As we celebrate Women’s History Month, OnePlan is proud to highlight the outstanding women who work for our event planning and mapping software company. Women in tech have long been underrepresented, but these talented and inspiring individuals are breaking barriers and paving the way for future generations. In the part two of this blog post series, we are excited to share the stories of these remarkable women, their experiences in the tech industry, and the unique perspectives they bring to our team – as well as give advice to a future generation of women working in tech.
Heather Bray, Senior Customer Success Manager & Product Specialist for OnePlan
Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a woman in tech? What inspired you to pursue this career path?
I’ve worked in live events for a long time, and as a natural problem-solver, it made sense that tech would be an ideal career space for me. From ticketing to operations, working in technology in the live event space has empowered me to make live event planning better. The most brilliant women I know work in this space as well, which inspired me to pursue a career in tech.
What do you think could be done to encourage more women to pursue careers in tech and to create a more inclusive industry?
Creating a more inclusive industry means highlighting representation of women in this space! Having women of all career stages incorporated into you organization signals to the industry that there is room for all, and more importantly, room to grow. I chose to mentor other women in the tech space as well as be mentored by women, supporting each other along the way.
How have you been able to grow your skills and knowledge in tech? What resources or support systems have been helpful for you?
As mentioned earlier, my relationships with other women in tech carry so much value to me. I learn from my peers and mentors, and chose to be active in many tech-centric communities. Seek out professional groups that meet regularly and get involved with initiatives and courses that feature passionate tech leaders in your discipline. Start an employee resource group at your company. Gather for a tech-focused book club! There are lots of ways to gather and share your passions.
What advice would you give to young women who are interested in pursuing a career in tech?
My advice is to harness what makes you unique and run with it! Cookie cutter profiles for careers are no longer relevant – if it wakes up your brain and drives you daily, follow that path. Find a mentor or two and meet with them regularly. Get involved, and share your ideas. Don’t be shy. The space needs you!
Manon Thonneau-Zurano, 3D Modeller for Venue Twin
Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a woman in tech? What inspired you to pursue this career path?
It clearly comes from my Dad, who was a computer enthusiast and created his own computer repair company. He taught me lot of things about those and some technology. The fact that I was a little girl made no difference in the way he educated me.
What do you think could be done to encourage more women to pursue careers in tech and to create a more inclusive industry?
I think school should make everything neutral and not gender based. Maybe have some classes about using screws, having small internships in robotic/medical/research labs industries or even in video game studios. Just to have a first sight on how it works.
How have you been able to grow your skills and knowledge in tech? What resources or support systems have been helpful for you?
Besides learning from my dad, I learned from many many mistakes ! I’ve looked at tutorials, I’ve learned from my friends who also love technology, I’ve studied 3 years in this field also.
What advice would you give to young women who are interested in pursuing a career in tech?
Don’t be afraid by the fact that there’s less women in this field, it doesn’t matter. It is interesting and fascinating. Go talk to people in several fields of expertise to see what their daily life looks like to get to know what could make you become passionate.
Anastasiia Mykhaliuk, Product Owner for OnePlan
Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a woman in tech? What inspired you to pursue this career path?
I started my career in digital, where I’ve gone through a long way of different marketing activities applied to various products. Then at some stage I realized that I would be happy to be on the other side, as I’m more interested in the products themselves. At that point, I began to move into product management/ownership.
I actually like how this path has developed for me because in order to succeed in product related roles each additional experience is beneficial, be it marketing, analytics, project management or anything else.
The world of technologies is inspiring in itself, and it opens unlimited opportunities for everyone. Large company with established processes or growing startup where you can influence decision-making, product or outsourcing, office or remote, from VR or fintech to SaaS platforms or food delivery apps – this could be pretty everything.
You can always find an interesting role that suits not only your desired career path, but also your personality type, motivations and habits.
What do you think could be done to encourage more women to pursue careers in tech and to create a more inclusive industry?
I just can’t say I see any obstacle.
For example, most software developers are male, that’s true – but is there any reason in this not to become one if you want? Even if you still think of yourself as a ‘woman who wants to pursue a non-female career’… should this stop you? and why?
Don’t limit your imagination. Your world starts from you, and all the stereotypes in your world also starts from you. Be an engineer, be a housewife, be a pilot. Be whoever you want, break the rules – or follow the rules (if you see any). Both ways are equally ‘right’ as long as you think so.
Stereotypes begins with a collective thought, but develop in the minds of each person individually. The best thing we can do is just not to follow them, and then – to encourage people around to do so. Any way to somehow ‘remove the bias from industry’ seems artificial for me, but we can just naturally move towards this, starting from ourselves.
How have you been able to grow your skills and knowledge in tech? What resources or support systems have been helpful for you?
I’ve learned a lot from the online courses I took. I see it as a quick and easy way to get started – no need to add it to the wish list, search for special courses, wait for the semester to start, etc.
If you can learn this way (less interactive and requiring more perseverance) – it can be a fairly easy entry point for many things.
Go to Coursera or Udemy, choose a topic that’s interesting for you, buy a course for some $30-50, spend an hour on it and see how it could be more interesting than your evening series.
At the same time, ‘deep’ knowledge and skills come only with hands-on experience. And here, the best thing you can do for yourself is to find a job that will open up opportunities for learning and growth.
What advice would you give to young woman who are interested in pursuing a career in tech?
If you want to try – just try!
(advice that could be given to anyone interested in any career, actually)
But seriously… tech is everything and everywhere.
Do you want to build technological products? Or to develop monetization strategies? Or to help people to reach their potential? Or to analyze performance and help products to grow?
And no matter how ‘feminine’ or ‘masculine’ your list of interests looks – whether it’s sport or science, psychology or travelling, investments or shopping – everything is digitalized.
So, could we imagine the environment opening more opportunities for… you? 🙂
Sandra Weiland, VP of Customer Success for OnePlan
Can you tell us about your journey to becoming a woman in tech? What inspired you to pursue this career path?
I always wanted to become an event manager. With my studies in event management and tourism, I remember taking a walk through Berlin checking out my neighbourhood and companies close by before I finished my last semester. Booking.com had recently opened an office around the corner where I lived and I knew it from using it occasionally. It was brand awareness and user experience that got me into the company. Three years later I was asked to join the event industry with a recently opened tech start-up for online ticket sales. It was my passion for events in general, clubbing in Berlin, open airs and festivals across Germany that brought me in.
What do you think could be done to encourage more women to pursue careers in tech and to create a more inclusive industry?
This is a really great question. To get to the bottom of it I’d like to understand and know first what it is that women feel discouraged about pursuing a career in tech nowadays.
In the past years, before Corona, I was happy to attend and be inspired by the event called Female Future Force Day in Berlin organized by EDITION F. I have been happy to attend it once, with some fantastic workshops, panels and companies presenting themselves and creating awareness for a more inclusive industry letting women talk directly to the women on the ground. I believe we need more of those great formats and people that make it happen to share knowledge, engage and connect on such a great level in the future.
How have you been able to grow your skills and knowledge in tech? What resources or support systems have been helpful for you?
Nowadays I find it a lot easier to learn and develop. I love reading and talking! Reading the newspaper, books, newsletters and blogs, watching Netflix documentation and listening to podcasts but also connecting with other industry experts makes a difference on my learning path. It is on each of us to own it and to inspire ourselves every day for personal growth.
A lot of my knowledge I have also gained through listening and speaking to customers and industry specialists at events. With any new products and services I’m being introduced I try to think about how those can help me in my current role and company to drive for success.
Last year I have been introduced to a fantastic lady heading up Customer Success for an online security company. While talking to her I realized we are facing the same challenges and success stories and decided to launch a monthly catch-up, talking about Customers Success processes, trends, and anything we have on our Customer Success minds. It is great to exchange ideas, and knowledge and brainstorm even beyond.
What advice would you give to young women who are interested in pursuing a career in tech?
As in any career, it is you driving it. If you are in an early stage coming from university I would suggest connecting with industry experts. Go visit events and start networking. It is not only valuable for you to understand your passion and interest better but also to know what businesses, sectors and job opportunities are out there. The tech industry is fast growing and trends are changing quickly.
The same goes for any in tech working women. Connecting and interacting with others through events, communities, newsletters and social platforms makes a difference in order to be seen and valued.
We want to give a huge shoutout to the amazing women at OnePlan and all the women in tech. Your hard work, dedication, and unique perspectives are changing the game and inspiring us all. We are grateful for your contributions to the tech industry and the positive impact you are making.
