WomenInTech. "It's often harder for women to advance in their careers," — young women from Central Asia on the challenges of career growth in IT

Girls from Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan shared how they entered the IT field and discussed which stereotypes hinder women from achieving success. 

Kunduz Narynbekova, city — Bishkek, CEO of Inwork, @kunduz__narynbekova

About myself

Currently, I am fully engaged in developing the Inwork service. We help entrepreneurs automate the process of tracking employee working hours and provide timesheets and reports with a single click. My path is interesting: from the faculty of tourism, side jobs in a beauty salon to the IT sphere and startups.

I started as an Android developer, then moved into product management. A good start in this profession was an internship at Kolesa Group in Almaty. This direction interests me because I participate in all processes of creating, developing a product, from the idea to full implementation and monetization.  

While studying at school, I often saw that many students, after graduating and receiving a diploma, worked in completely different fields. This was surprising to me.

I strived to use every minute of my time as efficiently as possible.

The IT sphere attracted me because here I can achieve my goals through intelligence and perseverance.

I first learned about development from friends who showed me how a website is built. I was inspired! I borrowed my mom's work laptop and, following tutorials, created my first website in an hour. I liked the process of writing code. Since then, I began studying various directions in IT and choosing my own. For my parents, this was an unknown field, so they did not immediately support my idea.

First, I tried myself at the faculty of tourism, where I was not interested. That is how I finally understood that I wanted to go into IT.

How I entered the IT profession

I started with the profession of Android developer at Geeks courses. During my studies, I worked in a salon to support myself. I did not like the beauty sphere and soon left it. Then I worked as a sales manager at the IT school where I studied. I worked during the day and spent my evenings studying development. After completing the courses, I passed an internship at Beeline as an Android developer. At the same time, I worked on an outsourced basis.

Throughout this time, I constantly maintained contact with the Geeks courses. And when a new branch of the school opened, I was offered a position. Thus, I became the head of the Geeks IT school in the city of Osh. At first, I tried to combine the roles of developer and manager. It was difficult, so over time I completely shifted my focus to the development of the IT school. I gained invaluable experience as a manager and leader. Being the person who had gone through the learning path myself, I strived to make this path as comfortable as possible for my students and always supported them.  

I decided to develop further. Based on my experience and strengths, I chose the direction of product management. I looked for opportunities and passed an internship at Kolesa Group in Almaty. The internship became a great start and experience in this field because the training was rich and intensive. Thanks to this, I continue to develop in the field of product management to this day.

About stereotypes

On my path in IT, I often had to overcome stereotypes. As a female leader, I often heard phrases like: "This is men's work" or "You are a girl, you will soon get married and leave everything." I also did not escape the problem of ageism, as I became a leader at a fairly young age. Despite this, I worked hard, overcoming obstacles.

These difficulties did not prevent me from continuing to develop and improve. I continued to move forward, inspired by my goal and passion for work. Now, looking back, I see how far I have come. Today, I no longer encounter stereotypes — now I am surrounded by admiration and sincere interest in my path and achievements.

My story is proof that any obstacles can be overcome if you believe in yourself and do not stop at what has been achieved.

Obstacles for women in IT

Women, advancing their careers in IT, face a number of difficulties and obstacles. One of the key problems is the lack of women in leadership positions. The IT sphere is traditionally considered male, and there are few female leaders here. This creates a barrier to perceiving women as equal and capable leaders.

Age is considered an obstacle not only for women but also for many other people in IT. Young specialists may face distrust and prejudice due to lack of experience, despite their skills and knowledge.

It is also often heard that marriage and motherhood can become serious obstacles for women in IT. There is an opinion that women, after getting married or having children, will be forced to leave their careers or devote less time to them. These are stereotypes that, unfortunately, are still encountered, although there are many examples of successful women who combine career and family.

Recommendations for those just starting their path

Do not be afraid to take on more responsibility, as it brings valuable experience. Diligent work and proactivity will help you stand out and develop faster. Sincerely invest in your work, do more than expected, and continue learning to remain competitive. Develop professional networks and seek mentors who can help and guide you on the path to success.

Anel Karimgali, city — Almaty, project manager at tekmates, @mirvqle, linkedin

About myself

I have been working in the field of product development for four years now. Currently, I am a project manager at the outsourcing company tekmates. I like to find a balance between technical aspects and project management. We create products for various businesses. And working in different directions helps to develop and broaden horizons.

I started building my career at the age of 20, in my second year of undergraduate studies. I got a job at a call center of a commercial bank, and within a year received three promotions. First to a supervisor of the call center operator team, then to a manager for launching an additional communication channel with clients. This channel was Whatsapp and e-mail. Within three months, I built all the work processes of the platform and a team of more than 15 people. This gave results: we began to respond to clients three times faster, and solve their issues twice as fast.

My successes attracted the attention of the bank's business block. I was invited to the position of product owner in the field of investment gold and safes. I created strategies for products used by 1000 bank clients. Here I first encountered the product approach in development — it was exciting and gave valuable experience. Working in fintech gave me a solid professional foundation: I came to deeply understand regulations and figure out the specifics of financial technologies.

Then I moved to another bank for a more complex and interesting project. Over two years, I launched two new products of the ecosystem. I am especially proud that within a month my team developed an educational marketplace for a state program for financing and training IT specialists.

And now I work at tekmates. I joined the team because I wanted to gain new experience in product development — before that, I worked in-house. Currently, I have the opportunity to combine experience from different fields into one interesting product. This motivates me to continue developing.  

How I entered the IT profession

I got acquainted with IT even at school: in the sixth grade, I began studying olympiad programming in C++. I immediately became interested in this direction, started participating in various olympiads — this helped develop skills and deepen knowledge.

In the 10th grade, I became interested in robotics, where I awaited real success. I won in prestigious competitions: Hackday 2016, IOT Hackathon Microsoft, and World Robotics Olympiad 2017. These achievements once again made me understand — I am on the right path.  

About stereotypes

Personally, I have not encountered harsh negative stereotypes, but I have observed how they affected others. For example, at school olympiads, I often saw that mostly boys participated. And sometimes my achievements surprised people. Perhaps because they did not expect such results from a girl in the IT sphere.

Although I did not have to experience difficulties due to the pressure of stereotypes, I certainly know about them. Women often find it harder to advance in their careers. And false beliefs play a huge role in these difficulties.

For example, that women are less stress-resistant, so it is not worth giving them complex and large projects. Or that a woman is a more unstable employee because she might leave for maternity leave at an inconvenient moment.

Overall, a man does not have to choose between career and family. Whereas a woman is always at a crossroads and forced to sacrifice something.

Obstacles for women in IT

A new stage began in my life — marriage. And it seems that I will have to solve problems with the balance between work and personal life. Maintaining balance is important. The IT sphere is dynamic and labor-intensive. And if you do not take care of yourself, work can lead to burnout.

I plan to address issues before they arise. I try to plan time effectively, maintaining work-life balance. During working hours, I give 100%, and on weekends, I replenish my energy by completely distracting myself with my hobbies — I ride horses.

Recommendations for those just starting their path

I will give a few tips that help me create a wow effect:

— be persistent and purposeful. Career development in IT is a long-term process. You need to be patient and strive to become better. Do not be afraid to take bold steps and surprise others with your decisions. Believe: the glass ceiling does not actually exist

— do not be afraid of failures. The first steps will definitely be difficult, mistakes are inevitable. Do not be scared by failures, they are part of the learning and growth process. Draw lessons from your mistakes and move forward

— develop soft skills. In the modern world, not only technical skills are valued. People with good communication and leadership skills stand out.