differs from full-time leadership, and what it really means to be hired for judgement rather than execution.
Here's what you'll learn in this episode
⏹  Why experience alone doesn't translate into fractional opportunities
⏹  The difference between employee positioning and fractional leadership positioning
⏹  Why fractional leaders are hired for judgement, not capacity
⏹  The most common positioning mistakes that keep leaders invisible
⏹  How to pressure-test your own positioning without "selling yourself"
⏹  What comes next if you want to move from interest to paid fractional work
What's coming next
In next week's episode, we'll go one step further and explore how fractional leaders actually get hired — what genuinely leads to opportunities, and what doesn't.
Want support with your positioning?
If this episode highlighted gaps or uncertainty around how you're currently positioned, you can book a free strategy session or  fractional leadership positioning audit — here:
👉 https://tonicollis.com/lets-chat

If women don't experiment with AI now, we risk hard-coding today's leadership gaps into tomorrow's technology.
In this episode I'm joined by Kendra MacDonald, CEO of Canada's Ocean Supercluster, to explore the intersection of women in leadership, AI readiness, representation, and emerging technology.
This conversation goes beyond theory. It tackles the real risks and opportunities facing women leaders as AI, climate tech, and other emerging technologies reshape how leadership works — and who gets to shape the future.
In this episode, we discuss:
◾ Why representation in leadership matters more than ever in emerging tech
◾ How AI adoption in the workplace can either reduce or reinforce gender bias
◾ Why women's hesitation to experiment with AI is a leadership issue — not a technical one
◾ What it takes to lead confidently in male-dominated industries like tech and ocean  innovation
◾ How leadership pipelines for women are shaped early — at work, at home, and through education
◾ The role of experimentation, confidence, and visibility in closing the leadership gap
Kendra shares her own journey — from stepping away from STEM early in life to leading large-scale innovation and commercialisation — and offers practical insight into how women leaders can engage with AI and emerging tech without needing to be technical experts.
If you care about:
✔ women in tech leadership
✔ AI readiness for leaders
✔ gender diversity in leadership
✔ bias in AI algorithms
✔ emerging and sustainable technology
this episode is for you.
If you're ready for your next  level explore how to strengthen your leadership clarity, visibility, and career trajectory by booking a discovery call via the link in the description.
 
**Useful links**
Connect with today's guest and sponsor, Kendra MacDonald:
◾  W: kendramacdonald.com
◾ Substack: https://substack.com/@saltwatersignals 
This episode was sponsored by our guest, Kendra MacDonald. Thank you Kendra for helping to bring Leading Women in Tech to this community!

If performance were enough, more women in tech would already be promoted.
They're not.
In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, Toni Collis breaks down executive presence for women in tech — what it actually means, why being good at your job isn't enough at senior levels, and how leaders are really evaluated when promotion, influence, and trust are on the line.
This episode is for high-performing women who've been told they need "more executive presence" — without ever being given clarity on what to change.
You'll learn why executive presence is not about confidence theatre or personality, why women are often misread at senior levels, and how to build leadership presence without changing who you are.
In this episode, you'll learn:
◾ Why performance alone doesn't create executive presence
◾ What executive presence for women in tech really looks like at senior levels
◾ How leaders are evaluated on judgement, framing, and decision-making
◾ Why executive presence is harder for women (and how bias actually shows up)
◾ The difference between confidence and leadership presence
◾ Practical ways to build executive presence without becoming someone else


🔗 Resources & Links
◾ Book a free strategy call: https://tonicollis.com/lets-chat
◾ Learn more about Toni Collis: https://tonicollis.com

If you've ever worried that an unconventional career path in tech leadership might hold you back — that your background isn't "technical enough," linear enough, or traditional enough — this episode will fundamentally challenge that belief.
In this conversation, Toni Collis is joined by Lisa Ferrante-Walsh, SVP of Engineering at Native Instruments, whose career journey spans music, computer science, engineering leadership, mergers and acquisitions, and even stepping into an acting CTO role. Lisa's story is a powerful example of how a nonlinear career path in tech can become a strategic advantage rather than a liability.
Toni & Lisa discuss what it really takes to move from individual contributor to people leader, how to lead engineering teams through M&A without losing trust or momentum, and why executive confidence, decision-making, and visibility matter even more when your background doesn't fit the "expected" mould.
This episode is essential listening if you're a woman in tech navigating a career transition into senior leadership, leading through organizational change, or questioning whether you truly belong at the executive table.
 
Connect with today's guest and sponsor, Lisa Ferrante-Walsh on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisaferrantewalsh/
This episode was sponsored by our guest, Lisa Ferrante-Walsh. Thank you Lisa for helping to bring Leading Women in Tech to this community!

If the idea of going fractional feels exciting and terrifying at the same time — you're not alone.
In this episode of Leading Women in Tech, we explore what fractional leadership really looks like for senior women who want more autonomy, impact, and alignment — without blowing up their careers.
This episode is for you if:
◾You're curious about fractional work but worried about legality, stability, or time
◾You've been asked to "advise" startups or former colleagues — informally and often unpaid
◾You want meaningful, senior-level work without the full-time corporate trap
◾You're wondering if a portfolio or fractional career could be a smart next step
Rather than hype or hustle culture, this conversation focuses on clarity.
You'll learn:
◾What fractional leadership actually is (and what it isn't)
◾The three most common starting points women have when exploring fractional work
◾How to explore fractional leadership safely alongside a full-time role
◾The real fears women have — about contracts, confidence, pricing, and visibility — and how to address them
◾Why most fractional experiments fail (and how to avoid those mistakes)
◾How to test fractional work intentionally, without quitting or burning bridges
This episode is not about deciding everything today.
It's about understanding what's possible — so you can make your next move with confidence.
🎯 Next step:
If this episode resonates and you'd like to talk through your own fractional career options, you can book a complimentary strategy session with me to design your own fractional career right here: https://app.acuityscheduling.com/schedule/64a6bd61/appointment/86825111/calendar/3066450?appointmentTypeIds[]=86825111