Interview

Could you please introduce yourself briefly in 2-3 sentences, your function and how you came to it (short biography).

With more than 15 years of experience in telecom and air traffic controlling area I am an engineer dealing now with Flight data systems. I am French and I did my studies in France at the public university and now working in Switzerland from 2007, and at Skyguide from 2016. I am currently n charge of writing requirements for a new Flight Data Processing system, configuring it and testing it.

What made you choose to embrace a technological profession?

I have a baccalaureate in economy and social sciences with a specialty in mathematics. It was the most generic to me at that time (I did not know which area I wanted to work in). After that, I choose mathematics and business intelligence area, I figured out this is what I would like to do during a short training period. Then I continued and after validating my master in engineering I had the opportunity to integrate Capgemini Telecom & Media in Paris where I was able to change paths again to code and test in software development.

You are one of the rare women working in the technical department as an engineer. On a daily basis, does it have an impact on you (or what are the positive and negative points being a woman in a male dominated environment)?

In my daily work there is no difference with “gender”. It can happen when I work with different colleagues outside of my team. Sometimes it could help, I have the feeling that some colleagues could be more open minded or understanding with me. On the other hand, my worst experience was when a colleague asked me at a beginning of a meeting to provide him with my CV. It might be related to the fact I am a woman, at least I considered that the colleague was old-fashion and very conservative.

As a mother of 3 children, you are also busy at home. How can Skyguide support you here, or where do you still see potential?

I don’t expect Skyguide to support me because I have 3 children at home. Only in the specific situation we faced with the Covid, I had to work as usual and teach my 3 kids, which was difficult. In the daily business, my colleagues are quite understanding if I have to take time off to take care of my kids (sometimes unexpectedly), and I do the same with them (some male colleagues have kids at home as well alone or/and their partner works). Otherwise, I am not sure that having kids has impact on my professional life.

If you could have dinner with an inspirational woman, dead or alive, who would she be and why?

Marie Paradis is the first lady arriving at the top of the Mont-Blanc, coming from a modest social background and helped by other colleagues to reach her goal. She was courageous, pioneer, humble and passionate.