Inspiring Stories from Energy Exemplar's Women Engineers on #INWED23

Today, June 23rd is?International Women in Engineering Day , an international awareness campaign?recognized by UNESCO,?celebrating the work and achievements of women engineers. The day provides an important opportunity to raise the profile of women engineers and highlight the amazing?career opportunities?available.

Engineering?shapes the world and helps make our planet a better, safer, more innovative and exciting place to be.?

We asked our talented women engineers to let us know a bit more about themselves, their careers in engineering, what their inspiration and advice is. The answers are inspiring - take a read of what four of our engineers shared below! ??

Anvitha Nallan, UX Designer

What do you do at Energy Exemplar?

I work with product managers and developers to design the interfaces of all of our products, predominantly PLEXOS Cloud.

What is your background and how did it help support you to get where you are in your career today?

I have a computer science degree and I discovered UX design when I was doing a frontend development internship! I realized that I was more drawn to the user experience part of the product pipeline and explored it and happened to love it! ??

In your opinion, why is it important that more women take up engineering?

It would be nice to have some company ;) Jokes aside, I think the engineering space is exciting and exponentially growing, and it desperately needs a diverse perspective from smart and innovative women. It would also provide much needed women role models in the space!

What advice do you have to encourage young women who may be considering a career in engineering?

Do it! It's not as hard as the men make it out to be ??

Is there someone you'd like to mention who particularly inspires you?

Bindu Reddy- CEO of Abacus.ai- she is among the smartest and most successful Indian women in tech!

Nusrat Jahan Prova, Energy Market Analyst

What do you do at Energy Exemplar?

I am an Energy Market Analyst based in Singapore. I work with clients from the APAC region. I help with presales, training and project implementation for our clients.

What is your background and how did it help support you to get where you are in your career today??

I came from a background of Electrical Engineering. My passion is working in the Renewable Energy sector. I have worked with a few different organizations before joining Energy Exemplar. My previous experience alongside the knowledge and skills I was able to develop working at Energy Exemplar has greatly impacted my career.

In your opinion, why is it important that more women take up engineering?

Engineering is an important field of work just like any other. But, it is one the fields where representation of women is very less. It is an innovative field where women can create a greater impact. Women's representation in the engineering field can change and improve our society in many ways.

What advice do you have to encourage young women who may be considering a career in engineering?

Never be afraid. Never underestimate your potential. Many female students are afraid choosing engineering as their majors because they believe they cannot have a great career. I want to tell them that they can do whatever they want and achieve great things in life if they apply themselves. All they need is the courage to take risks.

Is there someone you'd like to mention who particularly inspires you?

There are too many to mention. My co-workers, my professors, my friends and classmates. Everyone has their own story and they have all inspired me in different ways.

Mugdha Joshi, Senior QA Engineer

What do you do at Energy Exemplar?

I work as a Senior Quality Assurance Engineer for Aurora. Basically, I create Power system models in Aurora to validate the Energy prices for day-ahead markets. Also, run Long-term studies in Aurora to test the Aurora engine Optimization logic. It is needed for deciding Capacity expansion and Retirements of Generating Stations. I need to test the UI Features along with the Engine features to monitor the healthiness of the Aurora product before its provided to Customers.

What is your background and how did it help support you to get where you are in your career today?

I am an Electrical Engineer with experience in Power Systems and its specifics like Switchgear, Load Flow Studies. The Energy Exemplar products PLEXOS and AURORA are basically tools to help Customers and Utilities to perform Load Forecasting, optimizing the Electricity and Energy Prices for Power Systems in the world. Hence my experience is very useful in contributing to the enhancement of EE products.

In your opinion, why is it important that more women take up engineering?

I feel women are very dedicated and sincere in their work commitments. Also they have a good sense of multi-tasking. Hence, if more women take up Engineering, it would give good dimension to the Industries and work places. Also, they will contribute positively to growth in Technology and Industry.

What advice do you have to encourage young women who may be considering a career in engineering?

Keep on learning new skills as the world with technology is growing at a very fast pace. Work hard and diligently to achieve goals in Engineering and Industry.

Is there someone you'd like to mention who particularly inspires you?

My Mother is the biggest source of Inspiration. I learnt to become resilient looking at her approach to face challenges in daily life. My Father is an Engineer who showcases diligence, focus and hard work in his Industry life. He taught to me to be proactive in learning new skills at work and implementing them in solving technical issues at work.

Kelsey Pena Pelaez, Algorithm Developer

What do you do at Energy Exemplar?

I work on the Aurora engine adding new features and bug fixes.

What is your background and how did it help support you to get where you are in your career today??

I have a degree in Math and Computer Science. I started at Energy Exemplar as a software tester and have spent time in both PLEXOS and Aurora. More recently I was promoted to a developer. When I think about the types of enhancements that I have to develop they most certainly utilize my math background.

In your opinion, why is it important that more women take up engineering?

I love STEM and I want other people to love it. I think more women in the field is a wonderful thing and it will help young girls see that they can pursue careers in STEM, that they do not have to hate it due to social norms.

What advice do you have to encourage young women who may be considering a career in engineering?

Embrace the challenges. Accomplishing goals that are difficult is such a confidence boost.

Is there someone you'd like to mention who particularly inspires you?

There are many, but the most recent being a professor I had in college - Dr. Chiorescu. I am grateful for her guidance, patience, ability to teach, and bringing together math and arts.