Tag: being a woman in tech

Why an agile Product Owner or Scrum Master needs an Architect Buddy

In agileTags agile, agile framework, being a woman in tech, safe agile, scaled agile framework, scrum, top female engineer, women software engineer

What is a Technical Scrum Master(TSM) or Technical Product Owner(TPO)?

I have been hearing about these roles lately, and the concept has been floating around for some time. I assume the TPO or TSM would be someone with a background in tech or someone specifically trained in those areas who also fulfill the roles of Product Owners (PO) or Scrum Masters (SM) in an agile environment.

The call for the distinction seems to come more from POs and SMs working in software development environments. This could be because of the specialized nature of software engineering and the fact that tech companies often have an architecture unique to the product.

This brings the question though, does a scrum master need to be technical?

There are many answers, direct and nuanced, to this question. The most important factor would be the environment in which the Scrum Master is working. Then you would have to look at the architecture of the product. How many microservices. How many external APIs. How many vendor partners. Ultimately, the product and how much knowledge of the platform they need to facilitate results would be the deciding factor.

scrum master thinking joedian reid

Where the project is highly technical, with lots of moving parts and stakeholders, all with highly specialized skills, it may be helpful to be tech-savvy. My opinion is that that deep tech knowledge may still not be necessary. There are other factors such as the scrum teams themselves

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Using Criticism to Fuel Your Career

In CareerTags being a woman in tech, successful woman in tech, top female engineer, women in tech, women in tech jamaica, women software engineer

Criticism is as certain in life as oxygen is necessary for us to breathe, and in your professional life it is more important than ever. Not hearing any criticism about yourself could mean a couple of things. It could mean you are not conscious about what criticism sounds like or everyone is too scared of you to share what they really think. It does not mean you are perfect. Feedback on your professional activities, even as they relate to your relations in the office is important for the following reasons.

It highlights the public’s perception of you. What you think about yourself as you give your reflection the power talk every morning is one thing, but the real deal is how everyone else views you. Use any deviance in what you wish to portray and what is shown to correct the image you are trying to create.
It highlights areas that need improvement. Being the guru of everything is impossible, but the critical areas on which your company depends on you should be important if you want to succeed in that space. Find out what you are doing well and what areas you can improve on, do not wait until the yearly appraisal to get feedback.
It forces you to re-examine your goals. You may really love what you do but if it is not adding value to your life, and maybe your pocket, it may be time to re-evaluate. Take into account all the positives and negatives you have gathered about your work and use it as a guide as to what your true calling may be.

Don’t be afraid to receive feedback about yourself. Knowledge is power, and hearing the honest truth can

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The Buddy System

In NetworkingTags being a woman in tech, successful woman in tech, women in tech jamaica, women in technology, women software engineer

Women in Tech is just talk to a lot of people. Maybe of a particular gender.

It’s like when a professional woman says that there are gender issues in the technology field that need to be addressed, it automatically makes one party the ‘aggressor’ and the other the victim. This is not how this should be interpreted at all.

Let’s check the data below.

No alt text provided for this image

Original image here.

What should be an open dialogue on obvious gender disparities in the IT world then become ‘discussions’ as:

The other gender(s) doesn’t like being labeled as privileged, entitled, favored, or any other nice adjectives – especially if any career benefit they got recently was a passive ‘trickle-down’ from the Buddy System
As a woman, you could have gotten the same if you ‘tried a little harder’.

“I didn’t know you wanted the position. Why didn’t you ask for it?” Mr. Buddy System

“Why wasn’t it advertised?” Mrs. Not-a-Buddy

You must know of the Buddy System in some form, right? Tag-team to the bathroom, to get ice-cream around the corner, when in the pool – always. Maybe traditionally us as women were using it for ‘safety’ and no so much climbing the ranks.

In the IT professional world, the Buddy System has many names. You may have heard of:

Alliances
Past Student Associations
Old Boys/Girls Club
Drinks after work
Online game meet-up

Here you find polygamous pairings of people sharing important insider info, forming bonds, and lending a masculine hand to the other

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Benefit from the Mothers in your Office

In CareerTags being a woman in tech, leadership, mental health, successful woman in tech, women in tech jamaica

The past weekend my new adopted country celebrated Mother’s Day – I know way behind the rest of the world, but still. It got me thinking about my roles at work and at home and how they intertwine.

I am a mother. Not many people know this because I see fit to separate my home life from work as much as possible. That’s my way. If you choose to have a million photos in your cubicle, and every art project on your desk that’s your way (actually due to security constraints at my job that would be impossible).

Without seeing any of these ‘clues’ though there are many ways to tell when there is a mother in the group. We exude a persona that no matter how hard we try, may just keep reminding colleagues of their own mother – hopefully, this is a good thing. So, let’s look at some of the benefits of having a mother in the office group.

They Manage Risk

Often-times I have to tell my kid, “if you eat all the cookies now, there won’t be any for later”. Simple, rational, truth. Similarly in the office our, ‘think about later’ mentality can help mitigate risk and help find a long term and not just a temporary solution for a problem.

It’s like seeing a child galloping like an antelope through the play park, hair flying and shoelaces untied. You may shout ‘hey slow down’ minutes before they fall – later through tears, they will tell you they didn’t even think they were going that fast!

You can trust a mother’s judgement. Often times it comes from experiences and not just fear.

They Resolve Conflicts

Fighting over cookies

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Women in Tech – 2020

In CareerTags being a woman in tech, project manager, software engineer, successful woman in tech, top female engineer, woman in tech groups, woman in tech stories, women engineer, women in tech, women in tech jamaica, women in technology, women software engineer

What does it mean to be a part of ‘women in technology’? For me, it means being a woman in tech is about making space for other women to be in tech as well.

Ten years ago, if you asked me what it meant to have a ‘women in tech’ group and if there was any value in such an endeavor, I would have said no.

Women in Tech is Standard

Growing up in Jamaica, there were always women in power. We had a woman prime minister. We have the highest rates of women leaders in the world. Women comprised most of my university classes. Yes, I was

a Computer Science major, and the women outnumbered the men.

I saw no disparity or any tendency leaning towards a male-dominated field. Even when I started my career, a lot of my fellow workmates were women.

What changed? Moving to another country showed me that not every woman feels as comfortable going into tech. In some places in the world computer science is a male-oriented field and is dominated by males. There are women who are passing up a chance at a great paying career because their society does not appreciate the contribution they could make.

I spoke to young women who told me that guys would look down on them as a woman, downplaying their femininity, if they chose engineering subjects. What’s up with that crap?

Bring More Women to Tech

Now, I am certain women in tech groups are important. They’re not about the domination of any gender.

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Tag: being a woman in tech

Why an agile Product Owner or Scrum Master needs an Architect Buddy

Using Criticism to Fuel Your Career

The Buddy System

Benefit from the Mothers in your Office

They Manage Risk

They Resolve Conflicts

Women in Tech – 2020

Women in Tech is Standard

Bring More Women to Tech

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Joedian Reid

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