A successful woman in the IT world. Discover the story of Edyta Basiak
The beginning of April 2024 will be a special time for Edyta, Quality Assurance Manager at HL Tech. That’s when it will pass 5 years since she started working in the technology centre for a leader on the British financial market – Hargreaves Lansdown. What career path did she take to enjoy the respect and trust of colleagues today? What does the position of women leaders in the IT industry look like in her eyes? Read Edyta Basiak’ story.
Ladder to the technological peak
Edyta started her adventure with HL Tech as a manual tester in the mobile team. Within 3.5 years, she climbed the next career ladder: from junior to management positions. Today, she is responsible for implementing and maintaining quality standards related to the software delivery process in design and product teams.
While advancing in the internal structures of the company, she discovered how important it was for her to work with people, accompany them in carrying out various tasks and actively support them.
• Leadership is a big challenge. When I took on the role of a manager, I was afraid that managing teams, including delegating responsibilities and holding employees accountable for their performance, would be the most difficult for me – explains Edyta. – And I’m not saying it isn’t so. However, at the same time, the most pleasant thing in my opinion is empathising, being present, offering support tools to those who need it – she adds.
As she pursues her professional career and takes on newer challenges, Edyta can always count on the company’s support. There are situations when you need to change priorities and flexibly approach the hierarchy of tasks.
• I feel that trust in my competences and working in a good, friendly atmosphere help me to be fully effective and satisfied with the duties I perform. In addition, transparency, inclusivity and acceptance of diversity at HL Tech are completely amazing issues – emphasises the manager.
The IT world through woman’s eye and work-life balance
According to Edyta, the technology industry does not have only one, male face. Of course, there are still more men working in this sector, but it is women who are behind many programming achievements, both current and past (many of them were pioneers of computer science!).
• It is mainly women who bring soft skills to the industry, including the ability to communicate openly and intuition – an element of emotional intelligence, which is extremely important in interpersonal contacts – says Edyta.
The manager encourages women not only to fight for their position in the IT world, but also to develop their passions and fill their private lives with various forms of relaxation. There is no success without rest! For this purpose, Edyta, among others, listens to opera music – mainly baroque, goes to the theatre, reads and cooks. To break away from her duties and get a dose of exercise, she also walks her dog.
HL Tech supports Edyta in her pursuit of life-work balance, enabling her to work flexible hours. The manager arranges her calendar in such a way as to obtain two additional days off per month. She uses this time to take a break from her professional duties.
The speaker with a passion for communicating knowledge
As part of developing her skills and gaining further professional experience, Edyta actively participates in conferences, forums and other technological events. One of them was QA Meetup – an informal meeting for testers – organised last year by HL Tech in Warsaw. Our heroine then shared her experience in exploratory testing with the audience.
That event motivated her to get involved in giving lectures and technological lectures, to which she began to regularly receive invitations. She has already appeared as a speaker, among others: in front of the IT community in Lublin, she also appeared at meetings of WarsawQA – Warsaw Quality Assurance Group.
Edyta believes that the knowledge shared at conferences has the power to change reality for better – that is why she does it with undisguised joy and satisfaction.
From education to the technology industry – don’t be afraid of changes!
Before starting her career in the IT industry, Edyta’s fulfillments, among others, as a translator and university lecturer. Her experience in transferring knowledge, excellent expertise of English, analytical thinking, accuracy, thoroughness and attention to details allowed her to easily find her place in another professional environment. But why in IT?
• At some point in my life I felt the need for new challenges and further development. My motivation was to accidentally read an article about women in their 40s trying their hand at IT. This inspired me to change! I prepared to take up a new profession in a methodical way. First, I verified my predispositions using the Gallup test, then, among others, I participated in various thematic webinars and tester meetups. Before I received the position at HL Tech, I attended a bootcamp where I met wonderful instructors and mentors, who supported me in looking for my first job.
Edyta greatly appreciates the assistance she received on her career change path from more experienced people she met. She also has some advice for women who want to change their career path and apply for a job in the IT industry.
• The IT industry is complex and the entry level is certainly high. But women, especially mothers, have competences and skills that will help them. These are flexibility, the ability to respond to changes in contexts, and continuous improvement. I would advise women to be more assertive, communicate better and focus on their strengths – says the leader.
It also emphasises the great importance of theoretical and practical preparation for changing the industry.
• For women who are thinking about a developer position, I would suggest signing up, for example, for a free course on the basics of programming. I will add that it is also worth creating an account on GitHub and implementing trial projects there – adds Edyta.
In addition to practical skills, it is also worth developing self-confidence, methodical approach and the ability to manage projects or your own time. Other women can help with all of these! In the IT world, women’s support projects are developing extremely dynamically. Women should talk to each other and exchange experiences – then their path to success will certainly be less bumpy.