< HER 2.0 > Capable. Confident. Courageous. Recap
Written by Therese Christine Hernando
Capping-off a fun-filled learning event, attendees of < HER 2.0 > joined by the speakers and organizers strike a pose. Photo by Kim Santos
“If I were to remain silent, I’d be guilty of complicity.” This quote by Margaret Heffernan shared by Anna Gregorio, Managing Director of Accenture Technology in the Philippines, was part of the huge inspirational booster that the attendees of “< HER 2.0 > Capable. Confident. Courageous.” got from a powerhouse lineup of speakers. The one-day event hosted by Women Who Code Manila, in celebration of the International Women’s Month, aimed to encourage women in the tech industry to speak up especially in public events so as to inspire more women to let their voices be heard. This event happened last March 24, 2018 at Accenture, Philippines.
Tech professionals, students, aspiring career shifters to tech – all participants – broke the ice and got to know each other as they answered snowball fight questions of what they aspired to be when they were young, their current professions are and their future aspirations.
Challenging the status quo on tech conferences of men mostly comprising the attendees and speakers; Gen Ashley, the Director of Women Who Code London, started organizing her own tech events for women. She had been running TECH(K)NOW Day for three years now having grown the attendees from 200 women on the first run to 1,200 women participants last March 9, 2018. Photo by Kim Santos.
Gen Ashley, Director of Women Who Code London, kicked off the event by sharing how she decided to devote her time in encouraging women to excel in the tech industry by organizing and speaking in tech conferences. Gen pointed out that most of the tech events she joined had very few women attendees, more so women speakers. For her, speaking in tech conferences provides young girls with role models they can look up to.
Having been assigned to work on different global locations; Anna Gregorio, Managing Director of Accenture Technology, shared how speaking up and communicating are key skills in succeeding in tech industry. Photo taken by Denice Vitorio.
Anna Gregorio, Managing Director of Accenture Technology in the Philippines, shared practical tips on how a woman can navigate and become successful in the tech industry. One key tip she provided was to let the leaders of your organization know your career aspirations and be prepared for the job. Research and understand the what skills you need in order to perform the responsibilities you want to take on. You don’t wait for things to happen. You make it happen.
Rhoda Gubat provided the attendees a general view of how the Tech industry’s find the best talents. She likewise provided very helpful tips on every phase of the hiring process. Photo taken by Denice Vitorio.
Rhoda Gubat, Accenture Technology’ Senior Manager in Human Resources and Recruitment team lead, enlightened the attendees of the recruiter’s perspective throughout the hiring process. For submitting resumes, she emphasized the need for customized resumes – one that matches the position you are applying for. A cover letter is also highly encouraged to serve as your “elevator pitch”. Keeping your resume short but powerful is the best way to go. To prepare for interviews, she advised to determine the type of interview you will be going to. If you will be meeting the senior developer, you should be prepared to answer technical questions. For general questions such as accomplishments, she recommended the “Power of Three” technique – being ready with top three accomplishments that you have. During the interview she gave the following tips: (1) sound interesting and maintain eye contact, (2) review your resume – your responses should match whatever is written there, and most important of all (3) do not lie.
“Don’t Lie!” is the number one “Don’ts” tip Ibess Beley, Joseph Baldemor and Rhoda Gubat shared during the panel talks on getting that tech job the participants aspired. Photo taken by Kim Santos.
The panel of hiring managers which includes Rhoda Gubat of Accenture, Joseph Baldemor, of Atlassian and; Ibess Beley of Zendesk gave tips to the attendees on what qualities tech companies are looking for. Technical knowledge, learning agility and being able to work in teams were some of these qualities. Customizing resumes to highlight skills that fit for the job and preparing for interviews and coding tests would also help.
During the discussion, one of the panelists shared that based on her observation, men are more confident than women in showcasing their skill. This, however, has nothing to do with technical competency. Based on their experiences, regardless of gender each individual is technically competent but it is the way they translate it during interviews that makes the difference.
Reina Reyes sharing how public speaking can inspire others through it’s rippling effect especially through social media. She was joined by Haifa Carina, Lites Viloria, and Joy Paas who share the same passion in providing role models to fellow women that they too can inspire fellow women and young girls. Photo taken by Kim Santos.
Lites Viloria, the National Project Coordinator for Women in STEM for the International Labor Organization; Dr. Reina Reyes, renowned Astrophysicist and Data scientist; Joy Paas, a Software Engineer for Quipper and the Director of Women Who Code Manila and Haifa Carina, Former Executive Director of DevCon Philippines and Senior Manager at Amihan Global Strategies comprised the panel of leading women speakers in tech. They’ve talked about how they got into public speaking. Each shared how they choose and prepare topics, and how to overcome the impostor syndrome.
Attendees of < HER 2.0 > enjoying the panel talks on women speaking at conferences. Photo taken by Denice Vitorio.
The panelists emphasized that you weren’t born with the skills of public speaking. Everyone had fears when they started and even until now they still experience it but it takes a lot of practice, research and preparation to compose yourself and deliver an effective talk.
Chose a topic that you like to share, know your audience, share your experience were some tips shared by our panelist.
Reina had mentioned that public speaking creates a ripple effect to inspire others. Haifa recalled that she was encouraged to speak and lead because she was inspired by a speaker who she found out was likewise inspired by someone the latter heard in a talk. Speaking inspires a lot of people and being out there inspires fellow women and the next generation to speak and lead. You become a role model to someone just by being out there — speaking, sharing your experiences, or leading a company or community.
Having fun and gaining confidence during the “Improv Thinking” workshop, attendees strike their power poses as part of the activity. Photo taken by Denice Vitorio.
The event capped off with an engaging workshop called "Improv Thinking" led by Josan Dometita-Chug, Co-founder and UI/UX Engineer at Aestrea Software Development. In the workshop, the attendees were taught through fun exercise how to be more comfortable and more confident in speaking up to larger audience.
The day ended with the attendees having new friends and ready to speak and inspire others.
Participants gaining new friends while enjoying delicious food prepared by Accenture. Photo taken by Kim Santos.
Missed the event? You can watch it here https://web.facebook.com/wwcod
Women Who Code Manila has various events lined up for the rest of the year that will help you grow in your tech career. Events such as study groups include HTML & CSS, Javascript, PHP, Android, DevOPs, Python, Machine Learning/Artificial Intelligence, ReactJS, Ruby, iOS, GameDev, .Net. All schedules will be posted in WWCode Manila’s facebook page and meetup group. If you like to attend, please RSVP in WWCodeManila Meetup Group. Hope to see you there! 🙂