Critical Careers - Women Building Careers in Digital Infrastructure - Book - Page 84
Critical Careers
SENIOR LEADER
What have been the de昀椀ning decisions or
moments that shaped your career?
Most of the de昀椀ning moments in my career have happened almost by
accident. What really made the difference, however, is in what I chose to
do with those moments.
I studied to be an art historian, but realised that path was going to be
slow and I needed a job in the meantime. A friend introduced me to a
telecommunications company that was hiring. I took a leap of faith and
accepted a job offer. That decision to just say yes to something I didn’t
understand was the 昀椀rst real turning point.
Very quickly, I found my thing. There was no real training structure when
I started, so I created one and began training others. That’s where I really
found my voice. I loved being the person who could take something
complex and make it make sense.
From there, the career kind of built itself, but always around that same
thread. I moved into project work, then into customer-facing roles, then
into being the bridge between very technical teams and commercial
conversations. At each stage, I leaned into what I was naturally good at:
working with people, communicating clearly, and translating complexity.
One of my biggest transitional moments was moving into sales. It
was something I actively did not want to do and had classic imposter
syndrome around it. At the time, I really wanted to be in procurement. A
colleague helped me understand that if you want to be a good buyer, you
need to understand how to sell. And they were right. That experience not
only shaped my career for the next decade, it also forced me to step up
into bigger roles and 昀椀nd my con昀椀dence. Very quickly I realised I could
not only hold my own, but make a big impact in those roles.
Eva van
der Haar
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Over time, I’ve come to see that the so-called setbacks, like restructures,
unexpected changes, or roles not working out, can be just as important
because of what they teach you. Even taking what I thought was my
ideal move into procurement became one of those moments. It showed
me that the role I had been aiming for wasn’t actually where I thrived.
Understanding both what you do want and what you don’t can offer
clarity that can really shape your career.
