nChain CIO Christine Leong: Diversity of thought for better solutioning

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Diversity and inclusion in the future tech space is an initiative that any forward-thinking company and its leaders are already focusing on. Fostering an environment of inclusion contributes to growth and innovation, a result Christine Leong, CIO of nChain, can back up with personal experience as a leader and role model in future tech.

During the London Blockchain Conference 2024, Leong had several speaking engagements, including one at the Women in Blockchain panel event, an evening networking gathering co-hosted by the London Blockchain Conference and Women in Blockchain Talks.

Leong sat alongside panelists Lauren Ingram of Women of Web3, Divya Prashanth of JurnyOn, and moderator Lavinia Osbourne of Women in Blockchain Talks for a 45-minute discussion that covered topics ranging from how to inspire diversity in blockchain and future tech to the latest trends in this space.

“Diversity of thought to me is the most important thing. I’m really diverse myself. Having different types of thinking will help us grow better. Better solutioning, better team, better culture,” Leong shared with CoinGeek Backstage after the panel.

She went on to reveal how nChain fosters a culture of diversity and encourages discussions on how to challenge each other and do things better.

“It’s only with having diversity of thought and people that we can be better,” she said.

On the panel, Leong pointed out the challenges women face when trying to get in the door for developer roles, mainly due to the male-dominated nature of the sector.

“I think sometimes it’s very scary to get through the door for anything. It’s daunting. There’s a lot of jargon. There’s a lot of questions that you might not feel overly confident, and there’s a lot of words that may mean different things,” Leong said.

“I think it’s really important to have your confidence to get through that and once you’re there, stand up. Stand up for yourself. Stand up for what you believe in and believe in yourself,” she added.

Leong acknowledged that imposter syndrome is a real thing and emphasized that it’s not necessary to tick every box. Instead, stick with what you’re good at and remember that it’s okay to be wrong; no one is perfect.

Moving on to topics outside of diversity, inclusion and encouragement, Leong also shared her passion for digital identity solutions at nChain and the role blockchain technology plays in them.

She highlighted how outdated our proof of identity is today, pointing to our continued use of pieces of paper instead of more innovative digital solutions.

“Sir Tim Berners-Lee said when he designed the Internet and built the Internet, what was missing was the identity layer,” she explained.

“In order to make it really, truly digital and modern, we need identity to be compatible with the digital world. Right now, it’s just a bit too archaic,” Leong said.

“I’m passionate about identity because everything has an identity, and that’s really something that isn’t going to go away anytime soon,” she added.

Watch: Why identity is important as we move to Web3