#IWD2019: Unyime Sarah Tommy — Focus on Excellence.

I’ve always loved computers and for some unexplainable reason, anything techy or computer related was easy for me to figure out. I realized early on that I didn’t struggle to work on computers and so, I decided that tech would be a better career choice as opposed to Medicine (which I wanted to study as a child).

I got into the university to study Information and Communication Engineering and that officially marked the beginning of my experience in a space dominated with men. However, I always believed that regardless of your gender, anyone can be successful — you just have to put your mind to it.

The truth is, you can’t be dominated when you’re shaking things up regardless of your gender. The one thing I believed in and still believe in is ‘excellence’. Excellence will always set you apart!

Was it challenging? Yes!, but my ideology made the process amazing and in spite of the challenges I faced, I ended up graduating tops in my class — with first class honors. Unfortunately, a first class degree didn’t automatically translate to having it all figured out.

After graduation, I really didn’t know which area I wanted to build my career in because as you know, IT is a vast field but instead of letting this confusion hold me down, I made the decision to keep an open yet focused mind. One day, I stumbled upon an opening, applied and got the job! “My first job… I thought to myself; …when next I’m filling a form, I can write Software Quality Assurance Analyst as my occupation”. It felt so damn good.

That role set the pace for me. It gave me first-hand professional experience in this technological world. But the best part was that women were department heads and doing really great stuff. Everyone was willing to help at every point and there was no ‘gender’ barrier in the roles or activities, rather, it was based on your ability to deliver. That solidified my belief in ‘Excellence. It will always set you apart regardless of your gender’.

I currently work at Korapay as Lead, Software Quality Assurance and I am more committed to delivering excellent results.

We do not have a gender-balanced industry just yet but I believe we are getting there. Every day, more and more women are beginning a journey in tech and it gladdens my heart because I know what we are capable of.

I am a woman. I work in Tech. I am not intimidated by anyone’s gender but rather inspired to consistently produce excellent results.