By Amanda N. Wegner
Female engineers have a stronghold in the software programming and development space. Here five female engineers either working directly in the programming and development space or overseeing teams doing this work share their insight in the field and how to develop career success.
Lawson Builds a Career at Microsoft & a Community with Rewriting the Code
With Microsoft full-time for about a year, Anaïs Lawson was attracted to the company for its culture.
“I started as an intern and appreciate the community I was able to build,” says Lawson. “One of the CEO’s mottos is ‘One Microsoft.’ I’m not sure of his definition, but, from my understanding, we might come from different backgrounds, but we’re one big community that’s come together to learn, grow, and succeed. In my internship, and, now, in my full-time role, I’ve been allowed to learn and grow from others.”
Lawson is a software engineer under Xbox. She previously worked with the game studios to get test coverage, testing their games on the Xbox system. Now her work is more focused on front-end development. In this capacity, she works with project managers and designers on the website PlayFab, a back-end platform where developers can build and operate live games.
Lawson is also a board member of Rewriting the Code, the largest peer-to-peer network of women in tech, providing support, mentorship, and education. She was first introduced to the organization in college in 2019 when she applied as a fellow and later participated in the group’s Black Wings Hackathon, which brings together Black women in tech.
“I was so fascinated by the group’s leadership, and I applied to be a leader for the following year,” she recalls.
As a board member post-graduation, she continues to be hands-on and active with Rewriting the Code’s early-career community in New York, NY.
As such, for career success, Lawson highly recommends having a mentor. “It was pivotal in my experience,” she says about having a mentor.
“At first, I didn’t know what it entailed or who to talk to about [being a mentor]. But I was very fortunate to be in spaces and have opportunities to get mentors more naturally who I’ve had by my side since freshman year and to this point,” she shares.
“Their guidance and conversation helped me get to where I am today. I come from a low-income background, and I didn’t have that many resources to be successful. It’s important to have guidance to enter and be in these spaces.”
And Lawson was especially excited when she recently received a LinkedIn request asking to be someone’s mentor.
To prepare for the technology field, Lawson highlights the importance of community. “I wholeheartedly believe in having a community in a space like tech. Tech is making great strides in inclusion and diversity so you don’t feel like you’re the only one in the room, but there will still be times when you need that group around you.”
Joining a group like Rewriting the Code is one way to find that community with other women in tech, as well as to network, and to find internship and job opportunities.
“A lot of women want that sense of community,” indicates Lawson, “and Rewriting the Code can be a valuable resource.”
Microsoft is headquartered in Redmond, WA. Find career opportunities at careers.microsoft.com. Connect on Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit and X. And learn more about Rewriting the Code at rewritingthecode.org, and connect on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Kroge Delivers Operational Excellence at NCR Voyix
As the vice president of operational excellence at NCR Voyix, Jennie Kroge develops and implements operational strategies that streamline processes, drive efficiency, and elevate performance across the organization.
“I lead global, cross-functional teams to evaluate challenges and deploy solutions across our end-to-end operational fulfillment model to improve our customer experience – from the products we design and deliver to the remote and on-site engineering services we provide throughout the product life cycle,” describes Kroge.
Last year, she led a significant portion of a major initiative to divide the company into two prominent, publicly traded entities: NCR Voyix and NCR Atleos. For nearly a year, the team managed the intricate process of separating 17,000-plus employees from 72 countries across various functions.
“Additionally,” she indicates, “we replicated and disentangled legacy processes and systems, facilitating a successful transition and empowering two distinct operational teams to thrive independently.”
Kroge joined NCR two years ago, and was enticed by its dynamic culture of innovation, career advancement opportunities, and, most importantly, its talented workforce.
“At NCR Voyix, we’re shaping the future of commerce, providing cutting-edge digital solutions for retail, restaurant and digital banking industries worldwide,” notes Kroge. “Our collective focus on delivering exceptional customer experiences makes this an incredibly exciting place to work. Additionally, I’m constantly inspired by the supportive leadership and colleagues who empower me to excel every day.”
A piece of advice that’s stuck with Kroge is to take charge of your own career journey from the outset. “By actively building relationships and seizing opportunities for growth, I’ve learned that professional success hinges not only on delivering outstanding work, but also on cultivating a strong network of advocates who will champion your career progression.”
She also advises about the importance of being flexible. Following college, Kroge explains, she discovered and embraced broader career opportunities beyond her initial academic focus of civil engineering. And before joining NCR, her experiences at GE and Equifax equipped her with expertise in various domains, from operations and product management to risk and compliance.
“Through these experiences, I grew my capabilities in business transformation, and ignited a passion for driving efficient and effective processes and systems on a global scale. In a practical sense, my career has aligned more closely with that of an industrial engineer,” she concludes.
“My advice? Don’t confine your career path to your degree – embrace your passions, remain adaptable, and let your experiences shape your journey.”
NCR Voyix is headquartered in Atlanta, GA. Find career opportunities at ncrvoyix.com/company/careers. Connect on Facebook, X and LinkedIn.
Batra Leads GitHub Developers in Solving Customer Issues, Supporting Engineering Systems
As a vice president of engineering at GitHub, Neha Batra helps lead a team of developers as they solve customer problems and support engineering systems.
“To effectively support an engineering team as large and specialized as ours, a big part of my job is thinking about how to set up systems so people have autonomy for how they run their teams while ensuring we all move our teams in the same direction,” indicates Batra.
With GitHub for six years, she was drawn to the company for the chance to lower the barrier to entry for new technologists and help developers solve problems and be more productive.
“And I’ve gotten to do all of that and more from the manager, director, and vice president role for both the open-source community and developer teams within enterprise environments!” she enthuses.
As the home of the world’s developers, GitHub aims to enable developers of all skills and backgrounds to collaborate, share knowledge, and push boundaries together.
“Our company culture reflects this ethos in how we work together to solve challenging problems and generate new ideas, a manifestation of our open-source roots,” explains Batra.
“I love our culture of experimentation and the encouragement to explore different roles – GitHub always has interesting work and fresh opportunities for those who want to try new things.”
Batra recommends choosing depth over breadth for success in engineering: “Deep subject-matter expertise can help you level up, especially when you’re trying to get promoted to senior-level engineering positions.”
Additionally, for woman and non-men engineers, she adds that it’s crucial to have a support network, or “pit crew,” to help navigate the inevitable microaggressions that will add up over time.
“It’s not your fault; when people are pushed to make quick decisions, they often fall into heuristics and shortcuts that rely on unconscious bias, resulting in unfair decisions against non-men, people of color, and other marginalized groups. When you’re on the receiving end of this, it’s hard to confirm and process alone, so it’s valuable to have allies and non-men in your pit crew to lean on for validation and resilience. I’ve personally found this support system critical for success,” says Batra.
One of her proudest accomplishments is helping people recognize their potential and overcome self-doubt, which others have also helped her do.
“Early in my career, I doubted myself, too. I was risk-averse and hesitant to speak up. After a few years at GitHub, my manager at the time gave me feedback that I could take more risks, and even though initially I argued with her that I couldn’t, I trusted her, so I started taking more calculated risks to gauge if my fears were real. It turns out my fears weren’t real – and now I have more trust in myself and a much better understanding of when to speak up and when to take risks, which is often required to nudge progress forward,” she elaborates.
As an engineering leader, Batra constantly seeks opportunities to pay it forward and guide others in changing their narrative. “Watching people overcome their limitations and worries are my favorite moments, and they’re worth their weight in gold,” she shares.
GitHub is headquartered in San Francisco, CA. Find career opportunities at github.careers/careers-home. Connect on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Twitch and TikTok.
Gorr Brings Her Technical Knowledge & Creative Mind to MathWorks
As the principal MATLAB product marketing manager at MathWorks, Heather Gorr, Ph.D. brings together her technical knowledge, teaching experience, and creative side to share MATLAB and the science of artificial intelligence (AI) with the world through educational content creation.
Gorr explains that she used MATLAB, a programming and numeric computing platform used by engineers and scientists to analyze data, develop algorithms, and create models, “a lot” while working on her doctoral degree in physics, which all included doing machine learning and AI work.
“I was hired for MathWorks because of that experience, and because of the fact that I was teaching and presenting about these topics,” recalls Gorr.
“It led naturally to what I do now, which is creating videos and blog posts and acting as a subject-matter expert for podcasts and different interviews for the company on behalf of the software.”
Recently, Gorr worked with a colleague to deliver a live introduction to AI webinar for users. “This was for scientists, engineers, and folks who are hearing all sorts of things about AI and maybe even need to implement it into their work,” she indicates.
“It was a great session because we did it live and could answer questions and provide the advice and guidance people needed. It’s a good example of the kind of project that encompasses the different things that I work daily.”
With MathWorks for 11 years, Gorr was attracted to the company for its “academic atmosphere.” She indicates that while the assumption is that most traditional software companies are focused solely on profits above all else, MathWorks commits significant resources to educating and supporting engineers and researchers to speed the pace of innovation.
“There’s a real focus on enabling people to do good research, good mathematics, and good science, and on forwarding that science and discovery,” she adds.
Gorr also appreciates the company’s ethical stance and social mission; for instance, MathWorks will match 100% of the donations employees contribute to valid organizations. The company even hosts a fair each year where staff talk about the causes they care about and can try to raise money to support their causes.
To that end, she’s a passionate advocate of the Algorithmic Justice League, which works to ensure AI decisions are ethical, and not biased or harmful. She’s raised thousands of dollars each year for the organization thanks to the support of MathWorks.
“There’s a lot of wonderful support for the community, the world at large, and for the people who work for MathWorks and their passions,” she notes.
Regarding career success, the best advice Gorr has received is simply this: just apply.
“Somebody had mentioned to me that if you don’t apply, you’re already disqualifying yourself,” recalls Gorr. “It’s easy to look at all of the qualifications or bullet points, and think you don’t have it. But you’ve spent so much time and effort learning what you know. Just go for it. It doesn’t hurt. Apply and believe in yourself.”
In addition, keep an open mind for different types of positions. “I wouldn’t have imagined myself in marketing when I was getting my Ph.D., but it turned out to be an incredible fit for my general skill set. Keep an open mind, as you’re always learning [as] you might learn even more about yourself and how you fit into this world.”
That also reflects advice Gorr would give her younger self: bring your whole self to what you do. Gorr is also a musician and realizes that while in school, she compartmentalized her artistic and technical selves. “Those were always separated, but it turns out it was actually brilliant [to bring them together],” she notes.
MathWorks is headquartered in Natick, MA. Find career opportunities at mathworks.com/careers. Connect on Facebook, X, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Lawrence Delivers Engineering Solutions for Cognizant Clients
As a lead software engineer at Cognizant, Elizabeth Lawrence is responsible for mapping existing function, identifying solutions for proposed features, breaking down solutions into tasks, facilitating task assignments, coordinating cross-team communications, and communicating with business leadership.
Recently, Lawrence completed a project with a digital banking and payment services company for which the Cognizant team was in charge of various orchestration services that routed requests to downstream services.
With the company for four years now, she was particularly drawn to Cognizant. “I saw a pathway to quicker professional growth through challenging assignments with some of the world’s largest and most innovative companies,” she elaborates.
Lawrence secured her current job by constantly learning and helping others, and by not fearing the unknown. “I volunteer for challenging project tasks, take meticulous notes, and use that information to create training documents for ‘past me’ so they can be used to train others who are also starting out,” she notes.
“I also proactively share my knowledge and enjoy mentoring others. By learning to speak up in meetings and making sure I provide at least some input, it prompts further discussion that reinforces my technical knowledge.”
What makes Cognizant a great place to work, according to Lawrence, is its commitment to cultivating a supportive work environment in which employees feel valued, are engaged, and have the chance to develop and succeed.
“I appreciate the project and pod managers who advocate for my professional growth,” she reflects. “I have plentiful training opportunities to expand not only my technical skills, but to also expand my leadership and team management skills.”
Lawrence offers some advice to young professionals. To start, don’t let self-doubt in your knowledge or abilities affect your confidence. “You got this!” she encourages.
For young engineers still in school, she further advises taking a debate class to learn how to better organize your findings and recommendations into a cohesive point of view and communicate them more confidently.
Cognizant is headquartered in Teaneck, NJ. Find career opportunities at careers.cognizant.com. Connect on LinkedIn, X, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Developing a Successful Career
Nearly every company has tech needs – and those needs are growing as technology continues to advance at a rapid pace. In an era where digital transformation is no longer a luxury, but a necessity, the spotlight is directly and brightly on information technology (IT) professionals.
As leading companies across industries push for further adoption of digital technologies, IT professionals, especially software developers and programmers, have become some of the most in-demand members of today’s workforce, especially since software development is the invisible hand behind this digital magic, transforming ideas into the tools that shape our lives. Software development is the process of creating, designing, deploying, and supporting software. It includes all of the computer activities between the software’s conception and final manifestation.
Indeed, software development plays a vital role as tech companies spend exponentially on research and development (R&D). In fact, as a result, the software sector, as an integral part of the IT market, has seen rapid growth lately. While the IT sector is expected to now surpass its pre-global coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic position, boasting an estimated Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5%, the software development market is expected “to reach $1039 million by 2027,” notes Radix, with a CAGR of $22.54% through 2027.
Meanwhile, 84.7% of software development projects are based on enterprise applications, 53.6% of software development projects are based on business automation, and 38.50% are eCommerce.
As such, the worldwide population of software developers is expected to reach 28.7 million by the end of 2024. This is a straight rise of 3.2 million in a span of four years. There are almost 4.3 million software developers currently in the U.S.
And according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), demand for software programmers and developers is a whopping 25% between now and 2032, and the median salary is $132,270.
To develop a success career in software, knowing, using, and leveraging programming languages such as JavaScript and C++ are used to create software is key, noting that JavaScript is the most popular programming language in 2023 and is used by roughly 65% of software developers.
Captions & Callouts:
Anaïs Lawson is a software engineer under Xbox at Microsoft.
“I wholeheartedly believe in having a community in a space like tech. Tech is making great strides in inclusion and diversity so you don’t feel like you’re the only one in the room, but there will still be times when you need that group around you.”
Jennie Kroge is the vice president of operational excellence at NCR Voyix.
“By actively building relationships and seizing opportunities for growth, I’ve learned that professional success hinges not only on delivering outstanding work, but also on cultivating a strong network of advocates who will champion your career progression.”
Neha Batra is a vice president of engineering at GitHub.
“Deep subject-matter expertise can help you level up, especially when you’re trying to get promoted to senior-level engineering positions.”
Heather Gorr, Ph.D. is the principal MATLAB product marketing manager at MathWorks.
“It’s easy to look at all of the qualifications or bullet points, and think you don’t have it. But you’ve spent so much time and effort learning what you know. Just go for it. It doesn’t hurt. Apply and believe in yourself.”
Elizabeth Lawrence is a lead software engineer at Cognizant.
“I appreciate the project and pod managers who advocate for my professional growth. I have plentiful training opportunities to expand not only my technical skills, but to also expand my leadership and team management skills.”