Julieanne Fleming
Technology Manager, Systems Engineering, Deloitte
The professional services industry offers a number of roles for women in technology — backed up with initiatives that promote and support their career progression.
These days, it’s not enough for companies to say they are championing and supporting their female employees. They must actively demonstrate their passion for doing so. If they can’t, new applicants simply won’t take them seriously, and look to join an organisation that can.
“Companies have to show what they are doing to make their people feel valued and fulfilled,” says Julieanne Fleming, Technology Manager, Systems Engineering with business and professional services network, Deloitte.
She points to a number of concrete support initiatives for Deloitte female staff, including its Women’s Initiative Network (WIN) — which, among other aims, seeks to advance more women into leadership roles — and mentorship and training schemes that advocate continuous learning and career progression.
More recently, Deloitte joined Connecting Women in Technology (CWIT), a network of tech companies in Ireland that collaborate to inspire more girls into STEM and to promote more women in the technology sector.
As a senior leader, part of Fleming’s role is to support the female talent on her team and ensure they receive the best career opportunities. “I get tremendous satisfaction from helping individuals overcome challenges and seeing them develop,” she says.
I suppose I thought a tech career would be lonely because I’d be siloed — but that’s not the case at all. It’s also a very creative environment.
Making an impact by leveraging technology
Yet when she began her career in technology, Fleming admits she had misconceptions about it. “It was only when I joined the firm’s undergraduate programme that I got a sense of what STEM truly is and what technology consulting could offer me,” she says. “Up to that point I suppose I thought a tech career would be lonely because I’d be siloed — but that’s not the case at all. It’s also a very creative environment. In my current role, I oversee digital transformation projects that enhance user experiences for a variety of clients. You don’t need to have a computer science degree. You can come from any sort of background and practically apply it to a role in consulting, for example.”
In fact, professional services offers a range of high-flying tech career opportunities, notes Fleming. After all, the whole sector is powered by it. “Take cyber-security, which makes sure that services are safe online,” she says. “Or transforming and helping businesses with data analytics. Then there’s system integration, digital strategy, software development and enterprise applications. There are a broad range of clients, too — from FTSE 100 firms to public sector organisations — so projects are many and varied. It’s gratifying to see the tangible impact we can make on a customer through leveraging technology.”
For more information visit: deloitte.ie/careers
