Witad Awards 2026: Rising star (vendor) – data, engineering & product development—Miriam Eyles, Rimes

What is your position within your firm?
Miriam Eyles, Rimes: Senior data developer at Rimes.

How long have you been in the financial services industry?
Eyles: I have been in the financial services industry for four years.

How did you get into the industry? Was it a conscious decision or did you “fall” into it?
Eyles: I came from a pure mathematics background with no fixed plan after my master’s degree, especially graduating during the Covid pandemic. What I did have was a growing interest in programing and following that instinct led me into data engineering. From there, I built up my finance knowledge on the job.

What does your day-to-day role entail?
Eyles: I split my time between long-term project work and the day-to-day running of our data pipelines. On the project side, I focus on transition builds and performance optimization across our systems. Operationally, I handle pipeline incidents and support downstream teams with their data queries. I work closely with my team, and a large part of my role is communicating with stakeholders and learning from the people around me.

What are you currently working on and what makes it significant in the context of your position?
Eyles: I’m currently part of our platform migration to Databricks, a platform that was completely new to me when the project began. Taking on something so technically different has pushed me to grow at a pace I didn’t expect, and being trusted with this work has been a defining part of my development as a data engineer—one that makes receiving this award feel especially meaningful.

My dad was my earliest role model. Following in his footsteps gave me both direction and confidence, and I’m incredibly grateful for the foundation he helped me build—it’s opened doors to opportunities I never could have imagined.

To what extent were you helped during your career by a mentor/role model within the business?
Eyles: My dad was my earliest role model. Following in his footsteps gave me both direction and confidence, and I’m incredibly grateful for the foundation he helped me build—it’s opened doors to opportunities I never could have imagined. I’ve also been very fortunate at Rimes. My managers and teammates have consistently encouraged me, challenged me, and helped me grow into someone who feels genuinely valued within the company.

What was the greatest obstacle you had to overcome during your career in the industry to date?
Eyles: Recognizing that my voice has value has been the biggest hurdle. I’m naturally quiet, so trusting my own experience didn’t come easily, especially when surrounded by people with far more years behind them. What I’ve learned is that you don’t need to be the loudest person in the room to contribute meaningfully. Listening carefully, understanding the problem, and speaking up when your insight matters can be just as powerful.

What is the most valuable lesson you’ve learned so far during your career?
Eyles: The most valuable lesson I’ve learned is the importance of being generous with your time—whether that’s sharing knowledge or supporting others in your team. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have mentors who invested in me early on, and I know I wouldn’t have had such a strong start to my career without them. In a fast-paced environment where we have limited time to learn, grow, and inevitably make mistakes, relying on one another becomes essential.

What would you advise women just entering the industry?
Eyles: Continue learning in and outside your work and pursue areas that you find interesting so that you have a drive to learn more in the future. 

What does this award mean to you?
Eyles: I’m very grateful to receive the rising star in data engineering award. In such a fast-moving field, recognition can easily be overshadowed by the pace of the work and the constant arrival of new technologies and AI developments. That’s why this feels especially meaningful. There are so many talented data professionals around me and being acknowledged among them is something I truly appreciate.