Before Dame Stephanie, no one developed and sold computer software separately from the hardware. And that was just one of her many breakthroughs. Hmm, Bill Gates might owe her a dollar or two.
Secret:
Dame Stephanie and her sister were sent by their parents on the Kindertransport from Austria to the U.K. just before the Holocaust. As one of the Jewish children who survived Hitler, she still feels the need to do something useful everyday to justify her good fortune.
Dame Stephanie Shirley breaks through about a million glass ceilings with her digital innovations and her all-female company.
Great Dame
Dame Stephanie Shirley hobnobs with the Queen, but still insists that you call her "Steve."
Kindertransport
After the rise of Hitler, Dame Stephanie Shirley is one of 10,000 Jewish children sent from Germany and Austria to live safe new lives in the U.K.
About Dame Stephanie Shirley
In 1962, Dame Stephanie Shirley founded Freelance Programmers, a software firm with innovative products and all female employees. She created so many revolutions that Queen Elizabeth was left with no choice but to make her a “Dame” (Britain’s female equivalent of a knight). In her so-called “retirement,” Dame Stephanie has become one of the world’s leading philanthropists, with a special emphasis on autism research.
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