Applying In Tech As A Woman Is Not Scary

Connecting with the users

When I was working in cosmetics, we were studying the sales numbers but we were not meeting our clients very often. I thought that this was a shame as we were missing the connection with the users by not involving them in the product creation at all.  

Whereas in digital product development this is a very crucial phase. You experiment and do a lot of research to make sure that your products are adapted to your users’ needs. When I discovered these methodologies, I thought that this was the evolution that I was looking for.

I’ve always wanted to create products that were going to change people's lives. I did my studies in marketing because I wanted to build physical products. And I got into the tech world because everything was going faster: shorter development time, shorter feedback loops.

If you want to build a physical product it takes about 2 years from when you start to work on it to the time it reaches the stores. With a digital product it is a matter of days before it is shown to your users. You can also receive feedback much more easily because you can actually see the users’ reaction almost instantly. You can see if they use the new features in a slightly different way than you imagined, you can learn a lot and adapt continuously.

Applying as a woman is not scary

Companies are really looking for women now, especially tech companies that know there is a lack of women and diversity in their teams.

Generally I did not see any special treatments and I did not find it difficult to go through the recruitment process as a woman. I was very motivated, and I think if you want to join the tech world as a woman today there are a lot of options. I would like to see more women applying to the jobs we post. Right now when we are recruiting, we have very few women applying.

I think there are many young talented women who could apply. I want to openly share that the tech world is accessible. For me it seemed normal to join but I think some women might be scared. I would also love to see more women in more leading positions as well.

Proudest career achievement

My team's objective is to improve our students' success rate. A few months ago we worked on a new way to help people to learn their driving theory. We developed it and it improved the success rate by 30 % as this new way of learning was really useful for some of our users who needed a lot of guidance. I’m very proud of what we have achieved as a team.

In product development you work in squads, you have your team and you all work towards the same objective. The work environment at Ornikar is very pleasant, we have a great team spirit, we have created our own work rhythm and integrated it in the existing process.

Desires for the future

The greatest achievement as a product manager for me would be when other people look up to your product and study it to see how you innovated and what you built. When people are inspired by your product. For me that would be the best, to make Ornikar the product that everyone is following. And on a more personal level, I think I would like to lead my product team to create my own product from scratch one day.

Women should get out of their comfort zone

I want to show that for a woman, working in tech is an amazing opportunity. I feel that it could help to envision yourself in the position and dare to apply if as an applicant you see that there are already women in the team. It might make others more comfortable with the idea of trying as well.

We are looking forward to women applying. Women who are looking to start a product management career should not be afraid of going outside of their comfort zone, if they don't feel comfortable that’s ok. They are pushing themselves and that’s good. It is when you are not in your comfort zone that you learn and grow the most. Transitioning in your career path can be quite scary, but people should be more confident and women need to be more confident in their ability to grow. You can learn a lot on the job and create your own path.

I would like to say don’t be afraid to apply, don’t be afraid to try things you have never done before. Do not be afraid to put yourself in situations that are challenging. This is what will make you the best at what you do!