When Mel Brooker was working for a well-known website in her late 20s, she says male colleagues – including some she was managing – would openly comment on what she was wearing.
"I found it like really humiliating," she recalls. "It doesn't matter what I'm wearing, I'm still here to do a job. I could be in the shorts and T-shirt, I could still do my job."
Brooker, now 42, adds: "A man wouldn't find themselves in that position. So why should a female?"
The tech sector is a major driver in the global economy and the UK government has said it will invest billions into growing it, but figures show women make up only about a fifth of the workforce in roles such as IT, programming and cyber security.
Industry leaders have urged ministers to help close the gender gap in order to meet their ambitious goals.
