Some women have discovered their passion for STEM later in their lives which resulted in changing their career paths. Others knew since they were little that science and technology have been the areas they wanted to pursue. Nadège Faralli, a Business Analyst with strong technical background, is one of the latter. Nadège has moved from France to Switzerland and now works for CreativMinds.
What do you like about your job?
Since I was young, I always wanted to work in STEM. That’s why I’ve chosen a school which could help me to obtain a Master Degree in Computer Science / Robotic & Artificial Intelligence. My studies were very interesting, I’ve had the opportunity to learn a lot in some innovative technical areas such as AI, which clearly were not as known as they are today. I did my studies in apprenticeship, that made me also quickly learn several technologies and their application in a real enterprise context. I’ve had the chance to work for multiple services companies and see several different kinds of businesses. It was interesting to understand each business and find solutions to help clients in solving their problems.
Why have you decided to pursue a career in this field? What was your inspiration?
I have always been attracted to the technical field. When I was younger, I loved to play with Lego, Mecano, making DIY. I wanted to build-up real things and see it in action. When I was 6, my school teacher brought us a small robot with the shape of a turtle. He asked us to make this robot move and follow a path to reach a target. It was my first time in programming. It changed my life 😊. My father was also working in computer science, but more in the infrastructure part. It really helped me to find my path.
Do you have role models?
In fact, not really. I early knew what I wanted to do, so I followed my own path.
Did you have a turning point in your career?
Well, I’ve changed roles quite often in my career. I started my career as an automation developer, working in factory plant, programming machines to create products. I’ve had the opportunity to move to supervision developer, programming automation’s supervisions (in PHP) to manage multiple automations in a single place.
Then, I’ve changed my job again to design and implement custom applications to gather and analyze automation’s data with the idea of improving the production of product & their quality, also simplifying the maintenance; I’ve switched to a consulting role when moving to Switzerland a few years ago, when I specialized in the design & implement of collaborative tools for my clients.
But the real turning point in my career is when I switched from a technical consulting role to a functional specialist role working with the business stakeholders. Ever since then, I have been an experienced Business Analyst & digital strategist, and consider myself technology agnostic since I can work with any type of technologies and platforms.
What do you think is one example of one way you have enjoyed your human rights, in learning or at work?
I have made my studies in France and my parents always supported me in my career choices. I have been very lucky.
In another country, in another family, at another time I would certainly not be able to join a technical path.
Are there any challenges facing women in your educational or work settings, and if so, what do you see as one possible solution?
I started my technical studies at the age of 16. I’ve never faced any issues. But still, it was really challenging to be a girl in a boy’s environment during a teenage time. As a girl, I had to be strong and show that I had my place in this kind of technical field.
The only “issue” I faced was when I was looking for the right school, I wasn’t really getting any help at this time. Some of my teachers tried to persuade me to avoid choosing a technical path. This was 20 years ago and hopefully, things may have changed by now.
What is one piece of advice you would give someone just starting in your field?
Don’t listen to people who try to make you change your mind. Trust yourself and follow the path you want.
Find a mentor who can help you progress quickly.