Debi Skea, Systems Analyst, Third Party Administration, Glasgow

What attracted you to get involved in technology?

I’ve only worked in tech for the last couple of years. Before that I worked in retail management and was studying for a degree in Maths & Statistics with Open University. I found the isolation of studying alone quite difficult, and I was keen to change career much quicker than part-time study would allow. I really enjoyed the problem solving and analytics, so my husband got me started on learning to program using Python. So, I retrained as a software developer (best decision EVER!), and then started working at Hymans.

I also really liked the idea of doing a job that people have very strong pre-conceived ideas about what kind of person stereotypically has that role. I enjoy challenging stereotypes, but I think that’s the analytical side of me wanting to understand why people think the way they do!

I feel incredibly lucky to have been able to turn something that started out as a hobby into a career I love! I learn so much every day, and there will always be more to learn tomorrow.

Are there any challenges that you’ve faced or currently face within the tech industry?

Not at all. Although it’s something I’m really interested in! I’m part of a couple of organisations who look to tackle the barriers that people can face within the tech industry. Humans of code is a community for people in tech (and anyone who wants to be a part of it really!) which focuses on diversity, inclusion and mental wellness. We aim to create a safe space for people and to empower them to make their voices heard. I also work with codebar, which runs free coding lessons for people from underrepresented groups in tech, to encourage them into the industry.

There’s such a wide variety of roles within tech, and I think there’s a misconception that you need to be a ‘computer geek’ and live in a dark basement, wear a hoody and write code 24/7. And while some of those things might be true (!), I’m sure you’ll find people like that in all industries. The truth is, many people in tech walk amongst us every day, completely undetected, because we’re actually just reasonably ‘normal’ people.

Clara Anderson, Delivery Lead, Insights & Analytics, Edinburgh

What attracted you to get involved in technology?

I came into technology in my late twenties when more and more software was being brought to market that could help with commercial analysis I was doing while working as an analyst / trader. Things like SQL, excel, VBA and the internet were all very new then but offered the opportunity to gain a competitive edge by being faster in analysing market movements. These all seem like very old technologies now! 

What role do you have in the Technology Industry?

My role is Delivery Lead for the Digital Wealth team in I&A. We support the Insurance & Financial Services (IFS) and Hymans Robertson Investment Services (HRIS) business units by building digital offerings that meet the needs of the markets and clients. My role brings a commercial sensibility to the digital delivery team that keeps us on track. I get involved in a wide range of things, for example supporting the team with agile and LEAN processes, helping the Proposition Owners with priorities and with client conversations that involve talking about digital, and I keep us on track with reporting on items like risk and resourcing. I can turn my hand to pretty much anything except writing and testing code!

Are there any challenges that you’ve faced or currently face within the tech industry?

I’m quite a motivated person so I haven’t let any challenges hold me back, but I have noticed a couple of things over the years that I’ve consciously avoided exposure to. When something is new to the world you sometimes see folk take a sharp intake of breath and say “oooh, that’s a tough thing to get in to…”. That may be true but why let that stop you? At times I’ve found it tricky to get people to take me seriously, so I’ve worked hard to build trust and credibility when I’ve felt its needed. It’s also important to know when another person’s opinion is not coming from a good place and so isn’t useful. To be honest, I don’t think any of this is specific to technology or gender but are challenges that most people with a sensitive nature will pick up along the way. My advice would always be to own the challenge and find a way to overcome it. 

Katie Glass, IT Support Analyst, Information Technology, Glasgow

What attracted you to get involved in technology?

I wasn’t particularly into technology in my younger years, I used to play video games a lot growing up which was as far as my interest went. This was until around my third year in secondary school when I’d taken a games development course which I pursued as it was considered an ‘easy subject to pass’. I had no intention of going into an IT role until a computing teacher almost forced me to swap one of my subjects halfway through the year - he noticed I had a real knack for coding in the games development software we used which surprised me as I had very little interest in maths or computing prior to this. I followed through to achieve my advanced higher in computing science and eventually went on to get an apprenticeship in IT and now I am where I am today!

What role do you have in the Technology Industry?

My role is IT Support Analyst in the Service Desk team in Information Technology. We give support firm-wide for many different incidents and requests. My role ranges from installing software to building laptops and replacing hardware. My role can often branch out into other sectors of IT to support the wider team with their projects and responsibilities too. I enjoy the problem-solving aspect of my role and never really knowing what each day is going to bring me. With different requests popping up every day, it’s always a learning experience.

Are there any challenges that you’ve faced or currently face within the tech industry?

I think many girls considered IT as a ‘boys’ subject in school, I was one of four girls that took any computing subjects in my year and often I was in a class of only boys. I think this can often put women off following through with STEM careers as although they are becoming more diverse, do tend to be very male dominated subjects. I still find that I sometimes feel as though I’m not taken as seriously with my knowledge in comparison to my male peers; this can be quite frustrating sometimes but I do my best to not let that discourage me from pursuing my career. I think it’s extremely important to encourage women of all ages to not be put off careers in tech under the misconception that it’s all coding or a masculine subject.

Eliza Drummond, Data Engineer, Insights & Analytics, Glasgow

What attracted you to get involved in Technology?

My first degree was actually in French and German and after graduating I fancied a break from study so worked in retail management. At university I had only a little experience of even using a computer to write up my dissertation but many of my friends had graduated with computer science degrees so were on hand to give help and advice. When I was looking for a new career to escape retail there was a big buzz around the year 2000 ‘bug’ and my old uni pals were now working in IT roles and recommended this as a suitable career path. For me, it was a leap of faith to sign up for the University of Glasgow’s MSc in Information Technology, leaving behind a full-time job and not knowing if I would enjoy learning about computers and programming. Coming from a languages background however, I found the transition to learning computer languages really straightforward and thoroughly enjoyed the course. Since then I’ve worked in a range of roles such as developer, support technician, manager, BI developer and now settling on data engineer. Ironically, I found the databases module of the MSc the most dry and boring, but now I love working with data. 

What role do you have in the technology Industry?

I work as a data engineer, having come up through the industry in several roles. In my early roles, developers would usually work full stack, working on the data layers as well as middle tier processing and front-end which was a great grounding. Over the years I’ve developed more of an interest in the database side of things which has neatly coincided with the birth of ‘big data’ and the explosion of roles that we now see in this area.

Are there any challenges that you’ve faced or currently face within the tech industry?

When I first went to study IT there was still a high proportion of males to females on the course and unfortunately a lot of women did then drop out as they didn’t see it for them. When I had my early roles working as a developer most women working in IT were in support roles rather than coders, so I personally felt that I had to prove myself to keep up with the ‘real’ programmers in the team. There was also a bit of lad camaraderie in a few offices, so any women programmers really had to work to make sure their voice was heard. Fortunately, now there’s more of a gender balance and we do see more females on tech teams, I feel our skills are taken just as seriously. 

In summary, I think it’s clear to see from everyone involved that there’s still a huge amount of work to be done to get more women and girls involved in technology, however I feel proud to be playing my part in going “against the norm” breaking down the stereotypical barriers and misconceptions that exist today. I hope that like many of my colleagues by sharing our stories we can demonstrate to women and girls that despite what they might think or have been told, there’s no traditional route or right or wrong path into technology, and hopefully it will inspire the next generation of technology evangelists to pursue a career that will be both rewarding and enjoyable.

If you're interested in working with us you can visit our careers page here.