Women in Tech Series - Laura's experience

Continuing from International Women’s day in March, we would love to continue to share stories of women in tech, in the hope that it will inspire young women thinking of starting out, or women who are trying to find their way against the odds.

In this blog, Laura Villegas, discusses her experience in the tech community as a recruiter, and shares her advice on how women can get into tech, and what can be done to raise awareness and encourage women to this industry. Something we definitely agree on here at UMATR, and couldn’t have said it any better!

- What made you want to be involved in the tech community?

All the working opportunities the tech industry offers and the potential it was showing for the development of my city.

- Any particular highlights of your career?

In my career [as a recruiter for a tech company], I’ve managed to hire amazing people, from Juniors to Chiefs around 700 people. I have been part of a growing organization that has taught me about technology, customer centric cultures, the importance of diversity and developing your soft skills, and the importance of challenging yourself to learn something new every day.

All that knowledge has leveraged my experience to be in different roles as Head of Recruitment, HR Director and Strategic Talent Manager.

- Is there anything a woman can do to get started?

Joining tech communities that empower women is a great start (women in tech, pionerasdev, MedellínJS) among others that provides free knowledge but most importantly the networking opportunities that it brings. [These organizations help women and girls (some specifically in Colombia) learn how to code, provide them with a supportive community to foster their self-education through events, meetups and mentorships and even help them to find jobs in tech.]

- What can be done to raise awareness and encourage women to work in Tech?

Tech companies need to have a leading role to support women in tech by creating free training, supporting the different communities, defining a women quota of all placements, and creating partnerships with high schools and universities to promote this career path that can help women to be independent and have the opportunity to manage their own time to find a proper balance in their lives.

- Best piece of advice?

Don’t be afraid to start, there’s always going to be a helping hand in the tech industry.

From the blog, we have gathered few key points:

- Join groups and organizations that teach women and girls how to code

- Network! This could be done through the mentioned organisations, social media etc.

- Take on a challenge

- As to raising awareness, Laura mentions that it is important for tech companies to offer free training, support the different communities mentioned, define a women quota of all placements, and create partnerships with high schools and universities to promote this career path.

- It should be emphasised that it allows women to be independent and have the opportunity to manage their own time to find a proper balance in their lives.

We thank Laura for answering the questions, and contributing to this blog. As a technology recruiter, she shares light from a different perspective, but just as important. Her role has taught her several important aspects varying from technology, customer centric cultures, the importance of diversity and developing your soft skills, to the importance of challenging yourself to learn something new every day.

At UMATR, we encourage diversity in the workplace, and work with tech companies that share the same values as us. We’re happy to say that we’ve placed several female software engineers across many companies, and we continue to do so.

Are you a female engineer looking for a new Scala role, or a tech company looking for talent? Get in touch with hello@umatr.io and work with us today.

At UMATR, as tech recruiters, we are committed to helping you find your dream role, or finding your ideal talent Because You Matter.