A CodeWomen+ event in Barcelona, the starting point for a bigger conversation
Last month, Adservio proudly hosted CodeWomen+'s annual #Pride event in Barcelona. It was an inspiring experience that brought together queer voices in tech for a vital discussion: how to create genuinely inclusive work environments, beyond symbols and seasonal campaigns.
A huge thank you to Andrea Cuevas, Sofia Carballo, to Channelijne Hulshof, project assistant at CodeWomen, and to Jun Moyano, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion lead at CodeWomen, for organizing such an impactful event. What follows recaps the key takeaways from the discussion, along with a few extensions on what this actually means for a technology company in 2026.
Tech isn't inclusive by default
An industry that remains largely dominated by one profile
Technology is an important space for queer people to have a voice: it brings perspectives that can make the industry more innovative, thoughtful, and diverse. Yet despite decades of talk about diversity, industry studies continue to show that technical and leadership roles remain predominantly held by homogeneous profiles, and that the career paths of LGBTQIA+ people, women, and ethnic minorities in tech involve specific obstacles that are rarely documented in as much detail as pay gaps.
Andrea shared that, while her own experience has been largely positive, that doesn't mean the industry is inclusive by default: she noted, for instance, that she has faced more barriers tied to her gender than to her queerness. Coming from the Bay Area, a global tech hub, I pointed out that the industry there still tends to be dominated by cisgender, white men. Still, we both agreed on one thing: tech remains a space where queer people can express themselves, and where their life experiences bring perspectives that make products and teams stronger.
Gender and sexual orientation: distinct barriers that stack up
A central takeaway from the discussion is that barriers tied to gender and those tied to sexual orientation don't always overlap the same way. Someone can feel fully accepted on one axis of identity and face very real friction on another. That's exactly why a generic inclusion policy, designed for "diversity" in the broad sense, often misses the mark: it treats as a single homogeneous block experiences that, on the ground, are very different from one another.
The job interview as a signal of company culture
A telling choice, but an unevenly shared privilege
We reflected on what it means to be openly queer during a job interview. We both remembered how different it felt to be interviewed at Adservio, where it was immediately clear that queerness wasn't just tolerated but genuinely welcomed. From the very first exchanges, the culture on display was one of openness. Since then, we both make a point of being open about our identity early in any hiring process, specifically to gauge whether a company genuinely matches our values.
That said, it's worth acknowledging the privilege this choice represents. Not everyone job-hunting has the financial flexibility to walk away from an opportunity that doesn't look inclusive, particularly in a tight labor market. A company that's serious about the topic can't simply wait for candidates to reveal their identity to prove its openness: it needs to make that openness visible upstream, in its process, its careers pages, and the way its recruiting teams are trained.
What a company's reaction actually reveals
It's not so much the question that matters as the reaction it triggers. An awkward silence, a clumsy rephrasing, or, conversely, a natural and engaged response, often say far more about an organization's real culture than any charter posted on its website.
Multiple identities that shape how we work
Gender, background, and neurodivergence: intersectionality in practice
Queer experiences aren't one-dimensional. Identities like immigration status, race, neurodivergence, and gender intersect to shape how each person navigates the tech industry. Andrea reflected on how being a queer, immigrant woman shapes her communication with her team, with a particular emphasis on respect, inclusive language, and making sure everyone feels welcome. For my part, my perspective as a queer, Latina, neurodivergent woman directly informs my approach to product development: thinking about accessibility, inclusion, and user-centered design from the earliest sketches, rather than as a layer bolted on at the end of a project.
From individual experience to product design
Recognizing this complexity isn't just a matter of workplace well-being: it's also a lever for product quality. A team with diverse identities and lived experiences more naturally spots the blind spots in a design, the implicit assumptions about the "typical" user, or the friction that minority audiences will run into. It's a business argument as much as a social justice one, and the two reinforce each other.
Beyond performative pride: embedding inclusion into everyday work
The decisive role of leadership
Creating safe, inclusive spaces for queer people in tech isn't a seasonal effort. It's something that has to be built and cultivated every day, in the systems we create and the environments we shape. Leaders who embody and talk about these values every day, not just in June, are essential to setting the right cultural tone for an entire organization.
I emphasized how important it is to see DEI modeled by leadership, not just carried by a handful of committed individual contributors. When leaders embody these values in their decisions and trade-offs, it creates a ripple effect that makes real change possible, beyond mere posturing.
DEI as daily practice, not an internal policy page
Andrea shared that, in her experience at Adservio, inclusion isn't just corporate talk: it's part of how teammates interact day to day, in meetings, team check-ins, and hiring decisions. That consistency between what's said and what's done shows that DEI doesn't live on an HR policy page, it lives in the culture experienced day to day. We both felt Adservio does solid work hiring for cultural fit, welcoming people who not only have the required skills, but who actively contribute to a supportive, inclusive work environment.
The power of community
Spaces like CodeWomen+ show the strength of community. When people come together to share their stories, support one another, and advocate for change, they create environments where everyone feels they belong, particularly valuable in an industry still dominated by men. Our discussion highlighted the importance of moving beyond superficial rainbow logos to build work environments that genuinely embrace diversity every day, with an engaged audience whose questions and experiences enriched the conversation well beyond the initial panel.
Channelijne summed up the spirit of the event in a few words: "It was a truly beautiful event and an opportunity for all of us to come together as a community, and I especially appreciated everyone's openness about their experiences. I really enjoyed moderating the panel and talking about the intersectionality of queerness with my own disability, echoing audience questions about the overlap between neurodivergence and queerness in the tech sector. It was wonderful to see how caring everyone was toward each other's questions and complex life experiences. This event had an atmosphere of openness and connection, and it's more important than ever to have a space like this."
About CodeWomen+ and how to get involved
CodeWomen+'s mission
The CodeWomen+ project aims to transform the tech sector to make it more inclusive and diverse. It's building a community of women+, by women+, for women+, running orientation, training, and networking activities. Its goal is to make it easier to hire women+ in tech and to support companies in rolling out solid diversity, equity, and inclusion plans.
Becoming a volunteer
If you're passionate about sharing knowledge and empowering others, consider volunteering with CodeWomen+, either as a teaching or training volunteer, sharing your experience as a developer directly with students and guiding them through technical concepts and practical skills, or as a mentor volunteer, putting your HR, training, or project management skills to work helping students navigate their career path and find job opportunities. To learn more about CodeWomen+ or to get involved, visit their website or connect with them on LinkedIn.
A huge thank you to our event panelists and volunteers for their fantastic collaborative effort.
Disclaimer: The statements and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect Adservio's positions.
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