This International Women’s Day 2024, Doshii is proud to amplify the voices and achievements of women in our own dynamic realm of hospo tech.
This year’s theme, “Count Her In: Invest in Women, Accelerate Progress,” resonates deeply within Doshii and our wider x15ventures family, where innovation knows no gender bounds.
We sat down with four amazing Doshiinators to talk about their journey as women in tech and what advice they can offer other women about a career in science, tech, engineering and math (STEM).
Introducing (Left to right, top to bottom):
- Julie Reeves, Acting CEO at Doshii
- Cecylia Chabinowska, Business & Insight Analyst at Doshii
- Justyna Sacha-Gawlik, Senior Test Engineer at Doshii
- Esther Cha, Product Designer at Doshii
“
A world where… the emphasis is placed on equity is one we can all aspire to live in.
Julie Reeves, Acting CEO at Doshii
Q: Can you share your personal journey and what motivated you to pursue your career in STEM?
Julie: I fell into it! Initially, my goal was to become an economist, which was triggered by my amazing Year 11 Economics teacher. I skipped Year 12 and instead spent 12 months working at an IT company and wrote every one of their software development consulting proposals. I consumed IT knowledge from the initial phase of consulting through to requirements definition, design, testing and implementation. Afterwards, when I went to Uni, I struggled to pass some of the economics papers and ended up doing summer courses to catch up. I was acing my IT papers, though. In retrospect, skipping Year 12 wasn’t the best decision; however, it worked out for me as I did a complete swap to an IT degree before the end of the second year.
Cecylia: I wanted to be in technology from about 2016. I studied a Masters of International Economy, which is a lot of model-building and economics. But I wanted to work for a startup and told all my friends that. I got my start back in Poland because I had already become a data freak. I liked SQL, and at that time, everyone was scared of it. But I thought it was fun. After spending 5 years in finance, I relocated to Australia, where I spent another five years in finance before moving back to tech.
Justyna: I began my journey by applying for the most desired IT faculty at the University of Technology. Even though many people didn’t believe in me or recommended that I do something more feminine, I’ve proven them wrong.
“
People didn’t believe in me or recommended I do something more feminine… I’ve proven them wrong.
Justyna Sacha-Gawlik, Senior Test Engineer at Doshii
Justyna: I made it my goal to study IT & Management. After a year of challenges and a lack of support for a girl who is not a born coder, I decided to give myself a plan B. I started at another faculty to chase another passion of mine – children’s education. Despite continuous lack of support and discrimination for a woman in the tech world, financial hardship, and my mom’s death from cancer, I was constantly pushing forward and managed to graduate. After graduation, I worked in education. It took me three years and my best friend Kaja’s encouragement to eventually go for an interview in IT. I landed my first job in Australia after sending only one resume. My experience shows that the right approach is to be stubborn but also to fight for others to see your value. Now, I work for a big bank on a project that I love and with people I respect, and I know that the choice of what the next step will be is only mine.
Q: What unique perspectives do you think women bring to these fields?
Ceyclia: Women, in my opinion, can be great project managers, and they also tend to have strong attention to detail. Technology isn’t just for men – everyone uses it! So, it’s important to create technology with women in mind from a user point of view.
Esther: It’s not just women, but by having a diverse range of people, there are so many different perspectives, allowing us to tackle challenges from different angles. This also brings forth collaboration and a chance to learn from each other.
Justyna: Women are different from men in many aspects. It’s obvious to say they bring diversity and inclusivity to the corporate world, but what it really means is that they think and behave differently from men. We tend to be more collaborative and find it easier to step out of our comfort zone and even ignore unnecessary rules to get the best result. In leadership, we have been seen to show empathy and interest in others, which, in turn, creates strong teams.
Julie: Today’s consumers are men, women, young and old and every race. So, we bring the feminine perspective of purchasing decisions, control of homes and often finances. I also think we have a different engagement approach. It is often collaborative, often inclusive, using language like “we”, not “I”. Women are typically attuned to the ‘bring your whole self to work’ approach as they struggle with juggling career and home life, which I am delighted to say seems to be more of a joint balancing act today between both partners.
Q: How has representation of women in tech and STEM evolved since you first entered the fields, and what challenges persist?
Justyna: Since I started my journey in tech, I believe that the female position has significantly improved. We no longer need to constantly prove we’re good enough, and it has become clear that women can also be true and natural leaders.
Esther: When I entered the industry, there weren’t many women. I think this is because we, as women, still try to tick all the boxes before grabbing an opportunity, which can hold us back. But I’m happy to see many more women entering the field and building a community.
Julie: There were not many women when I originally got into tech, but I went to a co-ed school and had brothers, so I was used to competing with men. There are so many more women now in tech, which is a hugely positive development, and, I think, in part because there has been a significant shift over a long period around what is considered acceptable behaviour in workplaces – along with a spotlight on unconscious bias, and reporting on roles by gender and that’s really the tip of the iceberg. It’s not the whole answer; however, there has been material change in this space driven by leaders (both men and women) who recognise the importance of diversity.
Cecylia: Ten years ago, when I started my career, it was just me. People constantly asked me why I wanted to attend these classes and development workshops. Now, there are lots of female developers. It’s the new normal. That’s how it should be. Everyone is professional, and they do their work.
“
Now, there are lots of female developers. It’s the new normal… how it should be.
Cecylia Chabinowska, Business & Insight Analyst at Doshii
Q: How can organisations and educational institutions encourage more women to pursue and thrive in tech and STEM careers?
“
Equal opportunity and equal pay!
Esther Cha, Product Designer at Doshii
Esther: Equal opportunity and equal pay! Understanding that we may need different environments to work to our full potential.
Julie: I don’t know the answer to solving this problem, but I think one of the essential elements is related to schooling and having math and tech teachers who are passionate and can connect with students to make a STEM career realistic, exciting, and achievable. Last week, an article in the SMH profiled teacher shortages and went on to detail that Sydney Uni is dropping advanced math as a pre-requisite for several degrees due to the inability of students to take advanced math – this demonstrates a real problem in the lack of teachers coming through the education system. My view from personal experience is that teachers can be instrumental in decisions made about career pathways, and therefore we need passionate and qualified math and tech teachers coming through the system; building their own career that is valued in the community; where they can operate in a safe and respectful environment.
Cecylia: It might be a stereotype that women are not interested in math and technology. It’s definitely changing. Representation is important, and seeing the girls and women doing the job is essential. We also need to make it clear to girls and women that math is not hard. Many people might be frightened of it, but it’s actually not!
Justyna: Creating support networks for women in STEM signals to women that they are welcome in the tech world. Initiatives such as Django Girls can help women find their path in IT, for example. Mentoring programs can help them develop the skills needed to achieve their goals.
Q: What advice would you offer to young women aspiring to enter these fields today?
Julie: I would encourage young women to ask those they respect or interact with regularly about how they have ended up in their current careers – it’s typically not linear, and you will need patience and perseverance! It’s a journey; sometimes you get lost and feel like you’re going around in circles, sometimes you find a shortcut, or you might have to backtrack. But ultimately, if you keep accruing experience and are focused on expanding or deepening your skill set, you are on the right path. I also recommend that you invest in relationships where people support you or where you find great leadership. You will learn from good and bad leaders – but working with great leaders is much more fun.
Ceyclia: Choose wisely, and don’t give up! Follow up and connect with people. Be persistent, and don’t get distracted.
Justyna: Try to build your network, find people in similar situations to yours and use them as your support group, sharing experiences with them. Search for tech workshops in different areas to discover what you enjoy the most. You need to believe in yourself to make people believe in you. If you stay too humble, people might not notice you. Be open to receiving help not only from your support group and other women but also from everyone in the business. It’s about diversity.
Esther: Do it! There are heaps of other women who will support you. If it’s something you want to pursue, don’t let anything stop you from entering the field.
Q: How does this year’s IWD theme, “Count Her In: Invest in Women, Accelerate Progress” resonate with your own experiences?
Cecylia: It definitely resonates with me. Technology is not that complex. Sometimes, we just make our fear of it bigger than it actually is. If it can be presented in an easy, accessible format, then even people who are usually not interested could become interested in the subject.
Justyna: I agree with every word of this year’s theme. My journey shows how important it is for businesses to count women in and invite them into their structures. This could assist a woman embarking on her career path in avoiding significant stress and uncertainty. It also broadens the employer’s spectrum to find the perfect match for the role. My experience demonstrates that women, once hired, are recognised for their contributions and that it benefits both parties involved.
Esther: It’s really empowering to know that people want to invest in women and that the value that comes out of investing in women is being appreciated.
Julie: I love the focus. A world where there is no bias, stereotypes or discrimination and where the emphasis is placed on equity is one we can all aspire to live in.
We all at Doshii are proud to highlight the voices and achievements of our amazing team members, Julie, Cecylia, Justyna and Esther! Because, if there’s one thing we know at Doshii and x15ventures, it’s that when we invest in women, we accelerate progress across all our teams.