What job did you want to do when you grew up? And they, as tradition dictated when they were little, wanted to be hairdressers, teachers, bakers. Women in SECO R&D didn’t have female role models to inspire them to have different dreams; technology seemed like a male-only interest.
Today, those little girls are the women of SECO’s R&D team. Tenacity and ambition have transformed them into Product Certification Specialists, R&D Software Quality Managers, SI&PI Simulation Specialists, and more.
We asked 10 of them how their love for the Research and Development field began. They spoke of curiosity, creativity, passion, and… flowering vegetables!
Subjects often considered cold, difficult, and male-dominated? Just stereotypes and gender biases, which have been long surpassed in cutting-edge realities like SECO.
Mathematics, for instance. “It has always been my best friend. It pushed me to find alternative paths where others often stop, and it helped me fall in love with the world around me. Did you know that Romanesco broccoli’s structure follows fractal theory?”
Subjects for the curious, those predisposed to think outside the box: “Creativity is a necessary component for developing cutting-edge solutions, for not settling for the present and always going beyond,” they explain now.
An ambitious, fascinating, and even seductive journey: “The continuous technological evolution presents obstacles for Women in SECO R&D to overcome and new challenges to face in order to achieve our goals. Every day is an adventure!”
Exceptions? No. Real-life examples. What’s needed is tenacity, determination, dynamism, but above all, “interest, passion, a desire to find original solutions.” This is the simple recipe they all unanimously offer.
Realizing your aspirations without being conditioned by the idea that there are things you can and cannot do: “The thought of not being up to the task or not being able to compete with colleagues should not and cannot deter women from pursuing a career in the scientific world, always striving for the best result.”
Professions for men? Not at all. “Let’s talk about people instead: capable individuals, whether male, female, brunette, or blonde, are the true value of our society. And I believe I can bring value wherever I go, even if I’m a woman with blonde hair.”
Looking for examples? Look to them. Rita, Martina, Erica, Marta, Cristina, Letizia, Costanza, Laura, Valentina, Sara, the women of SECO’s R&D team. Extraordinary, indeed. But they are also witnesses of a world that dispels false myths associated with being a woman.
Together, we can confidently face the future: at SECO, we build it every day with respect, dynamism, and passion.
