Navigating Career Pathways in Technology

#womenintech #internationalstudents #returnship #mentorship #sponsorship #techcommunity #careerintech #learnandgrow

“If you approach the ocean with a cup, you can only take away a cupful; if you approach it with a bucket, you can take away a bucketful.”—?Ramana Maharshi

Being part of the software engineering career pathways panel at?Harvard WECode: Women Engineers Code Conference took me back on memory lane to when I was a student searching for answers to building a meaningful career. I had many firsts in my career journey, and sometimes it was overwhelming to figure it all out with little guidance, role models, and mentorship, but later it became my biggest source of wisdom, resilience, and strength.

Audience: With love and gratitude, I wrote this extract from the panel discussion and my personal experiences for those searching for direction and support in uncertain times, particularly women, mommies on a career break, international students, and anyone aspiring to change their stale careers.

Despite tons of online information on the topic, the questions asked on the panel and during mentoring sessions remain the same. It could be more about the storytelling by someone who looks like you or has been there, resonating with people the most.

??-?The questions are addressed in no particular order and can be applied to various situations.

?On finding belonging and building a professional network

??Isolation is the greatest barrier to tech diversity.

For underrepresented minorities in technology, overcoming isolation and finding belonging can help accelerate professional learning and career growth.

The advice is to join like-minded tech communities to overcome barriers, build confidence, and expand your outreach access to learning and growth opportunities.

An engaging community can allow you to network, collaborate, and innovate with individuals who share similar goals, interests, and experiences. Tech communities are also the best platforms to find mentors, sponsors, coaches, and role models; you will need them at every step of your career journey.

Depending upon your professional needs, you can join various communities to help you connect, learn and grow in your career.

Examples

AnitaB.org | Women Who Code | Women Techmakers | Women in Product | Product School | Google Developers | Cisco Learning Network

AnitaB.org also has several local communities and global affinity groups you can join.

?On finding mentors and seeking mentorship

??Mentors offer us influence, guidance, advice, or direction from their experience and help us find answers to our troubling professional questions.

Access to one or more mentors can be extremely helpful during doubtful career moments. You can find mentors in your immediate network (teachers, seniors, colleagues), or you can find mentors through a structured mentoring program at your school, company, or community.

For a successful mentoring experience, understanding what you are looking for is vital.?Before looking for a mentor, could you ask yourself what your mentoring goal is?

Examples

Cisco Emerging Talent Network | Microsoft DCA Mentoring | AnitaB.org Mentoring | Google CS Research Mentoring

?? - Mentors are not sponsors. Don't confuse the two.

?On finding a job out of school

??Finding a job can be daunting, especially when starting a new career.

The advice is to start looking when you don't desperately need one and do the preparation before you start dropping resumes for interviews.?

Even if you do not apply for roles, starting your job discovery early will save you heartache, surprise, and disappointment.

Before applying, explore your career interests and find roles that match well (this is where role models and mentors can play an important role). Then align your skills, education, experience, and exposure to those job roles (interest and skill assessments are great ways to narrow your options). Lastly, find companies that hire those with your skillset.

University and communities hiring events are the best ways to get started. You can talk to recruiters about the company's hiring criteria, current and future roles, and hiring cycles to determine what you must do to prepare even if you are not actively looking. Keeping the conversation open with recruiters until it is time to drop your résumé. You will be fresh in their mind.

Before applying for a full-time position, internships can increase your chances of getting hired on the same team.

You can benefit from free resume reviews and role-specific mock interview opportunities to prepare.

Many large organizations offer mentoring, internship, and apprenticeship programs for entry roles. Those are the low-barrier entry pathways to learning about the company, exploring various job roles, building a professional network, and finding future open positions, mentors, sponsors, and referees.

??-?Finding a job is more than submitting the perfect résumé. It takes a village.

?On asking for a job referral

?? Majority of job roles are filled via employee referrals. Many companies incentivize employees to refer and recommend people they can vouch for via employee referral programs. Employees also feel they are active participants in defining a company's future by bringing on board the right talent. This makes every employee that you meet your potential future referee.

For job referrals, ask only those aware of your professional experience and willing to go the extra mile. Before you send an open-ended message on LinkedIn that makes it their job to find the right role for you, please research, pick an open position, and send them a copy of your resume when requesting a referral for a particular job. If you need help with what you want, feel free to ask for a meeting to explore your options.

??- Your referee's time and attention could be limited. It would be best if you used this option wisely.

?On choosing the "perfect" job role for you

?? Tech is a diverse field with several career pathways. You may be interested in one or many roles, and choosing just one can be challenging.

The best role for you is the one that sparks your interests, has alignment with your skills, education, experience, and exposure, and is available in the market (unless you want to create one).

Initially, it is better to go deep in one domain where you can build your credibility and later go broad to diversify your skills and grow from there.

Remember, what may interest you today is not for life. Getting started with where you are and what you have will create a life-long learning, growth, alignment, and discovery process. You can always switch to other roles later, but first, you'll need to get your foot in the door.

?On changing careers in technology

??Technology careers constantly evolve, and transitioning job families in tech is more common than we think. It is ok to outgrow your current role and want something different.

If you pivot your role differently, you may be relaunching your career. The advice here is similar to what I mentioned above, find supportive communities, tap into your interests, skills, and strengths, and surround yourself with mentors, sponsors, coaches, and role models that align with your next role.

??-?Once ready, you can hop on your next career adventure.

?On staying relevant?

??Loyalty to your future self is more important than being loyal to your team, company, or industry.

To remain relevant, own your career trajectory and make choices that align with your future growth. Continuously upgrade, diversify, and revise your skills, learning, experience, exposure, interests, and professional network.

If you outgrow your industry, don't be afraid to find a new career in a different industry where your experience and skills are needed and celebrated more.

?On lacking relevant job experience

??It takes more than just experience to find employment.

Keep your learnings and volunteer exposure strong. Don't undermine your volunteer, freelancing, or stretch assignment experiences to show fit for the role.?Put your side gigs on your résumé and LinkedIn because they matter if you can confidently talk about your learnings and growth.

??-?Confidence speaks louder than experience.

?On finding work-life balance

??Work-life balance is a myth.

Creating a fulfilled life requires intention, time, and discipline, as does having a thriving full-time career. There are certain hours, days, weeks, months, or even years in our lives when one aspect demands more time and attention than the others. Acknowledge and prioritize!

It's more realistic to harmonize priorities through the ebbs and flows of life than balance them. Work-relationships-life is a rhythm, not an equal balance.

??-?Find careers, companies, communities, people, and a life partner who aligns with your life's priorities and rhythms. You can't do it alone!

?Retrunships: On returning to work after hiatus?

??Career breaks are part of life and can be a healthy choice in a non-toxic work environment.

Putting your career on a pause to rest, recharge and take care of your well-being, taking on your family's primary caregiver role, relocating, or leaving the workforce for other reasons are situations that can happen to all of us. Returning to the workforce after a planned or unplanned hiatus could be challenging, but it is still possible.

If you are hitting a barrier in your returnship journey, the limitation is not on your part. The tech industry lacks the flexibility to accept career pause as a life situation and has largely failed to create re-entry pathways to re-engage those who left.

Depending upon the duration of your break, you may be relaunching your career. The advice here is to be kind to yourself and focus on abundance than lack.

Your journey back to the workforce could be similar to what I mentioned above, find supportive communities, tap into your interests, skills, and strengths, and surround yourself with mentors, sponsors, coaches, and role models that align with your next role. Reskilling or upskilling training and certification programs that offer hands-on experience are a great start to bridging your knowledge gap.

Keep your volunteer experience strong. All this will help you build the confidence you need to start.

Many large organizations offer returnship programs. Tap into mentoring, apprenticeship, sponsorship, and returnship opportunities available.

??- Remember, you are capable, you belong, and you are as needed in the workforce as before.

?International Student: On launching a career in a new country

?? Studying abroad is the most effective way of changing how we view the world; the experience can be transformative.

Leaving your comfort zone and putting yourself out there to learn and grow in the face of discovery, uncertainty, and often limited recourses demands much courage.

Living in isolation and with an uncertain future can be daunting for your mental and emotional well-being. Talking to others with similar experiences might help.

If you wish to stay and start a life in a new country, know that your choices may be restricted because of your visa type and status and are limited mainly to what is available in the market. It may be hard to understand, accept and navigate the particulars but still possible to get hired.

If you felt let down by one recruiter who rejected your résumé at the university career fair because their company doesn't hire international students doesn't mean that no company employs international students.

You must educate yourself on the opportunities and limitations around your job search and avoid falling for assumptions or stories. A few ways to learn about the country's employment laws for international students after finishing school, talk to the international student admission and career services office at your school, tap into international student bodies, alum networks, and communities who can offer expert advice, mentorship, or job referrals at companies who hire international students for internships and jobs after graduation. Start early because your time will be limited!

Joining communities and volunteering can help you integrate into local professional networks and help you build new connections that can be crucial to your learning, growth, and job search.

Remember, the heavy burden of your future dreams and family expectations you carry on your shoulders may remain the same as how the employment laws work. Still, the best path forward is to know the fundamentals, start early, build and tap into your network, engage and integrate into local life, and navigate with a positive, abundant mindset.

??- Be kind to yourself, and accept what you can control, so you don't fall into a negative, despairing, or resentful mindset.

Thank you for reading!