MORE POWER - MORE DIVERSITY

Four years ago, as a career changer in the field of Business/IT - Consultant at ISD FENIQS GmbH, I did not expect that today I would be juggling the terms "LAN", "WAN" and "UC-Service" as a matter of course. After all, my professions as a bank clerk and my later job as a department manager of a fashion chain, were far from it. 

Today I support the project communication of a global IT infrastructure project at a large corporation. In order to ensure the flow of information between the various stakeholders, I had to familiarise myself with complex topics, which enabled me to acquire new specialist knowledge on a daily basis.  

Joining ISD FENIQS was made very easy for me. I became aware of ISD FENIQS through a project colleague during an exchange in the coffee kitchen. Four weeks later, I had my contract on the table via the "Colleagues Recruit Colleagues" programme. A lot has happened since then. With the help of the wide range of further training courses, my team leader and I found suitable courses for me. I now hold PRINCE2® Foundation, Professional Scrum Master and Professional Scrum Product Owner I certificates in my hands. "...and I am far from having reached the end..."  

This shows me again and again that you can do anything if you approach new tasks with an open mind and motivation and also think outside the box. It also took some courage for me at first to embark on these new paths. I am all the more proud that I dared to enter the world of IT. 

During my school years, my big dream was to become a lawyer, until I had to take the compulsory subject of computer science in the upper school. The 'compulsory' subject quickly turned into a passion for programming, which made me change my mind. Thus, I dedicated myself to the IT world and learned the profession of an IT systems clerk. 

As a woman, it was not always made easy for me in our industry, as I was rather the exception at that time. After a few stations in my role as Junior Account Manager, I took over the management role of the Sales Office. 

I came to ISD FENIQS GmbH after an initial personal contact via Xing. I accepted the invitation to a meeting with the managing director with anticipation. During the introductory meeting, the managing director presented me with several development opportunities, both professional and opportunistic.  

So I switched to ISD FENIQS. As an account manager in sales, I took over the management of the back office and a short time later the commercial management of software development. To this day, I have never regretted the change.  

In addition to my role as team leader, I have been able to apply my knowledge as a service and project manager for well-known customers. This career was only possible because ISD FENIQS invested in my further education and believed in me. 

After returning from parental leave, I was offered several options to rejoin the company. While I did not choose the easiest path, I was confident that with the support of my supervisors, I could follow any path to achieve the common goal of success. With the possibility of flexible working (e.g. home office) or the option to take my daughter to the office with me in case of emergency, I was able to start with a good feeling. 

This always confirms to me that I took the right path for me at that time. It doesn't matter how much you know about IT in detail, but that you are willing to adapt your goals to the changing future technologies and to convince with your strengths. 

As life goes, never say never. I had computer lessons at school and had to program on paper with Basic. It was the most boring subject I'd ever had and I swore to myself: computers and me are not going to work out, we're not friends. So I followed my passion for languages, and then a few years later I happened to end up in IT and got stuck there. 

Professionally, I have developed a lot, focusing on project management and obtaining the "Project Management Professional" certification from the PMI Institute. As a result, I now work as a project manager for a global pharmaceutical client, managing complex projects in the US, Costa Rica, France and Ireland from my home office. Every day is exciting and different and you grow from the challenges, especially since I implement projects without a technical background. It is important to have a quick grasp and to understand and pay attention to the dependencies. 

I came to ISD FENIQS by chance. As I had felt comfortable in my old company, I was not actively looking for a new challenge and did not have the courage for something new as I am a single mother. One day ISD FENIQS fell at my feet and I jumped at the chance. The application process was lean and fast, so I could hardly believe how easy it had been. Within a few months I was offered the position of team leader for the onsite team at our pharmaceutical client. The change was the right decision and I have never regretted it so far. 

Even though my passion is still the multicultural environment and languages, I am very happy to have gone the IT route, because I can also bring this strength to bear here. It is not important to have a love for technology, but to be open to new challenges and to approach new topics with commitment.