Meet the Hard Core Techie: Seema Lal Gulabrani, Associate GM, Sopra Group

Seema has a very heart-felt and inspirational story. She is a passionate techie and loves to keep herself updated with everything new in tech. She thinks women stay behind in tech due to various biases, but looking back at her experience she thinks that women make great programmers. Seema overcame many personal obstacles and setbacks to get to where she is today. HerStory takes a peak into her life.

Background

I have done my Masters in Computer Applications after which I got placed in a company called Fujitsu in Pune. Then I moved on to NIIT in Delhi. In both these places, I started as a software engineer. I spent 4 years at NIIT. After that I took a short break from the corporate world. During this phase, I spent time at a startup and consulted with small and medium businesses in Delhi. I worked in Java. Then I moved on to Sapient Technologies in Gurgaon for 2 years. I have been with Sopra since 2003. I started as a software engineer, and today I am senior lead architect.

I am pro techie. I have been in technology since day one. That has been my USP throughout my career. I knew that this is going to be a very long haul. And I am very happy where I am today. I was in for the long haul because of the passion for my job, and not for the designation or role.

Being a software architect

I architect software solutions for our clients based in Europe. Right from conceptualizing the product to getting it implemented to a phase where customers can use it, I work on the technology side if it. I handle multiple projects at the same time. I work with our engineering teams at an operational level daily.

Overcoming personal obstacles

My husband passed away when my sons were really young. I was devastated. In those days, it was even unthinkable to be a single mother in India. But I had my job; I could stand on my own feet. So I overcame the depression and took charge of my sons’ and my life. Though challenging at times, I would say I have been able to balance work and home. There may be times when the going is tough, , but moving ahead despite challenges is the key to success.

Women in technology

I want to see more women in hard-core technology. With technology, you have to keep yourself updated constantly. It is very fast paced, so it is exciting to be in technology. As you grow, it is especially important to stay informed, because you have teams that are looking up to you, you need their buy-in as a leader. For young women who are passionate about technology, there are enough role models out there, just go for it. I really love technology and so I am able to keep up with it.

I also see a trend where women are moving away from core development. Maybe women today don’t go into core development as much because of commitments at home and other biases. We need to up the ratio there.

Ambition

I would definitely like to be heading the technology of a company in 10 years.

Nothing is going stop you. Women have the capability to be in technology. Go for it, stay with it if you enjoy it.