Who is
this diva?
Renée Liepins started out life as a costume designer, but she ended up fascinated by technology. She took a temporary job in the I.T. department of a large corporation just to make some money between design jobs. When the other women in the department allowed her to 'tag along' on their repair calls, Renee learned how to set up hardware and software for computers. She liked using her creativity as an artist to solve technical problems, and she enjoyed helping other people in the company.
Today, technology is Renee's full-time job. She manages her own I.T. team. Together, they help everyone in the company by keeping the computer systems running in five regional offices across the country. She has been promoted to four different positions within her company and has been given more responsibility with each promotion. While Renee is pleased that her company recognizes her good work, she says that she looks forward to learning more and more about the I.T. systems that her company uses. Since technology changes so rapidly, she's always learning something new.
What
do you do at work?
I am responsible for I.T. services
in six offices throughout the United States.
On a typical day, I am continually in contact with my
staff and the users in these offices to make sure that
all systems are running smoothly. Most of the time, I
will have a couple of special projects going on in one
or more offices which I will be tracking throughout the
day.
These projects might include reviewing new technologies
and determining the best ways to apply them to our company
as well as upgrading our existing systems to make them
more efficient.
I also negotiate contracts for telephone and I.T. services
and make sure that our budget is up-to-date. In a typical
day there are usually about five or more unexpected problems
that will need to be fixed right away so my schedule changes
very rapidly.
How does your job help other people?
My job helps people finish their work easily without a
lot of frustration caused by working with various computer
systems. Hopefully this means that they experience less
stress in the workplace, work fewer hours, and have more
time to spend with their families and doing things they
enjoy.
Do you work alone or with
a team?
I work for a global company with
seven offices in the United States. We often work together
to complete projects that affect our area.
I usually plan the projects and determine who would be
the best person to handle each section. I then develop
a timeline and make sure that everyone meets the deadlines.
I also work with I.T. people all over the world to maintain
our global email systems. I am one of the first people
contacted if there is a problem with email anywhere in
the world, and I work to solve the problem.
What's
the best part of your job?
The best part is trying to figure
out ways to make our systems work more efficiently. When
I am able to work within a team on a project, we always
seem to have fun.
When we are able to introduce a new technology that makes
everyone’s work easier, it makes me feel like I
really accomplished something.
What's
the worst part of your job?
The worst part is always being on
call. I never know when my pager will go off in the middle
of the night because of a systems emergency.
Where
do you see yourself in 10 years?
I would like to be in a slightly
more responsible position at a global level possibly within
my existing company or at another comparable one. I enjoy
the work that I do and am not looking to make any major
changes soon.
What
do you do when you're not at work?
I am married and like to spend
my time off going out with my husband and working on our
house. I also like to sew and spend time making and designing
clothing.
What advice would you give
a girl about the I.T. field?
I think the I.T. field needs more women! They are usually
able to look at new technologies as something that can
help people rather than just something that is cool to
play with.
Most of the women I know in I.T. seem to be able to organize
projects more effectively and to make sure that they are
accomplished on time.
Having a creative insight into a technical problem often
allows women to see a new way of solving it.
What
were your hobbies when you were 11-14?
I enjoyed reading, sewing, and painting. I was always
making something.
Describe technology you
wish was available now.
I would really like to have secure
wireless technology so that I could work from anywhere.
This would definitely help me in my job.
For a recreational item, I would like a good, inexpensive
e-book reader and for more books to be published in that
format. Then I would be able to read new books without
having to take up storage space on my bookshelves.
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