Hi Flora, thanks for taking the time to talk about your time here. Lets kick off with, what made you join Praesto as a Consultant?
When I joined I’d recently completed a Masters in Big Data Analytics, after graduating from the University of Birmingham with a degree in Mathematics and I was looking for a role that would give me the right challenge but also I was looking to work somewhere I would feel supported, somewhere that would help me develop in my career. After a couple of meetings with the Praesto team I realised that was what I would get and so I joined.
What does your role at Praesto involve?
I work as a Senior Consultant having joined the company 2 years ago as a Consultant. The great thing about consultancy is the variety of work and industries you are exposed to. Currently I deliver Business Intelligence projects for our clients. One of my clients is a global media company based in the UK and USA. Most of the projects I deliver are for a team in the US which means regular trips there to work onsite.
What do you enjoy most about your role at Praesto?
The projects I deliver are really challenging. I’ve been able to give the client something they’d wanted for years but hadn’t achieved themselves. The team I work with are awesome and give me some interesting requirements. I’m helping the finance and sales functions use business intelligence tools to manage their global advertising business so it’s critical that I build and manage a solution that delivers value for them as it helps them make important decisions.
It sounds like you’re pretty happy with your career choice?
Yeah, it’s been great so far. I really like working at Praesto Consulting, as well as the interesting work there is a great social scene. We have a monthly social where we pick an activity for a get together. We also have an annual overseas conference; we go skiing for the weekend somewhere in Europe. The company is small enough for everyone to know each other which creates a great team spirit. There are some real perks to working here.
Sounds good, anything else?
I’m really pleased with how my career has progressed, Praesto is great at supporting new members of the team. I moved from Consultant to Senior Consultant following a development path that was clearly set out for me. The process is fair, the management team run a promotion panel following a recommendation from a peer. Part of the panel selection process is to demonstrate what technical, company and consultancy improvements you’ve made in the period, I think this reflects a lot about Praesto and the company’s mentality around helping each other and helping our clients.
Do you feel that there are misconceptions about women working in roles like yours?
Yes, I was aware of the difficulties I could be facing as a woman in the tech industry, but during my time at Praesto, I have never felt disadvantaged or experienced any discrimination. There are several other women working at Praesto and I’ve found it to be a very inclusive place where anyone can thrive. Our team here is diverse and that’s a credit to the management team who clearly put a lot of effort into hiring the right people.
Would you offer any advice to women looking to work in roles like yours?
I think my advice would be to find a place to work that’s going to help you develop and get to grips with challenging work. These places do exist. The world of technology is changing massively with women taking on more prominent leadership roles so now is an exciting time to get into tech roles for women who are graduating and looking for a career.