Member Highlight: Soraya Jollon

✨Meet Soraya Jollon — from NYC entrepreneur to Stockholm startup champion!

Published:

Feb 27, 2025

3 min read

Soraya, what do you do as a Woman in Tech?

Before moving to Sweden from New York City a few years ago, I was an entrepreneur. When I moved, I knew I wanted to work in the startup ecosystem which I felt was the most dynamic environment for a new transplant to Stockholm. I combined my role as a COO of a Swedish B2C startup with leading the product team and loved it. I’m continuing to leverage my extensive experience as an advisor to female founders at the pre-seed and seed stage.

What made you choose tech?

Initially, tech chose me! Straight out of university, I worked for a consulting firm that required all new hires (including non-technical ones like me) to attend an intensive coding bootcamp. For me, the experience demystified coding and the process of building digital products to solve real world problems. I happily spent several years working on UX/UI and prototyping projects for financial services and healthcare companies.

But my desire to be an entrepreneur prevailed and I spent the next 15 years building my own business until I pivoted back to tech when we moved to Stockholm, which we specifically chose over other European cities because of its thriving tech scene.

I love the idea of user-focused products, specifically those solving problems that disproportionately affect women. I think the process of listening to people and interpreting what they need into products and experiences that go beyond their expectations is thrilling. At heart, I’m an optimist and truly believe in the power of tech to solve both our mundane, everyday needs as well as our world’s greatest challenges.

What does the Women in Tech community mean to you?

WITS is a welcoming, inclusive community that gives me the chance to meet both Swedish and international women in the Stockholm tech scene. While I’m focused on the startup/scaleup space, through WITS event programming, I get insight into innovation at larger corporations, as well as learn about pressing topics like AI ethics.

If you could give one piece of advice to aspiring women in tech, what would that be?

Commit to curiosity in all its forms during your career! As we know, the pace of tech innovation is only increasing, so consistently learning both technical and soft skills will future proof your professional life.

Additionally, be curious about people. Approach everyone with an open-minded “what can I learn from this person?” attitude to help you identify peers, mentors, and executives who will support you throughout your tech journey.