Nadine Bugeja

4th Mar 21 • 3 min read

Which is your favourite Gadget? (Phones don’t count)

My fitness tracker watch (Garmin watch)– every day, this gadget motivates/reminds me to move, run or walk - currently being the most useful piece of jewellery, especially during this pandemic situation.

Favourite mon éclat piece?

Gold midi hoops.

Favourite breakfast?

Cappuccino + Porridge with Strawberries and Seeds.

What inspires you most about the world of tech?

From a young age, I always liked the fact of developing something from scratch and being able to see the actual thing as a result – this was the reason why I choose Computer Engineering at University of Malta – and it was the beginning to explore the IT World.

Can you give us a brief summary of what your role is?

An ERP Technical Architect at Tipico, my daily tasks in a nutshell are:

• Analysing, designing and developing a financial Microsoft program,
• Managing daily issues and proposed changes raised internally by different users,
• Managing multiple projects, providing constant support and availability to users,
• Reviews and managing tight deadlines with the same level of professionalism by keeping an enthusiastic atmosphere within the team.

Throughout your studies and career, did you ever feel your gender made a difference in your’s and others’ perceptions or with your relationships with your colleagues?

Being a male dominated job and course at University of Malta, yes, I do think that there were some green subjects. I do remember when along with two university students, I had applied for a Robot Wars competition, which turned out to be a roller coaster of new experiences and emotions until we built a robot to completion. I do recall that we found lots of help from men too. I have worked with several people from different countries – mainly with men – but I did not encounter any situation where I felt I`m different because I`m a woman in IT.  I do believe that we need both!

Why do you think many women don’t opt for a career in tech?

Since most women associate jobs in IT more with men thus being a profession which is male dominated, most women think that a role in IT is a better “fit” for men. I believe that when gender stereotypes get attached to a job, it will surely affect and bias anyone who happens to study for a career in IT. 

Small message to all those young girls wondering whether a career in tech would be a good choice for them.

I believe that women can develop innovative and great solutions. Personally, studying computer engineering and working in IT – helped me “how to think” and to always “keep it simple”. Being a developer for several years – I can easily say that I have faced many bugs to fix – which is the most common jargon to any technical person in IT. Facing different challenges and issues made me what I am today, a problem-solving mindset – a skill that needs time to be correctly developed.  Although something may look impossible – there is always a way and a possible way in programming. I really like Steve Jobs quote that “Everybody should learn to program a computer, because it teaches you how to think.”