Martha Lane Fox named most influential woman in digital over the last 25 years
Technology entrepreneur Martha Lane Fox has been named the most influential woman in digital in the last 25 years in a special recognition category at the 2019 Dadi Awards.
To mark the 25th anniversary of the first banner ad and the birth of the digital marketing industry as we know it, this summer The Drum partnered with Futures Network, InnovateHer and WACL to shine a spotlight on 25 outstanding women who have defined digital over the last 25 years.
After a judging process involving a panel of industry luminaries followed by a public vote, Doteveryone founder Lane Fox was chosen as the person who has made the biggest contribution to the digital industry in that time.
Jokingly referring to herself as a "dot com dinosaur," Lane Fox said she was "thrilled" to receive the award and used the platform to issue a rallying call to the digital industry to address "mammoth human challenges" like climate change.
"My challenge to the tech sector and beyond is just to look at what you’re working on. Is it important, are you solving the right problems and do you have the right people in the room?
"I was given a shot as a young woman at 25 and it transformed my life. We need more diverse voices to try and continue to do the same thing."
Rising to prominence as the co-founder of Lastminute.com in the 1990s, Lane Fox went on to become the UK government’s digital champion and the youngest female member of the House of Lords. Today she sits on the boards of Twitter, Donmar Warehouse and Chanel and is a proud advocate for human rights, women’s rights and social justice.
You can read full profiles of Lane Fox, and the other outstanding honourees in the 25 From 25, in our full coverage starting here.