Autodesk girl geeks on overcoming challenges, from working in tech to bad managers, shared at Girl Geek X Dinner!
It was standing-room only at the Autodesk Gallery for the latest Girl Geek X event. If you haven’t been to the gallery before, it’s a total experience— there are tons of interactive exhibits and attendees were able to mix, mingle, eat, drink, and explore throughout the evening.
The evening started off with Autodesk Head of Diversity & Inclusion Daniel Guillory, who welcomed the group to the Autodesk Gallery.
Autodesk VP of Engineering Practice Minette Norman gave a keynote sharing her unconventional path to transforming our Engineering Practices at Autodesk. Her keynote was empowering, enthusiastic, and set the tone that it’s possible to achieve anything within tech.
The path to success isn’t always a straight one, and you may find yourself exploring career paths you never thought about, but never let someone tell you it’s not possible. She inspired the audience to “not ask what you lack, but ask what do I bring that no one else bring.”
We heard from a diverse group of Autodesk women about their careers in tech and advice for others —
What do you like about being a woman in tech at Autodesk?
All of the women on the panel had huge respect for their company and the opportunities they’ve had so far.
Several of the women on the panel mentioned that they don’t have technical backgrounds, but love that they’re able to work on teams where others do.
Others touched upon the fact that there’s a focus on diversity, connection, a culture of helping each other, and a willingness to become allies.
For those who joined recently (several panelists were recent intern-to-full-time hires), they felt that the community immediately welcomed them. Whether by encouraging them to pursue interests, or by just being a personal cheerleader, the women noted that it’s a open environment where people are willing to help and learn.
What stood out was role models — it has been super encouraging for the panelists to see female role models in roles they never thought possible.
How do you cope with your challenges?
Community: Break free from negative bias and make a new environment..
Be verbal: Share how smart you are. Let your work speak for you. And when you’re a leader, lead the change you want to see.
Value diversity: High performing teams are made up of different perspectives and backgrounds.
Find your pair: Partner with people whose strength is your weakness and vice versa. their strength is my weakness.
Passion: If you’re not passionate about what you do, how can you expect someone to be passionate about your successes? Find what drives you.
How do you deal with bad managers?
Leave: You need a good manager to have your back. They are supposed to help you and let you shine, so if you are able to leave their team, take the opportunity to do so.
Mentors: Make and keep mentorships to help guide you through these situations.
Give feedback: Especially if you are working in a flat organization— skip levels give feedback.
Why does the workforce look one way and why does leadership not look the same?
At the end of the day, some organizations have been better at recognizing the differences than others. Focus on working where the people who are there to want you to succeed. From there, you have the power to work your way up and change the ratios.
What types of roles tend to be open to someone who doesn’t have exact technical roles?
A panelist shared her story about her move from supply chain to project management and how her roles, overtime, become more technical due to her exposure to technical projects. Other panelists shared how they realized that you do not need to understand everything technical, but surround yourself with those who do, so you can both learn.
How did your prioritize your continuous learning?
It’s okay to fail while you figure out what to learn — there are a lot of online courses that are easy to start and explore, and it’s just as okay to stop part way and shift gears if it doesn’t feel right.
You have to learn to the style that makes the most sense to you — whether that’s through lectures, hands-on, or projects at work, pick a format that gets your committed and excited.
You can think about what aligns with your team or goals — address their pain points. Take assignments in work that makes you learn more or push you into subject areas you don’t know a lot about.
You can make progress while commuting or during a quick break — don’t wait for the perfect moment to start. Use every small time window and you’ll be surprised how quickly you move forward.
When you find something you really want to learn — work it into your development plan with your manager. You may be able to take time during the workday to work towards your goals this way. Also talk to you manager about integrating learning into your team culture via readouts or accountability partners.
Why does it seem like hiring managers only want people with a ton of experience?
Managers do need a range of experience to make a rounded out team — don’t let not having the perfect amount of years of experience stop you from applying. If you think you’ll be a good fit, apply!
How do you go about finding a mentor and how do mentors pick who to talk to?
Reminder: mentors don’t always have to be more senior than you — they could be a peer who knows a lot about a thing you want to learn.
Look more towards skills rather than someone who has been around a long time. Age does not mean they’re better, they’ve just been doing it longer. You can be picky — it’s okay.
Mentors and mentees need to both get something out of the partnership too. Think about what you can learn from one another. Everyone needs a personal cheerleader!
Thanks again to the Autodesk team for hosting Girl Geek X Dinner! We’d also like to share a very special thank you to Jessica Boyd who served as the organizer from Autodesk. As always, thank you to every single Girl Geek who attended and made the event one to remember.
Having FOMO about missing this event? Never fear — there’s plenty of upcoming sessions! Check out girlgeek.io to sign up for emails.
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Our Autodesk speakers from the evening:
Catherine Schulz, Senior Manager of Reliability Engineering
