Today is Ada Lovelace† Day, an international celebration of women in technology on blogs around the world.

The subject of my post is Emma McGrattan of Ingres Consulting. I had the privilege of listening to (and meeting) Emma when she was a speaker at the last Leeds Girl Geek Dinner. I came away awestruck!

Emma is the Senior Vice President of Engineering at Ingres Consulting and is based in the US but she very generously 'popped' over to Leeds on a visit home to Dublin. Born and raised in Dublin, she graduated from Dublin City University with a Bachelor of Electronic Engineering Degree.

Emma has worked her way from keyboard to boardroom (her words)! Regardless of gender, her achievements are impressive in my eyes. The skills needed to code are completely different to the skills needed to manage and it's really clear when you read Emma's blog and listen to her speak that she's a great communicator - in fact I'm guessing this is something that Ingres value her for as they mention it in her corporate bio.

The focus of Emma's talk was about a controversial comment she made to a journalist which eventually found it's way to slashdot. A lot of you will know that being "slashdotted" normally leads to a lot of attention and so now the Internet is full of comment about it. But Emma was able to reflect on the experience with good grace and humour and had a very realistic approach to what it has meant for her.

What makes Emma McGratten my Ada Lovelace Day idol is that she reached her position through talent and hard work while staying true to herself and retaining a great perspective.

† Ada Lovelace (Lord Byron's only child) is credited with writing the world's first computer programmes for Charles Babage's Analytical Engine. Discover more at the Ada Lovelace website.