We’re celebrating International Women’s Day with some of our Technology Scotland members! This year, we’re delighted to have teamed up with some of the talented women working in various roles across the enabling technology sector to find out more about why the chose their current role, what they love about their role, and what piece of advice they would give to women looking to work in their sector. Take a look below and get inspired:
Anastasia Khatuntseva
Digital Manufacturing Engineer
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
Jill Miscandlon
Senior Manufacturing Engineer
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
Kareema Hilton
Manufacturing Engineer
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
Rachael Turkington
Project Manager – Regulatory Affairs
i4 Product Design Ltd
Sarah Jardine
Chief Operating Officer
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
Dr Wenjuan Wang
Programme Manager
National Manufacturing Institute Scotland
Alison McLeod
Why did you choose the role you are in?
It was the perfect combination of my skills and experience, and also a very exciting opportunity.
What do you love about your role?
The great sense of achievement it gives me: knowing that I am providing a valuable service to our members and helping companies in the Scottish photonics sector progress and grow.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Have faith in your abilities and go for it! It’s a great sector with lots of opportunities across a wide variety of application areas.
Alka Swanson
Why did you choose the role you in?
I started out in research and development of fibre optics products. From there, I moved into Product Management, and eventually into Csuite roles. Each move was a conscious decision as I was going further and further away from my love of technology. Usually, it is a one way street, once one moves away from technology, it is harder to move back, not impossible but tough.
At this stage, in my life, I wanted more flexibility of physical location so I chose Sales and Marketing role because it allows me that flexibility.
What do you love about your role?
People I work with. In a technical sales and marketing role, I am only as good as my colleagues. Deep subject matter knowledge of my colleagues and sense of urgency for customers and marketing of our services combined with a sense of humour makes it incredible fun while delivering to the customers.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector.
Know thyself: what do you want out of your career and life? Do not let people push you to do more or less, it depends on what kind of work/life balance you want. But never be afraid to take on more if that is what you want; you will learn as you go along and you will overcome difficulties with hard work and help of your colleagues. When you have doubts about taking on more, just remember: how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
Anastasia Khatuntseva
I started out in the waste management industry where I noticed that the improvement of any process began with data analysis – and there began my passion for data! I joined NMIS two years ago and have led many projects on connectivity and systems integration. Data allows for better decision making.
What do you love about your role?
I love seeing results and really enjoy running demonstrations that highlight improvements and achievements at the end of projects. I feel that my work and knowledge are making a difference, which motivates me to scope out even more ambitious and larger projects.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
When I was younger, I was told by relatives that engineering was not for girls and that it would involve working in harsh and dirty conditions. I am happy to confirm that neither of these is true and that modern factories are very clean. Many engineering roles are also office based!
Anastasia Bombrys
Why did you choose the role you are in?
UniKLasers is our family business, which I started with my father Fedor Karpushko. Seven years on, our team is 18 strong and growing.
I had very much ‘physics and lyrics’ upbringing with my physicist father and my ethnographer mother. Growing up, photonics was this mysterious business of making impossible possible. Now, it is particularly exciting to be part of high-tech innovations. We have just recently launched world-first single frequency DPSS UV laser at 349 nm wavelength long awaited by semiconductor manufacturers, a few years ago we were the first company in the world to introduce single frequency DPSS red laser at 640 nm wavelength widely used in holography and other applications. We are participating in six ground-breaking Quantum technology projects with Fraunhofer UK, University of Birmingham and other partners. My goal is to see my father’s technology used to foster high tech innovation in industries from semiconductors to LIDARs to Quantum Technologies.
What do you love about your role?
The variety of being COO and Director of my own company requires me to truly multi-task. Every day is different. In early years I would have been raising investment in the morning, managing purchasing during lunch, acting as a mechanical technician in the afternoon, and working on accounts in the evening. In the process I had to relinquish all self-doubt – I just had to learn and do it – there simply was no other way. I had never raised investment for a business before. I just had to go out and do it out of necessity to grow our business. I became better at it as the business grew, and as I learned from my experiences and developed relationships with investors.
Operating the business has become a bit easier now, as we have a team of great people, all experts in their areas. I learn a lot from them. Being a COO in the photonics sector is an ongoing technological discovery – this evolving sector never stays still.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Don’t doubt yourself! If you are interested in a career in Photonics in either engineering or a supporting role, go for it. Women are lateral thinkers and are natural in multi-tasking; every day we find solutions to problems without even noticing it. Photonics needs women – diversity drives creativity which drives innovation. And when you need a bit of a boost as a woman – listening to “I Am Woman” by Helen Reddy, despite being written in 1971 or, perhaps because of it, often does the trick.
Angela Flack
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I’ve been lucky to have a really varied scientific experience and this role lets me bring together all the scientific knowledge I’ve picked up along the way.
What do you love about your role?
As I scientist I love learning and my job allows to me to continue to learn and evolve well after my studies are over.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Do it! If you love science, go for it. Believe in yourself, the scientific community is getting more and more female input and the more women that follow a scientific career path the better!
Bethany Moran
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I grew up spending many, many hours on the computer teaching myself to design and code my first Hilary Duff fansite at age 10. Being able to turn such a young (and slightly embarrassing) natural passion of mine into a career has been a dream come true.
What do you love about your role?
I love being able to step into the mind’s of my users and paint enjoyable experiences that delight and empower their needs.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Work hard and be that annoying person who needs their work to be pixel-perfect. Listen to every mentor that crosses your path and take every bit of criticism as constructive tools to elevate your skills. If you think you can’t do something, try and push yourself anyway.
Nicole McCann
What do you love about your role?
With UniKlasers, I feel I am an integral part of the team and I contribute to the overall business objectives. Every day brings new challenges, and no 2 days are the same. I am a very curious person and I like to understand how things come together and I love that I can confidently do my role whilst having the opportunity to learn all things photonics. Most importantly, I love the team that I work with. Everybody within the company always has time to answer any questions I have and are happy to help develop my knowledge, especially when it comes to the technical terms. Being part of a growing business, gives many opportunities to learn the industry.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Believe in yourself. Know what you want to do and look at ways to get it. Understand that you may not start where you want to end up but putting yourself out there, showing willingness to develop your career, you will get there. Don’t be afraid to speak out, ask questions, tell people your objectives. Don’t see yourself as a woman in a man’s world. Strive to be the best you can, not for anyone else but for you. If there is something you don’t like, you have the power to change it.
Carly Pluckrose-Gates
Why did you choose the role you are in?
When deciding to move from London to Edinburgh, I wanted to ensure my new workplace was both innovative and engaging. Fortunately, at UniKLasers, each day I’m witness to the dynamic collaboration between our proficient engineers and discover more about their processes and the level of skill required to accomplish their goals. Though my role is administrative rather than technical, through the relationships UniKLasers has developed within our different departments, I feel I’m an important part of our team.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Don’t underestimate yourself. Believe in the skills you have and work hard on those you don’t. Focus on your past achievements to remind yourself of how you struggled before succeeding. Don’t be afraid of offering your opinion.
Dr Carol Marsh
I choose this role because it means I can be a technical expert and a people manger which is a fantastic combination.
What do you love about your role?
The variation. My role is to help the engineers in my team progress throughout their careers and to ensure they have the tools, processes and resources they need to do their jobs. It’s a rewarding role.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
If you want to make a difference, work with amazing people and look forward to coming to work every day, then this is the career for you.
Ellyse McCallum
Why did you choose the role you are in?
Working in tech within the transit industry is something I had never really thought about doing—the opportunity came a long and it seemed like a fun new challenge so I went for it! Digital marketing practices are generally similar across sectors, but the tactics are always different. It’s always satisfying to discover what works for a particular industry when it comes to communicating your message, and this role with Liftango has enabled and empowered me to do so.
What do you love about your role?
I love that at the end of the day there’s a passenger out there getting access to a service that is not only more environmentally friendly, but convenient and affordable. We’re bringing transit to the people, and my daily duties are assisting in creating a product and service that is making it possible. I love knowing that whatever I put my hand to is benefiting someone I may never meet—my time and skills has helped their day run a little smoother.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
The pandemic has taught us that so many barriers have been removed within the workforce—from working from home to working for a company in a different country! We need more women within the tech industry, and guess what—they want us too! Just go for a role if you’re thinking about it, you might surprise yourself and enjoy the fresh perspective.
Erin Kennedy
I chose my role because it combines a lot of my favourite things and is really relevant to what I did at University. I’ve always liked problem solving and being creative so a Design Engineering job was perfect as I get to do both on a daily basis.
What do you love about your role?
I love the variety of working on lots of different projects and the best bit is seeing prototypes in real life. It’s amazing to see things I’ve spent weeks designing on screen in the flesh.
What piece of advice would you give woman working in your sector?
Believe in yourself and choose a path that you think you’ll genuinely enjoy! It doesn’t matter if certain classes or careers seem male dominated, there’s always space for female input and it’s really important to remember that.
Evgenia Yakushina
As soon as passed my VIVA I dreamt of leading research and progressed to roles that developed my technical and strategic vision. In my current role, I can drive the team to embrace new advanced hot and cold forming technologies and share my experience and support – I also learn from them too. This is the right role for me, I’m glad I took the leap!
What do you love about your role?
There are many things that I LOVE about my role. Every day I get to engage with highly professional and experienced people. Being a team lead does come with lots of admin but the key is how we help the team to provide support. I also really enjoy direct communication with customers and stakeholders and introducing solutions and collaborative ideas.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
The belief that women and engineering aren’t synonymous just isn’t true. We all have to try to fulfil our dreams and ambitions, especially when they are supported by knowledge and experience. The most brilliant ideas can come from a woman thinking, “what if we try this?”
Lauren Percy
I love that every day is a school day. Any role within the technology sector involves growing your understanding of technical information, jargon, and multi-step abbreviations. At UniKLasers I get to learn the technical side of things from industry leading engineers and researchers while putting my own experience to use in my day-to-day activity. I get to flex my marketing expertise while learning my laser ABCs!
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Demonstrate your value. Communicate your achievements and share what you have learned from your mistakes. In fact, mistakes are your best friend. Tackling your errors shows resourcefulness, problem solving skills, and a drive to learn and grow. At every stage in your career, this builds the credibility and confidence you can bring as a valuable member of any team.
Leanne Willmott
I feel like the role chose me. I started out as a trainee Graphic Designer when I left school at 16, as I wanted a career where I could be creative.
I have since worked my way into the male orientated IT industry by saying yes to every learning opportunity that came my way.
So now my career has gone digital, using my creative skills alongside new found coding to help users online.
What do you love about your role?
I love using design and creativity to help people navigate our digital world.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Say yes to as many learning opportunities as you can.
Dr Rachael Wakefield
I have always loved technology and chose to concentrate on science subjects at school. I was a huge fan of science fiction but, sharing a secret, I struggled a bit with maths! I remember telling a careers adviser I wanted to ‘get behind the scenes so I could be one of the first to learn of new inventions’. I did a degree in applied biology and microbiology and from there developed an interest in the environment. When I began working, the big concerns were pesticide levels in water and soil that could harm wildlife and humans, and the impact of acid rain on trees, crops and plants.
I did a PhD in soil pollution, working with engineers and physicists to make smaller some of the lab instrumentation so we could take it outside and make measurements. This is when we were having the first pure wavelength LEDs on the market (blues, oranges, reds) which were great tools for spectroscopy.
After my PhD I started up a technology company with colleagues and was exposed to lots of industry processes and technologies in this short time. This experience helped me later on when I moved into a business development and technology transfer role within a university, helping researchers to commercialise their inventions by partnering with businesses or forming spin-out companies. This was so interesting; it was role in which I use all my experience from previous jobs and learn even more.
What do you love about your role?
At CENSIS, my job is to help organisations and industry source technology solutions to challenges they have. Sometimes it’s just a better (faster, cheaper, or safer) way of doing something, and sometimes it’s a completely new type of technology that needs a bit of development help so it can be demonstrated properly.
So, did I realise my younger self’s wish to be behind the scenes? I think so, though it was really planned that way! I just followed what I was interested in and what made me feel happy. I am so privileged to be among the first to learn about inventions, new ideas and innovations many of which end up being used in our daily lives.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
My advice to my younger self would be to pursue what makes you happy in your studies, even if it’s not immediately obvious where you’ll land. Nurture what inspires you and don’t be discouraged if you struggle at one particular topic, like maths! Find lots of role models. Try to gain practical skills in lots of things through clubs and hobbies as this will come in useful at some point, I guarantee! You’ll get by if you are determined and it’s easy to be determined if it’s something that makes you happy.
Sharon Haynes
I grew into my current role after progressing with TTC over the past 10 years. It was a very exciting proposition to head up the Police side of the business.
What do you love about your role?
I work with some amazing people, from our police forces to my regional teams. It’s varied, challenging, allows me to really focus on quality of service and contributes significantly to the safety of our roads and our communities.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
This sector was once predominately male but there are more and more women joining the NDORS scheme, in fact we now have a strong female lead at the helm of UKROEd, so my advice is to just go for it, demonstrate your passion, utilise your skills and allow yourself to flourish!
Natalie Harris
Why did you choose the role you are in?
There is a growing need for Systems Engineers globally, so following this career path not only gives me a great career but also job security in the future!
What do you love about your role?
I never have the same day twice: there are always really exciting challenges to overcome and I am allowed to be creative in my role. That gives me great job satisfaction!
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
This is by no means a male dominated industry anymore. Although there are still more men than women, I see more and more females finding a great career in Systems Engineering and really thriving in their roles! Dare I say, the female attention to detail may make them better!
Dr Wenjuan Wang
I began conducting research in product design before realising that I preferred project management, particularly activities such as project planning, cost control and risk control. I get lots of satisfaction when I see things improved and believe that a project manager is just as important as an engineer or researcher for the successful delivery of a project.
What do you love about your role?
I love that I get to interact with all the talented people at NMIS, across various departments at the University of Strathclyde, and with stakeholders from industry and funding institutions. There is also no chance of getting bored in this role as new challenges and opportunities are always popping up!
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Aim high, set challenging goals and you will get there.
Wendy Lamin
The role of MD became a natural progression from my previous roles. This company now needs a more commercial team to run it after the R&D phase. I have a great team of valued advisors backing me.
What do you love about your role?
We do amazing things nobody else seems to be able to do, even big players, we have a history of world firsts. Then there is the sheer variety of the day to day, and seeing all the amazing things the team has realised at the end of the year, with limited financial means but big brains, creativity, problem solving skills, and an unrelentless drive.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Go for it and don’t shy away from equally taking on board positions early on in your career. The world needs more diverse boards, especially the tech savvy generations.
Sarah Milnes
What do you love about your role?
I love that I can design a product, talk to the customers about it, and help manufacture it on site. Everyone in Thales is passionate about our products and how they help people – it’s infectious!
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Be bold, aim for the top and be yourself – don’t worry about fitting in with what you think stereotypes of the sector are. Engineering is a dynamic exciting place to be with so many opportunities and great projects going on in Scotland.
Yukti Srivastava
I chose this role because it offered new challenges and technologies that were new to me and it gave me opportunities to learn and contribute in my work.
What do you love about your role?
I get to see the bigger picture of what’s happening and bringing it all together as a deliverable to the end customer.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Competence counts not gender. If you are passionate about it then nothing will stop you in being successful.
Rachael Turkington
What do you love about your role?
Having a role within a product design consultancy means that I am continually learning. It is rewarding to be part of a team which brings a new product to life.
Sara Diegoli
I chose this role because it gave me the opportunity to shape a new and high profile initiative from its inception; it was a truly exciting and very rewarding journey.
What do you love about your role?
I work with a great team of talented and motivated people that inspire me and I feel I am always learning something new.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Technology has a bad reputation to be a male dominated environment – do not let that put you off, we need more women in tech!
Sarah Cook
Every day is different, and it gives me the opportunity to work with great people and incredible products.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work in your sector?
The aerospace sector offers a breadth of opportunities across multiple disciplines and throughout the product life cycle, from research through to support. So be open-minded and consider all opportunities as a gateway.
Sarah Jardine
The opportunity to make a real difference to Scottish manufacturing, something that I am very passionate about.
What do you love about your role?
I love that I get to be involved in an organisation that makes a difference, but also that I can give people opportunities to develop and grow.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Just be yourself. Don’t try to be what you think others want you to be, it’s too exhausting. I also encourage everyone to remember that the world is changed by your example, not your opinion.
Inga Harris
I moved to a Program Management role 15 years in to my engineering career to develop my leadership and influencing skills further, and to work with a truly global team.
What do you love about your role?
I love my job as every day is different and always an exciting challenge. All the risk planning in the world can never prepare you for the unexpected challenges that you will come up against, and the feeling I get when the team overcome a roadblock is very motivating.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Women are still the minority in the Automotive Electronics industry but that can be the edge you need to progress rather than something that will hold you back.
Ivonne Escorcia
I became fascinated with the world of electronics when I built a digital piano in secondary school. Now, I get to design complex systems by linking millions of transistors together. I chose to become an Electronics Engineer to constantly learn and adapt to cutting-edge technologies.
What do you love about your role?
I love working in Research because I can use my creativity and knowledge in electronics to develop solutions to fascinating technical challenges.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
The road to becoming an Engineer is a laborious one, but the reward far outweighs the challenge. I truly believe that you will fulfil your dreams if you persevere and are determined about your goals.
Kareema Hilton
My degree was in aeronautical engineering and I wanted to enhance my understanding of aerospace component manufacture as part of design for manufacture. My intension was to go back into design after a couple of years but I discovered a passion for machining metallic parts and ended up staying in this field.
What do you love about your role?
I enjoy meeting new people, getting to know them and understanding the challenges they face in their organisations. Building these relationships and helping their businesses to become more efficient is really rewarding. There is also an element of problem solving that I enjoy when completing programming activities to make parts.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Working in the manufacturing sector is very exciting as you get to meet all types of people from different backgrounds. Every day is different, sometimes you face challenges that take time to solve, but hard work and perseverance will get you through. If any of these traits rhyme true, then engineering could be for you.
Jill Miscandlon
What do you love about your role?
Every day is different and provides unexpected and exciting opportunities. I speak with people from different technical background, which allows me to see common threads and think up potential collaboration opportunities. I love that ‘lightbulb,’ moment when putting things together from seemingly unrelated topics that create new and interesting research projects.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Don’t be afraid to ask questions when starting out in a new field. You need to learn as much as you can, as fast as you can, and the best way to do that is to ask questions- lots of them! Coming from a different background allows you to ask questions that people who have spent their entire careers in the field don’t think about. If you get the answer, ‘because it’s always been done like that,’ then you have lots of scope.
Mary de Villiers
Why did you choose the role you are in?
- Variety
- There is no typical day in HR! Human resource jobs involve any aspect of an employer’s workforce and each specialty requires a different knowledge base. Every day is a learning day!
- In HR we connect the value of people to the company’s bottom line. We need to be proficient at dealing with people from all backgrounds and levels of experience, knowledge, and skill.
- Flexibility
- The role of HR involves working in partnership with all areas of the business. As working remotely has become a necessity, it has become more pivotal to learn about new technology and online resources to find new ways of communicating, supporting, recruiting, onboarding, and training and development.
- Growth Potential
- For me, a huge factor in my job satisfaction is growth potential and variety, which is exactly why I choose to study Human Resource Management with the CIPD. You do need to learn all aspects of HR, you cannot join at a senior level, you need to experience the basics to have the knowledge to support the business as your career grows. You cannot come out of university and expect to land a job in HR Management. You need to learn the basics to succeed in your career.
- Meaningful Work
- I am able to see how my job, and me, make a difference to colleagues within TTC Group and how it can impact the success of the business. For me, this provides meaning and a sense of pride in my work.
- In HR, you’ll work with and shape the work experience of the majority of employees within the business. On the organisational level, HR specialists must look at the big picture. You have access to confidential information on how the entire organisation works and the opportunity to participate in long-range planning.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
I am not sure I can give one piece of advice; the role has changed over the years and I believe some of the skills we need to concentrate on to ensure we are able to make change and make a difference to people and business are not those you would usually consider for a career in HR:
- Marketing skills for gathering customer/people insight, for motivating behaviours and getting our message across in an effective way!
- Human behavioural skills: some knowledge on how people think and behave.
- Creativity: original and innovative thinking
- Drive and resilience: ambition and courage to focus on what is important for the business to grow and succeed.
You will not regret starting your career in HR, if you want a job where you never stop learning and adding value, then pop HR on your list!
Karen Perry
What do you love about your role?
Making an impact on the day to day running of the organisation by improving the way we do things, ultimately leading to an improved customer experience. I also like how different days bring new activities and a chance to learn something new.
Louise Elstone
Why did you choose the role you are in?
It’s a brand new role responsible for the driving the commercial development of a new service proposition for our Licence Bureau brand.
What do you love about your role?
It’s fast paced, dynamic and gives me the autonomy to work with the sales, marketing and operational teams across the group to drive revenue and profit from a new service area.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Be open to opportunities, be passionate about what you do, be resilient, project confidence and most importantly be yourself!
Molly Rudoni
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I didn’t so much choose this role as stumbled into it! I almost studied History at uni, but changed tack last-minute and did Art & Design instead. My first graphic design job was at a small tech company. Working alongside developers encouraged me to start learning about web/app design. I was always interested in computers and technology. Being born in the ’90s, I grew up on the internet; sending emoticons on MSN, writing HTML for Myspace, and playing online games. So I graduated with no digital design experience, but I’ve now worked with 3 different tech companies in 2 countries, designed apps, and built numerous websites!
What do you love about your role?
Aside from the fact I love creative problem-solving, I really enjoy the variety of work. Being in a small company means I can operate in a broader role and do things I wouldn’t normally consider my ‘specialty’. As well as variety, there’s always a new problem to solve. The biggest challenge in design is staying relevant, especially with digital platforms where we have to consider how users might interact with our work. We’re constantly learning and adapting so we can keep up with trends and best practices. It can be challenging, but there’s nothing better than seeing a positive outcome as a direct result of your solution.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Speaking from experience, it’s okay if you’re not exactly sure what you want to do yet. There are so many different opportunities out there, so don’t panic if you haven’t found ‘the one’ yet. The tech industry is rapidly evolving and growing—your perfect job might not even be a thing yet! McKinsey predicts that “8 to 9 percent of 2030 labor demand will be in new types of occupations that have not existed before.”1 So take it one step at a time. Find out what motivates you, keep learning from your colleagues, and you’ll end up exactly where you’re meant to be. Who knows, maybe you’ll even be the world’s first in your role.
Samantha Field
What do you love about your role?
I really enjoy growing and developing the Partner relationships and working for a company who deliver such important services. I’ve been very lucky to be able to take part in Brake’s Road Safety Week through my role presenting to Sixth Form students on Road Safety, just as they are becoming new drivers.
Zhuo Ma
Why did you choose the role you are in?
Synaptec is a fast growing company with huge potential. I work as senior embedded system engineer because this is the role that I am interested in and specialized in throughout my career. It is a great opportunity for advancement, and to build my skills in embedded systems. I also have a chance to get involved in sales activities.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
I don’t consider myself to be a “female engineer”, I am just an “engineer”. I’ve never felt discriminated against. The most important thing is to be yourself. A female engineer doesn’t have to act like a male engineer. Confidence will help to build your career.
Zuzana Svabova
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I chose to be a backend developer because I enjoy solving problems and building things. I can see immediate results when I run my code which is incredibly rewarding. I also like learning new skills and there is always something new to learn in tech
Dr. Tracey Skivington
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I chose to work in the photonics sector as I always had an interest in lasers, sensors and optics. Working in engineering never has a dull moment as there is always new things to learn and new challenges to solve, even after many years in the industry!
Helen Sandison
Why did you choose the role you are in?
I joined CENSIS in the early days of the company and saw it as a unique opportunity to expand my technical horizons by working across many different areas of sensing and imaging. I also thought the opportunity to facilitate collaborative projects between university academics and Scottish companies would involve a lot of exciting challenges and new perspectives.
What do you love about your role?
The variety of projects I have worked on has kept me busy and challenged for six years now and counting. The areas I have worked in range from novel ways to detect gas leaks to providing diagnostics to help fine-tune marine engines. I currently lead the development of the CENSIS Vision Lab, a dedicated facility helping businesses adopt or deliver innovative computer vision and imaging solutions, and my work there has included video analysis to maintain worker safety and machine vision to improve a manufacturing process. No two projects are the same and I can find myself in different roles such as software development, project management, consulting, researching state of the art technology, mentoring and others besides. We often get involved with projects when they are at an early stage of development and our job is to help turn an idea into a working device. This means constantly learning something new and creating innovative solutions.
Rebecca Keenan
What do you love about your role?
Being a Marketing Assistant is truly fulfilling. With this being my first role in the Marketing Industry after graduating from University it’s given me an insight into the industry but from a Science and Technology perspective. It is an exciting, engrossing and challenging role and an industry I’m glad to have got the opportunity to work in. I tend to enjoy working in a fast-paced environment and showing my creative side – which this role allows me to do. There is plenty of room for growth within this sector and I love it. I’m constantly learning, improving and growing and I look forward to seeing what I can do in the Marketing industry and what it holds for my future.
What piece of advice would you give to women looking to work within your sector?
Don’t ever be afraid, if you are passionate about something follow your instincts and go with it because I can guarantee you would be kicking yourself if you didn’t. The marketing industry itself is diverse and very accessible, and that is one of the reasons I was drawn to work within the industry. Just remember to never doubt your capabilities. If you work hard and are happy in your job you have succeeded.