1. Hi, Louise. Thank you for making up the time for us. Could you please, introduce yourself in a few words?

Hi, I’m Louise and I’m a Senior UX researcher, living in Copenhagen. I’ve been doing in-house UX research for over 5 years now. I’ve worked at Danish startup/scale-up companies such as Trustpilot and currently at Vivino.

2. What is UX research?

I don’t have a particular definition that I subscribe to, as user experience research covers a wide range of methods.
Putting it simply UX research is the act of systematic inquiry and gathering in-depth insights about the user’s needs, which in turn will help inform the design process.

Any successful company caters to the needs of its users.
They don’t just guess at what the customer wants. They use dedicated methods to find out and then design their products and services accordingly. That is user research.

Methods used in UX research can be quantitative: such as large sample surveys, data from tracking, analytics, split testing. it can also be qualitative such as think-aloud interviews, usability studies, field trips, diary studies, card sorts, and many others.

When carried out correctly and in the beginning of the design process and continues through its different stages, it has a huge impact not only on the business but on the product that is being designed and its users. It’s extremely rewarding!

3. What are the main things people should know about UX Research? Why is it important?

Sometimes people think research is a waste of time. What they don’t realize is if you don’t do UX research you will most likely create a product that doesn’t resonate with your audience or doesn’t solve their problem/need. That is a greater waste of money, resources and times. I advise to always talk to the user, you are not the expert, don’t design for yourself. Also can be done in a quick and cheap way, so don’t brush it off because you think there’s no time for it. It has been proven time and time again that successful products come from a deep understanding of the problem you’re trying to solve.

4. In your opinion, what is the near future of UX?

I don’t think I can predict the future of UX and UX research…
I think the value of understanding the user cannot be ignored, and UX researchers will have an increasingly important role to play in the future of design.I’m assuming there’s going to be more automation as well. Faster ways to design, prototype/test, faster ways of collecting feedback. More systematic and advanced ways of ‘’measuring’’ users’ emotions and attitudes. There’s already eye tracking, facial tracking and other biometric tracking tools but not that widely used, so I’m assuming we’d utilized these tools to their full potential more in the future.

5. What kind of topics do you usually cover as a speaker?

Usually, I do two kinds of sessions, either talks or talks + workshops. I talk about how to build digital products, how we do it at Vivino and give examples or case studies. I talk about doing product discovery and of course, I talk a lot about UX research, the value and the need for it and the latest tools and methods to conduct it.

I also do hands-on workshops about applying all the discovery and research methods that I teach and put it to practice. I teach how to go from an idea to an actual prototype in a cheap and fast way. All of this while using design thinking methods and highlighting how to make it work in an agile environment.

6. If you could advise women who are hoping to enter the field of UX research, what would your advice be?

First don’t get discouraged or overwhelmed. Don’t compare yourself to anyone and don’t think you need to do/look/be/have certain aspects to get a career in UX research. If you have an nontraditional background it will be like your superpower, it will give you an edge so use it!

UX Research is about understanding human behavior, their needs, and motivations and how design can impact all of that. So if you’re passionate about that, you got it covered. The rest is about networking and reaching out to online and offline communities, learning from people, reading about research (there are some good books out there) being up to date with the latest methods.

The last thing would be to not wait too long, if you know you want to be in this field, start early, don’t be shy. Apply to internships while studying or on a break. Find student jobs, do projects with companies. Try to go into the field and experience it 1st hand.

7. In your opinion, is there any topic/issue in your field that should get more attention?

The lack of UX research when you say UX research, it sounds like money you don’t have, and time you can’t spare’’. Usually, it’s thought of as of as a luxury and not as a must-have role, so there’s some reluctance to hire for that position, especially in job markets like Denmark where it’s still relatively new field.

UX research maturity in an organization companies who do have 1 or several researchers, might not know how to integrate research as part of a product roadmap or strategy.

8. Based on your experience, which kind of challenges do women in your field face and how do they handle them?

Don’t want to be a cliché. But the main issue remains that there aren’t a lot of women studying in the STEM fields, and even less transitioning to work in the tech industry. There’s not a lot of women who are in leadership roles that can model and mentor and empower other women.

Solutions: There are some super cool initiatives out there to for example teach and train women like Codeher who hosted free coding classes. There is Women in Tech who have mentoring programs. There’s Ladies that UX & CPHUX who created a community online and offline for events and discussion around UX, they also do meet and greet events at different companies around Copenhagen to cast a light on the various roles and work that is being done in the industry.

So in general and exposing girls & women to the diverse roles they could have in those industries, showing them other women who are successful and normalizing women’s presence in this space hopefully will bridge the gap and inspire girls & women from all walks of life to consider a career in tech.

9. If you had to pick one historical figure and one from the modern time that inspires you, who would that be and why?

I’m inspired by a told of different people, I don’t have two specific people but I can give you a persona of who might make my list.

I’m in amazed by people who are humble, selfless and do extraordinary things for ordinary people. Basically, anyone using their power for good and you can see and measure that ‘’good’’ that they do.

I like people who inspire other people, people who uplift others, and in general people who have a good understanding of the world’s state and put aside differences and try to build bridges.

10. Looking back, would you do something differently regarding your career or education? And if yes, what would that be?

Honestly, I wouldn’t change a single thing in terms of events or pivoting moments. Everything that I went through, shaped me and brought me to where I am today. All the good and the bad. I also think that challenges make you or break you, and I’m a confrontational person, so I’d never run away from a challenge, and that feeling of accomplishment towards the end is just amazing.

Maybe one thing I would do is to tell my younger self circa 10 years ago to take it easy, that I don’t have to do it all, and be everything for everyone. I would have told myself to not be so harsh on myself and set impossible standards.

Hi! Tell us about what you do and who you are.

My pleasure. I’m the co-founder and CEO of machine intelligence company Pat Inc. and I love enabling clever technologies for business and personal outcomes. Over my career, I’ve mostly been on the business side of things in technology companies, managing technical teams, big and small. In Pat Inc, we’re a small startup team building a platform for developers and companies to leverage based on the company’s Natural Language Understanding IP.

How long have you been in tech?

Hmm, that’s giving away my age…..:-) I started my tech career in the mid-1980s when I graduated from college and joined IBM.

How did you get into tech?

When I finished my bachelor’s degree in 1985 and was searching for jobs in Sydney, I found this job advertisement for IBM – a company which I had no real reason to be interested in, given my undergrad study, but the advertisement was intriguing. They were looking for people that had 1. A degree – in anything 2. Interpersonal skills and 3. An interest in electronics. I thought ‘oh well, 2 out of 3 ain’t bad’! On the way to the interview, I remember thinking ‘oh, I must find out what ‘PC’ stands for’. Remember, this was before Google, before even the internet. After multiple interviews, I got the job as a Customer Service representative, fixing the state-of-the-art IBM mainframes. I was 1 of 3 girls out of about 150 field engineers and I loved the job. They trained me with all I needed to know to fix the mainframes & I/O in customers’ data centres. But I also learnt a lot about customer service because our clients were the big banks and corporations with large data centres that had no tolerance for ‘down time’. Handling many critical situations over the years both as an engineer and a manager gave me more than a few scars on my back.

You studied Occupational Therapy from the beginning. Was it a big step to go from that to where you are today?

Yes! I never ended up practicing my profession although the training wasn’t wasted. From studying physiology, psychology & anatomy to using an oscilloscope, soldering iron and learning a multitude of acronyms like AMD (air movement device or ‘fan’ ). After my field engineer role, I moved into management and spent most of my corporate IT career managing technical teams, including managing the business & HR of a service line of 150+. Some of the non-technical parts of my career included a role as a facilitator of IBM’s Leadership Development program in Australia/New Zealand and Asia.This offered fantastic variety, increasing the breadth of my knowledge and experience.

How has your journey in tech been?

Full of variety – a blend of people and machines right from the beginning. Whilst my initial job in corporate IT was very hands-on technical, reading ALDs (Automatic Logic Diagrams, well, as much as I could!) I progressed to senior management but always around technology teams.

What are your daily activities?

My daily activities in Pat In as CEO include preparing for us to raise capital. So, back to a common thread over my career, I am building another team! This time in a high growth company – my own. We have great synergies across the small team in skills and as I like to say, we have ‘no redundant knowledge’.  We are preparing to raise our next round of funding to commercialize the platform so whilst I wear many caps, including the operating officer, I am focused on the next step to create value.

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a woman in tech? 

Since starting my career as a small percentage of females out of Mainframe customer service field representatives in IBM Australia, I’ve worked most of my career in a male-dominated environment. And one of the most resonating adages I’ve heard is that males tend to go for a job with 60% of the capability, and females wait till they feel they have 100%. What I see as the opportunity now in AI, is for females to step up to leadership roles in this nascent field. It requires as much from the humanities as from tech so there are lots of opportunities to design useful and ethical products for the future.

How did you overcome them?

I found myself consciously pushing myself out of my comfort zone. I don’t think that’s different to anyone who wants to increase their skills and experiences. These days, I see the need and benefit of organizations like Women in AI because they support and drive (push ?? ) you to speak, blog and create your profile. Creating a personal brand may not have been the norm last century but it’s pretty essential now & may not be as comfortable for females to embrace.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

To build Pat Inc to the organization of our founder’s vision and impact the future of the human language interface.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

Whether a hands-on techie or ‘around’ tech, you can make a huge impact strategically leveraging it as a tool to improve lives. A great quote from a post of Didem Un Ates’ “if women knew how much they could change the world with technology, there would be so many more women in tech.” – Mariana Costa Checa. I would add the word, ’positively’ to that.

Any tips or advice for them?

Call me or reach out on Linkedin – would love to discuss more how we can really make a positive difference in the world with technology to augment.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

As I mentioned, Women in AI is just one example of an organization that can help support and drive you in a way that suits your development.

Do you currently practice computer programming and what is your preferred programming language?

I’m actually not a coder ! I ‘grew up’ around programmers and mainframe specialists and learnt what I needed in my original hands-on technical role in IBM, but I never learnt how to code. I chose a management path after that in technology and with great technologists. I admire software engineers and I see the benefit of a full suite of skills on any AI team to design ‘useful products in healthy and sustainable ways’(to quote Fast.ai founder, Rachel Thomas).

What are your visions for AI in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

We have a choice to amplify good possibilities from AI just the same as you could for bad AI products. AI requires the full spectrum of involvement – from product leadership to ethics as well as tech. If we don’t have the full spectrum represented, we will get biased products and bad or worse products than we should. We can improve accessibility for people with disabilities, which is or will be most of us at some point in time, immeasurably. And of course, make our lives more productive by releasing us from daily overhead tasks.

Hi, Lisa! How long have you been in tech?

I have been working in Tech for the past 5 years.

How did you get into tech?

I was working for a consultancy that did projects within the startup environment and made the jump into tech startups.

You have studied Communication, and Globalisation – Organization and Leadership as well as Intellectual and Experimental Integration. Could you please tell us a bit more about this?

My MA degree was a very practical degree that allowed me to write a project with a company every semester, so I was able to dive into real problems at companies like Foss and IBM.  The latter was actually a program that allowed me to build my own bachelor’s degree through with a multidisciplinary that combined business with political science, history, economics, and comparative literature. I left my home country to work abroad after studying, and having a multidisciplinary background was essential for that.

What is your advice to students looking for education within IT?

You don’t need to have a technical education to work in IT.  There are many continuing education programs that are available for free, and a lot of jobs will help you build the tech skills you need.  

How has your journey in tech been?

What is satisfying about working in tech is being able to have a voice in the technologies that are shaping the ways we work and live in the future.  

What are your daily activities?

I’m currently working on a project to help the Nordic startup ecosystem better interact and collaborate with Asia. I am also an organizer at Nordic.AI, AI Copenhagen, and the Copenhagen.community.

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a woman in tech? 

My biggest challenge was playing catch-up to be able to contribute to my field without a technical background.

How did you overcome that?

Through free resources for continuing education and being part of supportive tech communities offline.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

Working in tech lets you have a say in building the tools we use to live and work. It’s also a wide field with lots of opportunity for creativity and personal development.

Any tips or advice for them?

Volunteering at tech events can be a great way to connect with the community and find new career opportunities.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

Hiring managers tend to recruit through their networks.  Anything to bring women into these networks would have a positive effect, especially recommending competent women when you see a job opening in your network.

What are your visions for IT in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

The gains of the IT are distributed unevenly, amplifying inequalities that already exist.

Do you know a woman in tech? Can you nominate our next WonderCoder** for our next feature?

Lenka Hudkova, who has the same MA as me and is also now in exponential technology – blockchain.  

Hi! Tell us about what you do and who you are.

At the time of writing this, I was the Head of Screening AI for Brisbane-based startup Maxwell Plus,  leading a team focused on developing algorithms to help doctors make improved clinical decisions relating to cancer risk prediction and diagnosis. At the time of publishing, however, I will be on a work sabbatical – a 5-month break to recalibrate my skills and build some awesome robotics and AI projects before my next exciting gig. Some highlights will be a 7-week research internship at the Montreal Institute of Learning Algorithms investigating explainability of AI models and a 4-week mentoring position at the Hax Accelerator in China, helping get hardware startups up and running.

How long have you been in tech?

I first embarked on my journey into tech in 2010 when I started a degree in Mechatronics and have been involved in a number of different tech areas ever since.

How did you get into tech?

I originally had no plans or even an inkling that I would end up in a tech-related field!  Having studied arts, music and languages at high school and done quite well in them, I took up Linguistics majoring in Chinese and Japanese at the university. However, I became a bit frustrated by the lack of practical use that much of my research had and I became increasingly fascinated by the amazing applications of software, robotics and other STEM-related fields could have in helping humanity, so I decided to make the switch.

You studied Languages and Mechatronics from the beginning. Was it a big step to go from that to where you are today?

It was a big step, especially given that I hadn’t studied physics or advanced mathematics at high school and having studied a Bachelor of Arts for 4 years, I hadn’t touched any of the technical matter I’d need to succeed in an Engineering Degree. I would say what got me through was strong friendships and teamwork, dedication and passion for engineering and the end goal as well as curiosity and love of learning.

How has your journey in tech been?

My journey has been varied, interesting and rewarding so far!  I’ve done a number of technical roles from field engineer on land oil and gas rigs, machine learning and robotics intern at Australia’s premier scientific research organisation, CSIRO, to running a small software and electronics consultancy and being the first employee at a high growth AI for healthcare startup.

What are your daily activities?

At the moment, a lot of my daily activities revolve around technical management, so administering processes, conducting code reviews and performing company training.  However, my days involved anything from coding up new processes and automating existing ones to make the company run more efficiently to investigating new research into state-of-the-art machine learning algorithms that we could use to help our clinicians solve particular problems related to cancer risk calculation and diagnosis.  Plus I’ll be on a work sabbatical early next year and I’m looking to spend my days reading new ML papers, making software projects and deploying them, doing some research and learning as much as I can about the maths, statistics and theory of data science, machine learning and deep learning.

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a woman in tech?

Probably the biggest challenge is the imposter’s syndrome. Even though I realise that both men and women can suffer from this, it can sometimes be made worse for women by environments that already underestimate their abilities and assume they aren’t knowledgeable in their fields.  Of course, not every place I have worked in or had exposure to was like that at all, but even a couple of sour interactions can make it hard to push past your own insecurities.

How did you overcome them?

That’s a tough one! I’m not sure I’ve entirely gotten rid of my imposter syndrome, but definitely, exposure helps. The more you talk to people in your field, learn more, grow your skills, make mistakes and improve as a result, the more confident you’ll be in your own abilities – namely, getting a good handle on what you do know and what you don’t (i.e. those opportunities for growth!). And it’s also important to always remember if someone is disparaging about your abilities in a non-constructive way, that says more about them than it does about you. Everyone is allowed to suck as this coding thing on their way to greatness and no one has the right to hold you back with their negativity.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

Make a big, positive impact!  I got into engineering to help the world and make life a little better for people so my next steps in this tech journey will be around rekindling that fire and just going for it. Build solutions in areas like food and water sustainability because that’s one thing I’m passionate about – making sure everyone has enough food and water without ruining the earth to get it, and technology is a great tool to help with that.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

I see tech as a tool to achieve the dream career you want – one that encompasses your passions and interests but that can still provide financial security.  Plus there are always fun and interesting problems to be solved in most areas of tech, so if you want an exciting career journey where you can have a real impact, then a tech career is for you!

Any tips or advice for them?

Nearly every single person who starts coding or engineering or tech related pursuits will suck at it in the beginning. Never let that hold you back!  As someone who almost gave in to that feeling of “not being good enough to do this”, let me tell you that the only way to get better is to keep trying. For a handful of crazy geniuses it might come naturally, but for the majority, it takes hard work and dedication to learning. So keep curious and keep pushing!

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

Follow the data – identify where exactly the gap is happening for starters. Is it because not enough diverse individuals come through from junior schooling or is it later, once they’re in the tech ecosystem that pressures from within the industry are driving them out?  Then dig deeper, ask questions, find out from the source why tech is being chosen as a career option or why people leave the industry entirely or what the bottlenecks are to keeping diversity up and closing the gaps.  Then work with the industry and with the individuals to solve those problems. My personal tips are

a) mentor the younger generations where you can, inspire them to pick tech as their first choice,
b) look outside your network for hiring candidates so you can get people from all walks of life to apply and not just your buddies from university and
c) look closely at whether anything in your workplace could be preventing a diverse workforce or making it hostile for diverse individuals and work to change that.

Do you currently practice computer programming and what is your preferred programming language?

Yes, I do! Almost daily if I can. I prefer to program in Python because it’s so versatile and I’m most comfortable with it. However, I do like a bit of React and the occasional C++ depending on the project. Getting back into the lower level programming for robotics is something I’m looking forward to during my work sabbatical too!

What are your visions for AI in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

I’d like to imagine a world where these powerful algorithms are used to solve some of humanity’s most pressing problems like pollution, food security, water resourcing, sustainable energy and accessible healthcare. I can see the AI for Social Good movement coming up big time too which is great to see.  As for concerns, mostly around algorithms used to make biased decisions or do things to the detriment of humanity or the earth, but I’m pleased to see many experts unanimously pushing in favour of FAT ML – Fairness, Transparency and Accountability in machine learning. The main thing will be ensuring the rest of the world, especially industries looking to adopt ML into their core business, keeps up with those important areas.

Hi Victoria! Tell us about what you do and who you are.

My name is Victoria, and I am a Data Scientist at the DSB Digital Labs. We are a “rogue unit” in DSB dedicated to bringing the startup approach and innovation to this ancient organization. These days I work mainly on predicting the number of passengers on trains, intelligent pricing for DSB Orange tickets and predictive maintenance – forecasting when a train is going to break down.

How long have you been in tech?

Since as far back as I remember, but more seriously I’ve been involved in the last about 10 years.

How did you get into tech?

Initially, it was my parents who signed me up for a programming course back when I was in elementary school. Since then I have been more or less involved in one way or the other – making the odd website for a friend, helping my family with computers…

I got seriously into coding around the third year of my bachelor’s as a way to get better at analyzing data. Before I knew it I had taken several online courses and getting seriously into data science and AI

You have studied Psychology and psychopathology and IT at college. Could you please tell us a bit more about this.

Yep. I went for psychology, because I wanted to do something science-y with my life, and I have always been interested in the way people perceive, learn and process information. Of course, we also had quite a few courses on the softer side as well – how to communicate, how to run therapy sessions, etc. Things that at the time I was not particularly interested in, but I find quite valuable now.

I mentioned above that I got into IT because of wanting to do better at data science. From there I started reading a bit about AI, and as a cognitivist, I was hooked – all these concepts about learning and perception, and you get to build something that does that! How cool is that! And no ethics committees! So that is how I applied for a program that focuses heavily on that and also how I ended up in Denmark.

What is your advice to students looking for an education in IT?

Learn your linear algebra and definitely do not overlook the “softer” courses about project management, communications and so on. It pays off.

How has your journey in tech been?

Like a Ferris wheel – it had its ups and downs.

What are your daily activities?

Drink coffee. Check email. Drink coffee. Code, analyze data or attend meetings. Drink coffee. Teach fencing. Go home. It is a lot more interesting than I make it sound, honestly.

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a woman in tech? 

I have never experienced any of the sexism horror stories you see shared on the Internet. That said it is weird and lonely when you’re the only woman in the room and that happens often. And there is always this drive to show that yes you know what you’re talking about. My current team is pretty diverse, but I’ve been part of teams where I’m the only girl, and it felt like I had to work twice as hard as the guys, or argue twice as loud and state my ideas at least twice.

How did you overcome them?

I’ve learned to be a bit dominant and bossy and to speak up when something isn’t right. And I have a good support network outside of work.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

World domination with an army of autonomous robots. Barring that, I want to get better at what I’m doing and maybe open my own robotics company in the future.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

It pays well. It is the future. It is everywhere. Tech is one of those things that can be applied to any field – from mobile apps to agriculture and space exploration. Truly the sky is the limit.

Any tips or advice for them?

Just take the plunge and do it.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

Start early. A lot of our interests, likes and inclinations are formed very early on. And our society tends to teach that certain things are available for boys and certain things for girls. I bet many girls don’t even realize they can have a good career in tech until very late on. And having good role models also helps.

Do you currently practice computer programming and what is your preferred programming language?

Python. I use it mostly in the context of machine learning. R can be pretty useful for that as well. I get mild nausea from js though.

What are your visions for IT in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

I expect to see a much growing role of AI, automation, sensors everywhere and VR. All those are very promising technologies, but I fear they will not be used for good. For example take the surveillance state they are building in China, where you get citizen scores that are modified by who you hang out with and what you post on social media. Things like that are truly scary and downright dangerous for our freedom. And of course, there is job automation, which is bound to disrupt many businesses and put a lot of people out of their jobs.

Hi Eva! Tell us about what you do and who you are.

I came to Denmark to study at KEA from Hungary, from the University of Debrecen, in 2015. First, I was just an exchange student, but then I decided to finish my studies here. Since that I have been studying Computer Science, Software Development and Data Science, I graduated finally in the summer of 2017. I was more than happy to start my first full time position – right after finishing my studies – at Laerdal as a Software Developer and Data Analyst. Laerdal is a company, which provides online or classroom trainings for doctors and nurses. These trainings involve different scenarios from first aid to all kind of operations. Laerdal also produces numerous tools that learners can use to get prepared for a real-life situation, for example Resusci Annie, which is a manikin used for training CPR. The goal is to save 500.000 more lives each year by 2020. Our analyst team makes sure that both the learners and the hospital managers get the best feedback of their progresses within these trainings.

In my free time I manage my startup company with the help of my awesome board members, we are working on different projects, providing development solutions and consulting for companies and individuals.

I also work with different technologies to improve my knowledge, such as developing deep learning algorithms, or using Microsoft services, for example, Azure Machine Learning, Azure Cognitive Services, App Services, App Insights and Analytics. Additionally, I have the chance to dive deeper in the development of HoloLens applications.

How long have you been in tech?

Does gaming count?

The first line of code I wrote in the secondary school, when I was 14. We learned Visual Basic and C in a special class, and I passed as high graduate in informatics with the best grade when I was 17. I guess this was the achievement that gave the inspiration to choose this way!

How did you get into tech?

Well, it was all because of love!

There was this guy who I thought is the coolest person in the world, a gamer, interested in tech, listened to the same music as me and his personality was interesting as well. He went to this special class, because he wanted to become a developer, and given that I felt like I had to be around him all the time, I attended these classes as well.

In the end, we became only friends with the guy, he is now an awesome digital artist, and I continued with my new love, with coding.

You have studied IT at college. What is your advice to students looking for an education within IT?

The only and most important thing is to choose a path which you would love to walk on! Be open for new opportunities, never afraid of starting a new life, because it often happens that you must make changes on the fly. For example, I started my studies as an engineer in Hungary, but I realized that it is not my end goal, so I turned my head to another way, and switched to do more programming instead of digital technology and electronics, I even chose another country.

What are your daily activities?

I work like 8 hours a day at Laerdal, then I continue working from home on my startup, or just play with different technologies. I write a lot of code, but I do not work on the same thing the whole day, because that would be a little intense. I often do some HoloLens app development, deep learning algorithms, or learning about trending services and tools of Microsoft.

When I am not coding I sing a lot, I do voice training continuously, and visit karaoke parties occasionally. I often meet friends, visit events, concerts, hold speeches, I literally always find something to do!

How has your journey in tech been?

Like a fairy tale, I feel like being Cinderella in this story…

Being a woman in tech is not always a nightmare, I hope, for me though it was. I had to face a lot of challenges during my studies, many times I felt like I should give up all my dreams. I will always be thankful to one of my mentors, who took me to an event where I had the chance to write my first Windows 8 application, which was literally a life changing experience.

It turned out that my idea was pretty good, and the organizers were coming from Microsoft Hungary. I got an invitation for an interview to become a Microsoft Student Partner, and I managed to join the team. Suddenly everything became totally different, I became a speaker and a student evangelist in the field of cloud development, specifically Microsoft Azure. Before, I was pretending that I just want to get through on the school as soon as possible, but when I started to hold speeches and events at my own university, I became finally confident about my knowledge, and it was visible on my activities and grades (finally got some… details later). I also got certified by Microsoft as an Azure MCP, and then in 2015 I was the best student evangelist in Hungary, so I could travel to Redmond for a week to the Microsoft Headquarter. This was the biggest achievement in my life, I think.

When I came to Denmark I continued my career at Microsoft as a student partner, started my own brand and participated numerous events as a host or as a speaker… or both! I was the best Microsoft Student Partner in Denmark in 2016, but obviously I had to let a Danish guy attend that year’s trip to Redmond.

At the graduation ceremony at KEA, when I finished both the Computer Science and the Software Development programs, the manager told a story about me while handing over my diploma: “There was this girl, who came to my office with a study plan, saying that she wanted to finish her studies in half time. I approved the plans, and she did it! This was the first time in KEA’s history, that someone finished these programs in half time!”

Today, I work at an awesome company, with the best colleagues in the world, live in the most beautiful area of Copenhagen, reach my goals one by one, and do things that make me happy!

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a woman in tech?

The only and biggest challenge I faced was at the University of Debrecen. I was studying as an engineer, and some of my teachers did not provide me the same opportunities as for the guys, because they said that a girl should not study at this program. I sometimes was not allowed to attend classes, exams, especially when I started my exchange semester in Copenhagen.

Once the management of the Hungarian university allowed me to take another study plan, which was very flexible in relation to attending classes and exams, so I could study abroad, and participate exams when it fits me. But there were some teachers who did not want to support me in my plans, one of them expected me to go home every time for exams, but I had no word in setting the appointments. For me it was not an option to fly home for an exam, and then back for my exams in Denmark, then home again…

How did you overcome them?

I was relying on my family, my friends, my mentors. I was trying to break the ice by attending events and showing my knowledge in different technologies as a speaker. I met a lot of people who helped me to set my goals, and to achieve them. I am not sure if I could make this through by myself.

Thank you for all the support again!

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

I always wanted to be something like an idol, either a singer, a famous mathematician or a doctor who works with children. I wanted to motivate people and support them with everything I could!

I was not really a star singer, I could not learn how to say the organ’s name in Latin language, but I was good in mathematics, so I deepened my knowledge in programming and mathematics and in the last few years I have been working in the field of data science and software development, and I was also speaking about these at different events. Every time I share a blog post, or hold a speech, I feel like that the people who I reach trust me, and so I put maximum effort into everything I do.

The most inspiring moment in my career was when I held an Hour of Code event in a primary school for 11-12 years old children. They were listening to me like they were amazed of how simple it is to write a game with only a few lines of code. They were working on their own games, using the tools and knowledge they just heard about a few minutes ago from me. I have never felt so happy before to see these children enjoying coding!! Few days later, on all social media platforms I got messages and posts from parents and teachers saying thank you for the event!

I think these are the moments I was working for!

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

Technology is the future. It is all around you already at home, in the office, in your car, you use smart devices and services for basically everything. When you look at your grandparents and yourself, you can see how much more you rely on these devices. In the future we can expect smarter and faster services all around ourselves, would not it be cool to be the one who makes the world changing improvements?

Any tips or advice for them?

Remember to improve your knowledge from day to day, be up to date with technology, as our lectures are in the daily news. The internet is full of great courses in every fields of IT, which you should use to deepen your knowledge in your free time, so when it comes to the time of job search, you have several competencies to show!

You do not have to be a lone ranger, find someone who can help you throughout your career. I had mentors who helped me with my studies and decisions since I have been at the Hungarian university. Now I also mentor students and individuals, to help them turn their dreams into goals and support these people when they fight for their goals.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

We should find a way to reach more people via social media or at events and encourage them to work in the tech industry. As an owner of a startup company, I would make sure that gender and ethnicity discrimination is not present in any ways at job interviews and in the office.

Do you currently practice computer programming and what is your preferred programming language?

I’m writing code every day!  I use JavaScript, C#, Python, R, Java, T-SQL and Scala.

What are your visions for IT in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

A lot of people look at the dark side of the technological improvements, and it will never change. It will always be difficult to make them believe that we work our butt of to make life easier for everyone, for them as well.

When we begin to use Artificial Intelligence for better performing workflows, some people start worrying about their jobs, or the killer robots that will chase the population. This world will always need good engineers, IT wizards and developers to keep these AI systems up and running, and these changes would allow us to use our creativity instead of performing the same tasks all the time.

Lot of companies are using Augmented, Mixed and Virtual Reality for their projects. For example, there is a VR project which provides the user the opportunity to try how does migraine feel. There are numerous AR projects which allows us to learn in a more interactive and more exciting way. Mixed reality projects are often used by designers for example, to plan new look for cars or motorbikes, or for furnishing new apartments. The opportunities I mentioned here are only a small part of what we could have in the future, and I believe these technological improvements will be used at more and more places.

Do you know a woman in tech? Can you nominate our next WonderCoder** for our next feature?

Victoria Chudinov

Hi Marisa! Tell us about what you do and who you are.

Since I really don’t  want to copy my LinkedIn “about me” section, I’d  say: I do things that are fun, meaningful and give me opportunities to grow and create an impact, whether as the captain of the volleyball team or during my first job as a make-up artist, or my current job as a researcher, where I investigate the huge topic of AI from a humanities perspective. So, obviously I’m a researcher, but I’m also a mother of two toddlers, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a volleyball player, a friend, a soft (not bra-burning!) feminist, an idealist, a collaborator, a semi-professional Sherpa (I love hiking in the Swiss Alps and therefore have to carry my kids on my back!).

How long have you been in tech?

I started working at scip ag, a cybersecurity and technology company in Zurich, in 2017. I’m part of the Titanium Research Department, led by Marc Ruef. My prior jobs have somehow always been related to “digital topics”; for instance, at the university where I held a previous position, I created the online learning platform and coached lecturers on how to make use of the advantages of online or blended learning.

How did you get into tech?

I’ve never been that interested in technology per se, but I’ve always been fascinated by the impact it has on peoples’ lives. For example, how it changes the way teachers teach, or how we communicate on social media. When I was working at the university, I had a seminar about digital teaching trends. We were all very excited about the upcoming presentation by IBM, where we were shown how their Artificial Intelligence,  Watson, defeated the World Championship in the TV show Jeopardy! What hit me most in this very moment was the fear I saw in peoples’ eyes and the tense atmosphere in the room. The teachers were so worried about their future and would their jobs and all they lived and worked for be replaced by some AI?. This was the day when I decided I wanted to do something about this. I wanted to understand these fears, this bizarre fascination. And further down the road, when I realized the big impact AI will have, I wanted to know what my roles and responsibilities were in shaping our society in this AI era.

You have a Master of Arts (M.A.), Psychology of Excellence in Business and Education from the beginning. Was it a big step to go from that to where you are today?

Yes. But it wasn’t one big step, rather many small steps, one at a time. My professional path is everything but a straight line, yet I’ve always followed my passions and focused on things that truly bring me joy, and with the supportive guidance from the DrivenWoman network, I was finally able to allow myself to dream big and put things into action right away.

How has your journey in tech been?

Nothing other than smooth. I’ve expected everything from mobbing to sexism or condescension. But truth be told, I’ve only received support and encouragement, especially from my company, but also from external engagements. Yes, in many cases I may be there to fill in the “woman” quota, and it feels awkward at times, but I’m confident that I’ve delivered and performed every time. I think now is the best time for women to pursue a career in the tech environment if you are passionate, ambitious and willing to collaborate.

What are your daily activities?

Networking, reading, writing, public speaking.

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a ***researcher in AI with a humanities background?

*** Are you a woman in tech? Please share your challenges?

The biggest challenge I’m facing is interdisciplinarity. I, as a psychologist, have a totally different perspective than my boss, who’s an IT expert. It’s very challenging to find a common ground, a common vision because often, we’re not even aware of how different our perceptions are.  Another challenge for me is the great attention and hype around the topic and the many influencers, enthusiasts and evangelists, etc.  that are out there; I often fail to see what lies behind and catch myself thinking that people simply want to adopt AI as a facade for themselves or their companies, just to jump on the boat and to be “famous”.

How did you overcome them?

I collaborate as much as possible and have a supportive mindset. I lean back and think how everyone is on a mission, and in the end, I believe that we’re all simply doing things that serve our need for connection. So, I focus on facts and values, and what lies beneath these overstatements, fears, and resistance. It’s basically empathy for myself and for others.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

I envision a future where my kids and all others are safe and protected. I believe that technology can advance—but alongside human values: Progress—through people first. I have that strange feeling I can do something to shape our future, that this AI thing doesn’t get out of control. I believe we need four important pillars to create a healthy co-existence between man and machine: interdisciplinarity, integration, diversity, and open science.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

First of all, we have to define what “career” means. Is it money? Fame? Meaning? Raising strong children? If you are passionate about technology, no matter in which way, of course then go for it. Also, if you have that inner calling to create an impact on our society:  now is your time, especially as a woman. Of course, there are exceptions, but today, for example in Switzerland, women are massively supported, and we can use this to our advantage so that our kids and future generations don’t have to worry about this anymore; in their future, there will be no organizations encouraging women to get in to tech, because they won’t be needed anymore.

Any tips or advice for them?  Women?

1. Join female networks for as long as they exist
2. Get clear about what is important in your life: what are your passions? What does career mean to you?
3. Get going: be active and step up for your dreams: dream big, but small steps every day
4. If you want to have a career use social media like LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. to accelerate it—Be visible
5. Read, write and teach as much as you can and never stop learning
6. Motivate and support others, be a role model and inspire!

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

I joined the network Women in AI and quickly became the ambassador for Switzerland because I believe our greatest feminine power lies in our capacity to collaborate and grow through synthesis and support. Concretely, I think Women in AI particularly, is a great step to get females on stage at conferences for example. But there’s still a lot to be done and this is only one piece of the puzzle. Everyone can do some little things and contribute, whether by organizing robotics classes for girls or whatever. There are many initiatives, I think we are on a good path here.

Do you currently practice computer programming and what is your preferred programming language?

No—but if anyone would like to teach me, that would be awesome

What are your visions for AI in the future and what are your greatest concerns?

My greatest concerns are (1) the political situation, which also includes the use of lethal autonomous weapons in warfare, and that (2) we are moving towards a do-or-die relationship with AI, which fosters resistance and irrational behaviors. I am also concerned by the way we’re slowly getting used to AI in our daily lives, like with Alexa, smart homes etc., which may be leading us to forget to ask ourselves if this is really what we want and to lose a sense of healthy skepticism. All in all, I think we massively have to change the tone of the conversation, move away from the feelings of threat and fear, and go towards facts, vision, and motives.

Do you know a woman in tech? Can you nominate our next WonderCoder** for our next feature?

Beth, an NLU specialist in Australia. She’s amazing. Smart collaborator and a good heart.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/becarey/

Hi Irina! Tell us about what you do and who you are. 

Hi! I’m Irina and I’m CTO and co-founder of Skidos Labs. Skidos is a platform for educational games. I am also a co-founder of WonderCoders and have been a part of the organizing team of the first conference about Women and technology in Denmark called WonderTech Summit.

How long have you been in tech?

Actually I got my first job in tech 10 years ago, when I turned 18 – I was working in technical support for antivirus NOD32.

But we also had programming with Pascal or Basic at school, since we were 13.

How did you get into tech?

I guess I was influenced by my brother, who was enrolled at a Technical University and was also an inspiration for me, because he was good at STEM. Also, school had some impact, because a lot of people who follow math classes, were going to tech universities.

How has your your journey in tech been?

It was tough, but also easy at times. For example I’ve always been treated like a woman when it was coming to physical work. Sometimes at University professors would close their eyes because you are a girl – they didn’t have high expectations from us. Some of them were surprised that I was actually good at certain subjects (I was a nerd at that time haha). I just wanted to be encouraged like guys were.

It can be tough also in situations where parents would question or not agree with the career you choose, or in a relationship where you date someone who can’t accept that you are intelligent and independent.
It’s also difficult when people don’t have high expectations from you, it really hurts your confidence. 

Could you share some of the challenges you’ve faced as a CTO?

Well as a CTO I faced challenges with communication and also cultural differences. It took a while to understand other people culture and values and to adjust.

When I was working in technical support I was promoted to be a manager of technical support, meaning managing more than 20 people , some of them were 10 years older than me (I was in my early 20s at that time). Of course I got some sarcastic comments about that.

*** Are you a woman in tech? Please share your challenges?

Well it can be really stupid stuff, but it hurts. I’ve attended Meetup about machine learning these days and a guy from sales asked me “are you here for a pizza?”

Also I see challenges in miscommunication between men and women. And since women are minority in such departments, we have to play men rules. No emotions, stupid jokes are quite common, closed windows and ugly labs. Honestly, the IT crowd TV show is somehow a reality of many companies.

How did you overcome them?

Well, I was opening windows and still was showing emotions. It’s hard to be yourself, when you feel like you don’t fit in. And i still feel the same way, each time I attend a conference –  in 300 people only 10 will be female.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?

Other women who are have achieved a lot in the industry and are successful – when I hear that stories I feel like I can do it too (they have done that, right?)

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!

Obviously, there is very high demand tech specialists. Each Industry requires developers and average salary of a developer is quite high. But also, of course machines are going to take over the world (look at what Boston Dynamics is doing), I’m surprised people are not learning computer language as a second language.

Any tips or advice for them?

It’s a lot about trying and experimenting. I spend a lot of time googling, I don’t know the answers but I know how to find them. That’s the most important skill of developer, but I would say not only developer, it will be the most important skill for anyone in the future, because the world is changing rapidly.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?

Well the work has to come from childhood.

Look at the toy shops – what is there for girls? Of course they will grow up to become ‘princesses’ and not coders. Or what is the image your mind is capturing when you think about scientist? I would imagine old grey-hair man. Girls don’t want to be like that. So in order to inspire young generation into tech and science we have to make them feel welcome and related . I hope to see more projects like Digipippi and introduce kids to programming in schools from early age.

Also, remember that when you are changing any system – you will always find a resistance from it. So no surprise that the situation is changing so slowly, but it does change and I am really proud to have even a small part of this change.

Thank you, Irina!

Hi! Tell us about what you do and who you are.
Hi. I’m Marci Papineau Gottlieb.
I am a designer and full-stack developer.
I love what I do (even though it makes me want to pull my hair out sometimes.).

How long have you been in tech?
I started learning to code in HTML and CSS when the first IPad came out— so around 2008 or 2009.
But in the summer of 2016 I took a 9 week full-stack dev bootcamp at the French bootcamp (in Copenhagen) Le Wagon (LeWagon.com). That is when my job really got going. I went to school for 9 weeks— 10 hours every day. 5 days a week. It was INTENSE. But really fun. Also crazy hard. I ate, slept and dreamt code— like all the time. But I ended up with a project, coded in Ruby, that I and my 2 teammates built in just 2 weeks.

How did you get into tech?
Well for me, it’s more like “Why did I get into tech.” I was a successful print designer. I worked in a ton of magazines in NYC, and at magazines and newspapers in Copenhagen. But that field is really taking a BIG hit, and if I want to keep working until I retire, I needed to make a change. So here I am.

How has your your journey in tech been?
It’s been like any journey. It’s had it’s ups and downs. On the up sides, it is really fun. It has ended up being really creative (which was a surprise for me). Having an art and design background, the fact that is is creative is a HUGE bonus. I am constantly learning new things, and that can be really fun and keeps things interesting. That can also be tiring sometimes because you can never reach completion! But that’s exactly how it was with painting and design projects. You always feel you can make it better. But sometimes you need to put the book down. Put the computer down, and hang out with your friends and family!

Are you a woman in tech? Please share your challenges?
It’s just that there’s not that many female coders. But I am starting to come across more, and that is really cool. Sometimes we can just speak to each other in a different way. I often feel like I have to prove myself to men. That can be a bit tiring.

How did you overcome them?
There’s a lot of ways. One thing I do is read this story from my friend Nathan Kuik from my Le Wagon bootcamp.
(https://medium.com/@nathan.kuik/my-mandatory-junior-web-developer-post-7880f296f7d0) He wrote about feeling like an imposter in the coding world, and how to cope with it. It’s really a cool story.
Getting involved in women’s initiatives dealing with women in tech has also helped.

What’s your aspiration in your tech journey?
I want to join a larger development team. I dream of pair-programming with some other great coders, so that I can become a better coder and help to build amazing products.

Please share with our readers why they should get a career in tech!
Because it’s not going anywhere! It is a constant growing business, and there are tons of different types of things to get into.

Any tips or advice for them?
Find a great Slack group (such as WonderCoders) where you can ask for advice among other women. Go to Meetups, and talk to other people in tech as much as possible. Help others when you can. Ask for help when you need it.

Could you give us some ideas on how we can overcome the diversity gap in tech?
We women need to keep showing up— no mater what.

Do you know a woman in tech? Can you nominate our next WonderCoder for our next feature
Sadia Mengal and Sara Wulff Kringelbach

Now it is late, and I must shut down computer. I hope I have inspired some more females to get into coding.

You are welcome to get in touch with me at http://www.marcipapineau.com