In recognition of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day earlier in March, we’re taking a moment to pause and reflect on the importance of equality, diversity, and inclusion in an industry that’s begun to make progress toward solving this long-standing problem.
This year for International Women’s Day, participants are encouraged to “choose to challenge” gender bias and inequality and celebrate women’s achievements. The UN has a list of 12 small ways anyone can push for gender equality around the world.
INOC has an incredibly talented group of women that we work alongside every day, many in leadership positions throughout the company. We want to recognize all of them for their dedication, determination, and inspiration as we continue to advance the cause and make INOC the most successful and inclusive workplace it can be. Our leaders are always looking for new ways to ensure INOC continues to make progress toward meeting, and one day exceeding, expectations around equality in an industry that has a lot of work to do.
Below, the women of INOC share their thoughts on progress and opportunities around inclusions and equality here at INOC and in the broader IT industry.
Director of Client Integration, INOC
I took my first programming class in fifth grade. My mother was a math and computer science teacher, who set an example for me from the very start. That helped me realize later in life, “oh, I’m good at this—I can do this for a living!” I developed a background in IT and worked for years in the insurance industry, but I’m super excited to be here at INOC growing my core IT skillset by tackling exciting projects. I've always been on the services side of things. I like the process work and the customer interaction. As the Director of Client Integration, I'm trying to help all of our clients and customers and partners transition to new tools and use them to their fullest.
I’ve realized that while it seems simple, building everyday camaraderie is really important. Growing up, my father was a physical education teacher, and Mondays after a football game, the guys would always be talking about the Packers. Anything I said on that subject was completely discounted. It was frustrating because I followed the game just like they did. I had to actively change their perception to be heard and included. So while it’s certainly not on women to change themselves to fit into spaces dominated by men, flexing your expertise and putting yourself into conversations in a way that battles against biases and implicit attitudes are hugely important.
It’s been really refreshing to be in an organization that doesn’t ‘treat women as women.’ People are treated equally and respected regardless of who they are. I think that speaks loudly of our leadership because they clearly have the self-awareness to realize the need for change and make it an actual priority. Of course, there’s more to do, but more than many other IT organizations, we’re moving the needle in the right direction.
Embrace your differences and discover how they give you unique powers and abilities in your role. You are different and those differences should be seen as opportunities to excel no matter who you are. Don't minimize yourself to make others comfortable. Embrace it!
Client Experience Manager, INOC
I’m Alissa—the Client Experience Manager here at INOC. I’ve been with INOC for just over two years. I actually graduated with a geography degree with an emphasis in climatology. So one of my first jobs out of college was working at a small company here in Madison, Wisconsin that would install, configure, and train broadcast meteorologists on new weather graphics systems. I figured out very quickly that I was good with training, so I put my focus there. Over time, I worked my way into the IT industry, eventually transferring over to a large Fortune 500 company as a data center supervisor. And that's when everything from my background kind of synced together. I wanted to try out management and eventually came on board at INOC about two and a half years ago. I've been loving it. I love the client engagements that I'm involved with as well as the training and knowledge management aspects of my job—making sure that coworkers have the tools that they need to succeed. And I love the team that I work with.
Admittedly, it's hard sometimes. There is still a lot of work to do, but there’s no doubt that a lot has changed since my early days in IT—and that was many, many years ago. But I still come across, on occasion, certain individuals that will not work with me the way they work with male colleagues. Things are getting better, though. I have definitely seen improvement. But I sometimes feel like we have to work that much harder to gain that trust to prove that we know what we’re talking about. At the same time, it’s also a very exciting opportunity and it feels incredible to be the one making progress. It's so fascinating to see what we can do and be one of the organizations progressing in this area.
When I think about previous employers that didn’t make this a priority (or didn’t acknowledge it at all), I remember how hard it was. The difference is making any progress is huge. I’m encouraged to speak my mind here, even though my past experiences have made it incredibly difficult to do so. Simply being in an environment where I feel comfortable and valued as an individual is honestly a notable difference and a mark of progress itself.
The biggest advice I have for anybody is to be you, no matter who you are. Because when you're not authentically you, or you're trying to fit into some kind of a mold because you think that's what someone wants, that's where you start getting burned out and disaffected. If you're authentically you, you're going to succeed, you're going to find the resources, you're going to find the people who can support you to succeed.
Communications and Learning Manager, INOC
I'm the Communications and Learning Manager at INOC and I've been here for two years. I graduated college with a political science degree and worked in the Wisconsin Legislature for the first five years after school, which is interesting looking back because I really had no direct connection to the technology field when I came into the workforce. From there, I moved into project management in a government agency and then moved into a service desk management and business analysis role at that same agency. And I think that's what led me to INOC—the career turn into IT at that moment solidified the trajectory of my career.
When I was transitioning into that service desk management role at my previous job, I actually had a male executive suggest to me that I stop wearing dresses so the men on my team would take me more seriously. Like others have said, it’s the sense that you need to change who you are so people will accept and respect you. Many women still deal with this every day, and it’s often implicit—like assuming that a woman in a meeting is there to take notes and coordinate rather than taking the lead or doing the hands-on project work. These kinds of things lurk below the surface in ways that can be hard to pin down but need to be openly addressed and discussed. And it’s great to see that those discussions are happening and these issues are being acknowledged and changed.
The two newest departments at INOC, Client Integration and Client Experience, are both led by women. Both of these teams are having a huge impact on where we're going as a company. So it's very cool to see our women stepping into those roles and I look forward to seeing how we continue to build on this momentum moving forward. Another thing I love about INOC has to do with the culture and how it goes against some of the traditional perceptions about women in the workforce. I've definitely had that negative experience in previous workplaces, too, about being labeled as “too bold” or being “too outspoken.” But at INOC, I’ve been encouraged to be even bolder and more outspoken. That has been very refreshing for me, and I think INOC’s culture lends itself well to women being in leadership positions and having more influence in where the company is headed.
Look for opportunities to connect with and build up other women in IT. And, think of your differences as strengths; leverage them to offer new perspectives and skills that can improve your organization. IT is really an industry that thrives on diversity and a variety of backgrounds, and women have such a great opportunity to make an impact!
Platform Integration Application Engineer, INOC
I've worked at INOC for nine years now! It was just the NOC back then, so I started with a Service Desk role and progressed right alongside the company. Of course, the more I learned, the more I learned that I didn’t know—so my journey in IT here at INOC has helped me see and address a lot of blindspots. There's always something to learn or skills to sharpen. I'm currently working on the Platform Integration Team, which is a little bit different from where I started. Back then, I learned how to do alarms and kind of wanted to figure out how those come to us and how to configure them. Over time, I worked my way upstream to Platform Integration where I can actually plan how those systems should work and put them together.
At my previous role before INOC long ago, there was an occasional assumption that I was a secretary rather than a technician. But since I've moved into more technical roles, it's been interesting to see my work push those assumptions to the wayside. There’s a funny thing in IT where once someone starts talking tech, the assumptions start to fall away and people start listening no matter who is talking—most of the time, that is. The more I’ve immersed myself in the technical subject matter, the less bias I’ve encountered in conversations. That is to say, there’s more work to do so everyone can feel comfortable and equally respected regardless of their role. But it’s heartening to see that this progress isn’t always being met with hesitance. Most people see the value in bringing more people—and more kinds of people—together.
I can say right away that the number of women at INOC feels like it's doubled or more since I started. It's so nice to see more women coming to the company, and the company growing in general. We’re building on that momentum.
Like others have said, reach for your dreams. It doesn't matter if a woman has not been in that role before. All the more reason to pursue it. I mean, it’s easy for me to say because I’ve had a lot of women role models in my life (my grandmother was a chemist in the 1950s and both of my sisters are in the tech and the medical industry), but as someone who has stepped into roles like this, it’s incredibly rewarding and speaks to a bigger mission you can be proud of.
Scheduled Maintenance & Change Advisory Board Administrator, INOC
After getting a degree in science, I moved to Colorado and got involved in the tech industry there. When I saw the opportunities sprouting up closer to home in Madison, I found INOC and have been here ever since. As a detail-oriented person and someone who likes to solve problems, a company in the NOC space offers no shortage of opportunities for both. I started working on maintenance and that led to other roles to make things easier for INOC and its clients.
My experience has been really good here at INOC. I'm connecting with other women in the field and everyone is amazing at what they do. It’s kind of rare for everyone to be on the same page like they are here compared to other companies I’ve worked in. People here like to see each other succeed no matter who they are. I've had a lot of help and also been a helper to others, so I can attest to that attitude both ways. Unlike other IT organizations, women aren’t discouraged even slightly to speak up. The team we have at INOC is not afraid to go to others for new perspectives.
If you are unsure about anything, ask questions. This will help you learn what you need to, and also give you a chance to work together with your peers. If you make a mistake, do not be afraid to own up to it. That will get you immediate respect and shows your dedication to making things right. This all goes into reshaping the environment for the better. Don’t listen to preconceived ideas about how a situation might play out. Introduce yourself to new people and new situations, lead with kindness and respect, and expect just as much in return.
Partner Services Manager, INOC
I’m a Partner Services Manager and soon to be Client Services Manager here at INOC. Before my current role, I worked at a relatively large telecom company helping techs out in the field. That's kind of where I started my IT career. I've been with INOC going on four years now. I love the company and it's been great so far.
I came into my previous role with no IT background whatsoever. So, I had to learn a lot. But once I started picking it up, I could tell people seemed to hold onto what I didn’t know rather than realizing my growth and respecting how I’ve progressed. That’s a subtle, but very imposing roadblock especially for women in a male-dominated space. Mistakes or shortcomings are remembered while successes go ignored. That needs to change.
It’s been really rewarding and refreshing to be a part of a company that’s growing more diverse and inclusive as it grows in size, too. And I always say to my friends that are looking for a company to work for that have struggled with similar stuff in the past that you know, I'm at a great company.
Project Manager, INOC
This is my fifth month as a Project Manager here at INOC. I have an electrical engineering degree from UW-Madison and spent 25 years in manufacturing, focusing on power controls and information technologies, working for Procter and Gamble and Rockwell Automation. After a lot of travel and time away, I wanted to spend a little more time with my girls and my husband. So, I ended up going to American Family Insurance where I eventually made my way into the IT organization. The last two years there I was involved with the ITIL service management side of the business, so I got some great experience implementing tools and managing all the processes and projects related to them.
When I moved out of manufacturing and into the insurance world, it was the first time I found myself in an organization where, despite there being much more progress to be made, women led alongside men. Interestingly, it prompted me to look at my own biases and make sure I was building on that momentum without developing blindspots of my own. In any environment where progress is starting to be made, I think it’s really important to be thoughtful about how we can support each other and build on that progress while avoiding falling into the same biases or assumptions ourselves.
In the five months that I’ve been at INOC, I have been so impressed with how inclusive this team is. Maybe it's a little different when we're all virtually connected, but I've been very impressed with that. I’ve realized how willing I am to share my thoughts, ideas, and give and take feedback as honest and transparent. I’ve been able to contribute in that way and have good healthy conversations with everyone on the team.
My advice would be to reach out to those who are forging the path. I remember when I started in manufacturing, there was a woman who had been in the plant already for 10 years, which was unheard of at that time. She was an incredible resource and role model for me. She found ways to handle challenges and succeed in spite of them. I also think we can learn a lot from new folks who are just joining the team. They don't have some of those biases built into them, and can look at problems with fresh eyes. So, I think networking and supporting each other is the key advice I would give to folks coming into IT.