Safa Jemai knew she wanted to study computer science from a young age, but it wasn’t until she moved to Iceland from sunny Tunisia that she embarked on the journey of entrepreneurship, building the software and product development firm Víkonnekt. Here, she tells us how she got into tech and why she would like more women to do the same.

Safa, could you tell us a bit more about your background?

I was born in a middle class family in Bizerte, a small town in North Tunisia. My parents knew from the start that the only way to see their kids succeed in a tremendously challenging environment was to study and study very hard.

I was encouraged from a very early age to excel in maths, science and physics but later on when I was 12, I decided to take the path of computer science.

In 2018, I made the decision to move from Tunisia to Iceland to study the Icelandic language and continue my degree in computer science, receiving my degree in both from Iceland’s top university.

I had the opportunity to work on two projects that combined knowledge from my studies: a language processing project to preserve the Icelandic language in the age of AI – at a time when small nation languages have been at their most vulnerable – and entering a national incubator programme with a mobile app to help people more readily and easily learn Icelandic.

I put my focus on building two companies that serve multiple purposes, including fostering a diverse, inclusive tech industry and inspiring interests in different cultures and inclusivity across cultures.

What inspired you to create Vikonnekt?

I saw an opportunity in the market. While I was still in university, I worked also as a developer for a few start-ups and as a freelancer project manager.

I noticed the innovative ecosystem in Iceland is growing and we have more and more exciting companies with more entrepreneurs, but at the same time we have a need for more IT specialists.

I thought I could leverage my connections in Tunisia and build a strong team that could work remotely with another team based in Iceland and Víkonnekt was born.

I reached out to a few entrepreneurs and asked them about their experiences hiring tech people and implementing software products and in summer 2021, we officially launched Víkonnekt.

How would you describe Vikonnekt in a few words?

Víkonnekt is focused on providing third party technical development services to Nordic tech enterprises and companies and supporting the technical due diligence process for venture capital firms— as well as leveraging the technical development expertise of talented folks from Tunisia’s emerging technology sector.

 What makes Vikonnekt different?

Like other projects that I have been working on, Víkonnekt serves a multitude of purposes. Perhaps most notably, the company’s work showcases the new opportunities in North Africa by expanding the Nordic and European viewpoint of tech development, beyond Eastern Europe, and into the African continent.

Tech talent in Tunisia struggle with garnering fair, equitable salary negotiation. This results in significant immigration to European countries and destroys Tunisia’s ability to compete in the innovation sector.

As hybrid and remote work becomes more and more viable, and the normalisation of tech outsourcing to previously underutilised nations, like Tunisia, gains traction, Vikonnekt fosters regional economic development. This is reinforced by offering talent in Tunisia higher salaries and amenable work cultures than current market norms.

It enables talent to stay connected to their home cultures and reduces economic and housing challenges across Europe, improving work efficiency and better business outcomes.

Víkonnekt blends two seemingly unrelated and often underestimated cultures together, hiring talented people for compelling technical projects, both from Iceland and Tunisia. Though Tunisia is a big tech talent hub, it rarely has the chance to be showcased in European media and can be overshadowed by ecosystems in the Middle East.

Víkonnekt opens new doors of understanding of Tunisian possibilities for companies in Iceland and the Nordics, with regard to taking projects offshore or outsourcing. Víkonnekt also demonstrates to the emerging Tunisian tech sector the wealth of possibilities in collaborating with European and Nordic enterprises, expanding business opportunities for both regions.

It’s still quite rare for women to found tech entities in Europe, let alone garner success by bootstrapping. Even in Iceland, the reining utopia of gender equality, the number of female-founded tech companies remains relatively low. Compound this with additional distinctions, such as immigrant-founded, non-christian founded or non-white founded entities, and the stats drop to daunting levels.

With Víkonnekt, our aim is to eliminate barriers for non-white, non-christian, immigrant women technologists and entrepreneurs and help them thrive in the tech and business world.

It’s no secret that women are in the minority in the tech industry. How is Vikonnekt solving this issue?

While it is always a work in progress, our strategy has been from the beginning to search for female talent in universities.

We found it helpful to advertise for end term projects that students can work on with us and when they finish it, we hire them in the company. This way we are able to attract female developers more easily, as they feel more confident to apply for the end term projects, as well as train them well while working on the internal product through their end term project.

What are some of the ways to attract and retain women in tech that you discovered while building Vikonnekt?

Companies need to make sure that they provide a collaborative environment where voices are heard and opinions are taken seriously.

Through my journey with Vikonnekt, I noticed that women tend to listen more than talk. This is good, but it tends to create some imbalance – all team members need to communicate their thoughts out loud and influence the decisions of the company.

Here comes the responsibility of managers to notice these behaviours and create a safe space for everyone to listen and speak as well. When female developers see that their opinions matter and they are heard then they appreciate that a lot and tend to choose to stay in that company as they know that when they speak, they will be heard. People in general don’t seek only high salaries or bonuses but also a place where they are respected and taken seriously.

What is something you wish you learned sooner about the tech industry?

I wish I was taught early in school that I don’t have to figure out everything from the beginning to be able to participate in cool projects. Confidence is more important than knowledge in most cases. People trust a more confident person even if they might be making a wrong decision.

I think we need to teach our kids to be confident and communicate their thoughts early on even if they don’t have the right answers.

What advice would you give to people in the tech industry looking to diversify their tech talent pipeline?

Attracting tech talent doesn’t start in universities, it requires much more effort. If societies want to reach more people, they need to start earlier in the process which means in primary schools – that’s where kids start developing their passions.

Governments could arouse kids’ curiosity through programmes in their studies either through schools or associations. My passion for tech started when I was still 12 as I joined the local association in my hometown where I had the chance to work on simple IT projects. Having not taken part in the association, where I started familiarising myself with creating simple software projects, and having not chosen computer science in high school, I would have not chosen to build a career in the tech industry.

When we ask kids what they want to be when they grow up, they tend to lean more towards jobs like a doctor, teacher or an astronaut – that’s because the environment introduces them to these positions at a very early age.

How about we use the same tactic and introduce them to software development when they are still young? I am not talking about familiarising them with using social media but much more than that; I am talking about helping them understand how these programmes are actually built.