A Micro-chat With A Digital Design Engineer
Here’s a one-of-a-kind micro-interview series
What is common to a random conversation over a cup of coffee, a simple yet alluring photograph, or a few lines of poetry/literature?
All of them have the power to change the world.
And that power is in you too. Every one of us has it. We may just not know how to channel it, where to channel it, and at times are unaware of our own contributions that help in the betterment of the society at large. But, with every little positive step you take, you are creating a ripple effect and making the world a better place.
Tech journalism was something I have always yearned to do, which I pursued in bits and pieces. Today, let me make it a well-structured reality with this series focused on creating awareness and expressing new perspectives that can instil that ripple effect.
A ‘Micro-chat’ is as unique as it can get. The basic idea is to present short, spontaneous conversations with meaningful takeaways and experiences in a structured way, that can be useful to all.
I was thinking about who I should interview first and then decided to reach out to Vijayalakshmi Swaminathan, one of the earliest contributors and supporters of The Research Nest, an alumnus of NIT Trichy and an aspiring woman in tech engineer, currently working in the field of ASIC digital design at Synopsis Inc.
She works in the hardware/electronics domain. We don’t often see perspectives coming from people with such backgrounds, unlike FAANG related content. So, I did reach out to her, and here’s a raw transcript of the insightful micro-chat we had. Read on to explore some interesting experiences and thoughts on work, life, and beyond.
Also, note that this is a super spontaneous conversation, something I hope to continue with all micro-chats, whenever possible. I haven’t prepared any questions beforehand and the answers are spontaneous too.
XQ: So, you have been in the corporate for over 1.5 years now. How do you feel being a woman in tech? Has the culture been supportive?
Viji: Hasn't been any different compared to the guys actually. I feel, at least at where I work, all are treated equally from the managerial sense. Learning opportunities have been the same. I have not been shunned because I don't belong to the majority gender.
XQ: Looks somewhat hopeful.
Viji: Yeah. This is in the corporate I work for. I am not sure about the other ones.
XQ: Next up, what’s the most challenging thing you have come across at work so far? How did you resolve it?
Viji: Right, so one really huge challenge was getting bugs out of the way and learning really complex protocols. In verification, we need to know the protocol and the design to some extent. Legacy and the new design both.
XQ: Same in my case (in software).
Viji: Most difficult was getting whatever test cases I am writing to pass and automation. I terribly failed in one of my automation projects. Churned out more than 18 hrs a day but it failed. A good learning experience to be honest. So the project passed on to a temp after my manager realized I was biting more than I can chew. That guy completed a photo finish. One small satisfaction was that he used my work as a fundamental and tweaked it on top of it. I won’t say the project passed on because I was a girl, more like I couldn't cope up with.
XQ: So, one thing I often notice is that students have certain expectations about jobs and work in general, but the actual everyday work is something very different.
Viji: Yeah, true that. I had no clue what was coming up. I didn't have any expectations either, as I had not done any pre-work research. However, one expectation I had on myself was to learn whatever I couldn't in my childhood. That got busted because of work schedules, lack of time off at work, and stuff.
XQ: For example, even I spend a lot of time with testing and stuff like that. However casual or mundane some tasks may be, there are pretty important in the grand scheme of things. If any, I think great software or products are built by slogging through all these miscellaneous tasks. What do you feel about it? Are you able to appreciate the work you do?
Viji: Okay, so some things I don't appreciate all too well. Sometimes I feel I don't get the opportunity to grow when releases are nearing (three months before a release) where we keep slogging on mundane stuff. I may not prefer looking at excel sheets and updating them all the time. I want to code and debug, maybe. For example, recently I had to check if a line in a code was being exercised across three different platforms. I had less motivation to do stuff like that.
XQ: Interesting. At the end of the day, the job needs to be done. This seems to have a similar effect as to developers testing their CSS on Internet Explorer!
Viji: But if I am given debugs or something to code that boils down to solving puzzles, I get interested and get it done. See, if it is sensible at least like me checking waveform or tweaking test cases to complete the ask of a designer it's ok. By checking waveform I learn something out of it like the protocol and tweaking test cases always helps in understanding the testing. Our testing is different from software testing I suppose?
XQ: I guess it is somewhat different but approaches may be similar. We also have automation, and test suites to pass and check if outputs are coming as expected.
Viji: Maybe..as I’m not aware I can’t comment. Here automation is a little minimal compared to you guys (software).
XQ: And then, there is scenario testing, most of which we do manually. It’s like assuming a certain scenario and simulating it (read, using the software in a certain way) and ensure nothing breaks.
Viji: I see. We use constrained randomization so that the device breaks. We all know the key motivation for a verification engineer is to make sure he/she breaks the design.
XQ: That said about work, let’s talk about the family side. Being a young working professional in India as a girl has its own challenges. What’s the greatest challenge you face at home?
Viji: A lot! That's the worse part. It is preferred at home if I quit and come back to Chennai. Sometimes, I feel that Bangalore is not for me. I am not mentally happy there, to be honest. That's why I like WFH. I get to do what I like, where I like. It suits me a lot!
XQ: What do you think about the WFH culture that has come up in general? Do you think married women and those with children will find it much better?
Viji: Married women may find it difficult as in India there is very little equality inside the home. Gender-biased roles don't suit women, married ones. They will have to juggle their chores and work. They find it difficult to do all that and hence prefer coming to the office. Sometimes, the office is like a refuge to them. They get to be away from the stuff they hate.
XQ: Hmm. I never thought that way…
Viji: For me personally, office spaces don’t fit well, I don't like confined iceboxes. Don't want to live and die in an icebox.
XQ: I see, a balanced tradeoff. What’s your take on working from a coworking space?
Viji: Coworking also I don't prefer. Because I want a lot of solace while working. I don't want any distractions.
XQ: Makes sense.
Viji: I like the comfort of working at home. If I get the work done anyway, it doesn’t matter if we work from the office or home.
XQ: So, WFH is good for you, for now. Btw, any updates on your future career plans?
Viji: Let's see where it goes. I am not really planning anything in life for now. Just looking at stuff like it comes as such. Working on my self peace. I want to get out of this rat race.
XQ: Every twenty-something person’s dream! That said, how have things been on the personal front, health, mental well-being, and with the whole covid pandemic?
Viji: Mental health has been bad since 2016. I have strained parental relationships. Personal front, I feel small compared to others but I feel if I start comparing I am running their race and not mine. Health, I would say is a lot better compared to the past 5 years.
XQ: Not many are open to talk about their mental health. I think we all should give some space for ourselves to think about such things. I hope things will be better soon. That said, I agree that comparisons are not worth it. We all run our own paths. Are we doing better than yesterday? If yes, we are on the right track. That’s all there is, and I generally find satisfaction in viewing it that way.
XQ: So, do you have any advice for young adults on dealing with their parents? I’m sure a lot of them face some sort of issue with them (women, to be specific).
Viji: Yeah. I got a lot braver. I realized you got nothing to fear. Most of us have inhibitions towards applying to opportunities only because parents won't agree.
XQ: Ah. I have known a few friends who felt the same.
Viji: I would suggest ppl to just do it anyway because-
- We don't know if we will succeed in getting the opportunity converted in the first case. So why bother before we get it.
- Once you apply and get it, convincing is easier because they will know all the opportunities it can provide.
- Get all the stats straight. When you come out, do not lie, try to be upfront.
If it is involving money or time or mental health, tell it out straight even if it bothers them, doesn't matter. I think we should first stop hurting ourselves internally. I told my parents the fees for all universities, the money I spent on my application, and everything even before I started on the process so that they don’t point at me. I did all my research and they saw me do it. I was on calls all-day.
XQ: This is a pretty useful mindset. I’ll take this as a key takeaway from this conversation. I guess I am done with my questions. Thanks for sharing your experiences and perspectives. Hopefully, it helps someone out there.
Note- All views expressed here are based on the personal experiences of the interviewee. While it may or may not be applicable in all contexts, I hope you find some good insights in the same.
If you want to further discuss the topics presented, you can reach out to Viji on LinkedIn.
Micro-chats is a series for the people, by the people, and of the people. People like you, the people around us. If you want to share your thoughts, experiences, ideas, work, and anything and everything in between through this medium, feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn.
This is an open series where everyone is welcome! Thank you for reading so far!
