At the WomenTech Network we’re fortunate to have a wonderful, global community of ambassadors who help us spread the word about our work and especially our upcoming WomenTech Global Conference 2020. We would like you to meet these wonderful people as well; therefore, we’re going to be introducing you to some of our most active members.

Today, get to know Dilruba Malik:

Dilruba Malik is Software QA Manager, IoT Security at Palo Alto Networks. Dilruba has extensive experience in hands-on end-to-end software testing as well as leading and managing engineering teams. Dilruba graduated from Georgia Institute of Technology with a BS degree in Electrical Engineering. She also completed her MS degree in Engineering Management and Leadership from Santa Clara University. 

Dilruba is active in Women in Technology networks, speaking at events, and inspiring people. She enjoys acrylic painting and traveling in her free time. She has worked for both large and startup companies including Microsoft, Cisco, RetailNext, and Hitachi Vantara. Currently, she is interested to see what the future will look like after the pandemic, whether working from home will be universally accepted and what will effective collaboration be like for remote workers, as these might turn out to be the biggest challenges in tech today.

I’ve been working to empower women in various organizations such as Girls who Code, Women of Silicon Valley, Women in Tech International, and now I look forward to contributing to WomenTech Networks.  It’s all about recognizing strengths and celebrating the accomplishments of women in technology.  If even one woman is inspired by me and join the tech, I think my effort is worthwhile.

In Dilruba Malik’s Own Words:

• What is the best part of being a woman in the tech industry?

Being a woman in technology has its perks. I can be part of the positive impact on the industry. It’s exciting to see how my small moves help the organization for achieving its goal. I love seeing the quantifiable results of the projects that I and the team worked on. It helps to build my professional confidence.

Still there is not enough women representation in technology.  Encouraging other women to get into the technology industry inspires me. 

Professionally, as a woman in tech, I like to empower other women. I love consulting female coworkers and encouraging them to take new opportunities and how to seek a raise or promotion. I’ve been working with several networks,  girls who code, women of silicon valley, women in tech international, and now the WomenTech Network. It’s all about recognizing strengths and celebrating the accomplishments of women in technology.

• Do you think we need to be writing code to be in the tech industry?

Not everyone needs to write code to be in the technology industry. To be successful in the software development engineering role, yes one needs to know how to do coding. However, there are many different jobs, even within engineering disciplines, where one does not need to involve in day to day coding. There are program management, product management, application engineering, marketing, business, and technical sales-oriented jobs in any company that do not need coding. 

There are various types of technology companies where primary products are systems, hardware solutions, or tools. In those technical roles, one would need different engineering skills to depend on their specific areas. If the primary product is software, and someone's role is to closely tie with software developers, it is a good idea to know coding even if their day to day role is not writing codes.  

I advise one to identify her interest and start learning appropriate skills related to technology. It is better to focus on skills in a particular technology area where there is market demand and a lot of opportunities since technology keeps evolving very fast.  Nowadays, it is very easy to learn a new skill as we have Coursera, LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, and just go for it and try it out.

• How can women get the right support?

The ability to execute is important, however, I feel asking for support is far more important for women.  We need to be persistent, we have to be fearless for asking support as we need to be a success in our goals. Whether we want to get a visible critical project or we want a promotion or we need to have a mentor(s) who would champion us, we always need to be proactive. Even mom does not give milk to her baby until cries. 

Your manager or organization is busy with many things, business priorities, and urgent issues, the only way to get attention and support in this busy world is to ask persistently until you get it.