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A Stage for Women in IT

A stage for women in IT

 

In the scope of the initiative www.it-feuer.ch the Swiss Informatics Society (SI) publishes portraits of women in IT from June to December 2021. SI has been looking for female role models and found many women who have made their way into IT even if IT is still a men’s world.

In 2020, only about 10 % of all IT apprentices and computer science students were women. IT is still a male industry. Why ?  Not all men have a steep career in IT, have a lot of influence and high salaries. But today nearly all middle and upper management positions in IT companies are held by men and most computer science professors are male. SI wishes to contribute to a change and looks for women working in IT who are fond of their job and who would like to encourage young woman to enter IT. Many young women are lacking good role models, but they exist. Hundreds of women have graduated in Computer Science or finished an apprenticeship in Switzerland since the middle 1980s and are now working in industry or academia – as software developers, scientists, computer specialists, consultants, project leaders, group leaders, CTOs, CEOs, etc. SI gives these women a stage and makes their stories visible.

We have published the interviews in batches, having started with eleven interviews on June 11, 2021. On August 20 and October 4, we have added nine more interviews each. On December 6, we have concluded the interview series with eight more interviews. Enjoy reading them!

The quotes are messages to teenage girls who think about their further education and future profession.

 

Interviews published 2021-12-06

.Corina Winkler  

Corina Winkler

IT and digitalization manager, cedac AG

“IT is a lifelong playground for dedicated & creative minds. The beauty of IT is that you can continuously develop and discover new things. And, at the interface to the business departments, you have your finger on the pulse.”

Interview (in German)

.Nevana Lazarevic  

Nevena Lazarevic

Data scientist

“Audaces fortuna iuvat  — Fortune helps the brave.”

Interview (in English)

.Dörte Ulrich  

Dörte Ulrich

Scrum master

“Working in IT is diverse, creative and exciting — and certainly not just a domain for men.”

Interview (in German)

.Jolanda Kaufmann  

Jolanda Kaufmann

Product manager SAP topics

“IT is always on the move, constantly facing new challenges – it is always exciting and challenging – and many attractive topics are waiting for you!”

Interview (in German)

.Pallavi Kanchna Vinay Gopal  

Pallavi Kanchana Vinay Gopal

ICT architect

“Don’t ever sit in your comfort zone and lock yourself away from challenges because you think you are not good enough. Instead, in every phase of life, try, fail and learn. Then automatically one point you will learn and succeed. And, most importantly, repeat the cycle again and again.”

Interview (in English)

.Lisa Gaedke Merzhäuser  

Lisa Gaedke-Merzhäuser

PhD student at Università della Svizzera Italiana

“I believe that a society can only be truly equal if it is equally shaped by everyone.”

Interview (in German)

.Sofija Hotomski  

Sofija Hotomski

Senior requirements engineer

“Do not go into IT just to fix the strange statistic. Nothing is wrong with you if you are not excited about IT. But if you are interested in learning about IT and someday working in the IT sector, you should know that there is no single reason not to do it.”

Interview (in English)

.Marianne Gutknecht  

Marianne Gutknecht

Senior business engineer and head SVV evaluation unit, Bedag

“Life is moving, enriching, reality and fascination at the same time!
You can usually do much more than you think you can.”

Interview (in German)

Interviews published 2021-10-04

.Martina Amacker  

Martina Amacker

Data Warehouse Engineer

“There are many aspects hidden in IT: Social skills, pedagogy, linguistic talent, creativity, technology, mathematics, etc. If you like to learn new things and are eager for knowledge, you will feel at home here.”

Interview (in German)

.Nataliia Stulova  

Nataliia Stulova

Senior Researcher, University of Bern

“The question to ask yourself is not if you can do it, the question is how you do it.”

Interview (in English)

.Annett Laube  

Annett Laube-Rosenpflanzer

Professor & head of the Institute of Data Applications and Security, BFH

“Don’t leave technology to the lads!”

Interview (in German)

.Mélodie Pellet  

Mélodie Pellet

Application developer

“You don’t need to have any prior knowledge to go into the IT field”

Interview (in French)

.Susanne Wenger  

Susanne Wenger

IT consultant at CSI Consulting AG

“Be open-minded and curious.”

Interview (in German)

.Angelika Bieri Bürki  

Angelika Bieri Bürki

Product owner change and release management

“Informatics is not just for nerds; it offers a wide range of exciting activities.”

Interview (in German)

.Nadine Jaun  

Nadine Jaun

Senior project manager

 

Interview (in German)

.Priska Altorfer  

Priska Altorfer

Managing director and entrepreneur

 

Interview (in German)

.Monika Stengl  

Monika Stengl

Expert data, analytics & AI engineer

“If you are curious, try it and be surprised: IT is so much more than programming – and it’s really fun. It’s important that we women contribute to shaping IT.”

Interview (in German)

 

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Interviews published 2021-08-20

.Andrea Egli  

Andrea Egli

Test manager

“No matter which path you are choosing: with enough curiosity and perseverance, you can become everything you want.”

Interview (in German)

.Somala Imhof  

Somala Imhof

Identity access management (IAM) engineer

“Whatever profession you are choosing, don’t be discouraged.” 

Interview (in German)

.Katarzyna Wac  

Katarzyna Wac

Professor at the University of Geneva

“There is nothing you can do wrong. Just follow your passion. The rest will arrange itself.”

Interview (in English)

.Milica Markovic  

Milica Markovic

Software engineer

“The world of IT is colorful and has much to offer – be courageous and dive in!”

Interview (in German)

.Andreia Faria Carvalho  

Andreia Faria Carvalho

Software engineer

“Pursue your own goals.”

Interview (in Italian)

.Fiona Duffy  

Fiona Duffy

Network engineer

“Follow your passion and have fun.”

Interview (in German)

.Irene Susanna Bucher  

Irene Susanna Bucher

Test automation and quality engineer

“Just do it!”

Interview (in German)

.Regula Meier  

Regula Meier

Senior solution engineer

“IT is not just for guys or nerds, and social skills also matter in IT!”

Interview (in German)

.Myriam Fischer  

Myriam Fischer

Software engineer

“Everything can be learned in IT!”

Interview (in German)

 

.

Interviews published 2021-06-11

.Andrea Kennel  

Andrea Kennel

Entrepreneur and lecturer

“Informatics is communicative, creative and helps shape the future. Engage and get involved in one of the many areas of Informatics.”

Interview (in German)

.Arianna Blasi  

Arianna Blasi

Research assistant at Università della Svizzera Italiana

“May your curiosity be stronger than your fears. I believe no human being is fearless, and no life choice is easy. But passion and grit can lead your way through it all.”

Interview (in English)

.
Barbara Weber
 

Barbara Weber

Professor and dean at the University of St. Gallen

“Informatics is extremely versatile, provides great benefits and is an awful lot of fun.”

Interview (in German)

.
Claudia Stucki
 

Claudia Stucki

IT system specialist at ETH Zurich

“The most exciting sights are usually not located next to the train station. Orientate yourself and also go in a direction that not everyone gets displayed on their city map.”

Interview (in German)

.
Katja Schibler
 

Katja Schibler

IT project manager

“Informatics is more than 0 and 1. It is the basis for trendy products and services in today’s everyday life, in which you can incorporate your ideas. Cooperation and communication in a team is of essential importance. And as a woman you are just right here!”

Interview (in German)

.
Nora Sailer
 

Nora Sailer

Entrepreneur, software developer

“Imagine how you will feel in the future when you get up in the morning and imagine your workday. Does it feel tough? Leave it alone, because you will probably have to spend many years with that tough feeling. Does it feel motivating? Then it might be something for you.”

Interview (in German)

.
Nathalie Aeby
 

Nathalie Aeby

ICT system engineer

“Informatics is such a big field, there’s something for everyone.”

Interview (in German)

.
Ulrike Glavitsch
 

Ulrike Glavitsch

CTO in her own start-up company

„IT is diverse, interdisciplinary and offers many career opportunities.“

Interview (in German)

.
Monica Landoni
 

Monica Landoni

Senior researcher at Università della Svizzera Italiana

“Choose what makes you excited and challenges you. You can make the difference!”

Interview (in English)

.
Carolin Baumgartner
 

Carolin Baumgartner

Security officer in the tax office of the Canton of Berne, Lecturer UniFr

“Just do it 😊.“

Interview (in German)

.
Sharol Süess-O’Reggio
 

Sharol Süess-O’Reggio

Product owner

“You are in charge of designing your life. Your circumstances are your raw materials. They will to an extent impact the path you take. Some of them can be controlled or influenced. Others are like gravity – they are a given that you can’t eliminate, but you can use to your advantage.”

Interview (in English)

 

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the effort and commitment of all women who contributed an interview to this project.

Priska Altorfer, Ulrike Glavitsch and Rebekka Masson created the SI IT Fire Interviews project. They designed the questionnaire, solicited interviews and collected them. Ulrike also copy-edited the second, third and fourth batch of interviews.
Priska, Ulrike and Rebekka are members of the SI Board and are committed to getting more women into IT.
Martin Glinz took care of copy-editing the first eleven interviews, designed the web pages and, partially with support from the SI Office,  published all interviews in SIDM, the SI Digital Magazine. He is a member of the SI Board.

A stage for women in IT

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The Swiss Informatics Society SI is the association of Informatics professionals in Switzerland.

Die Schweizer Informatik Gesellschaft SI ist der Verband der Informatikfachleute in der Schweiz.

La Société Suisse d’Informatique SI est l’association des professionnels de l’informatique en Suisse.

La Società Svizzera di Informatica SI è l’associazione dei professionisti dell’informatica in Svizzera.