Speaking to B&T, Aimee Gossage of Quantcast shares her opinions on the significance of shifting views on gender bias and technology.
Aimee Gossage, Queensland Sales Director at Quantcast, has had a career full of challenges that have helped her come out the other side as a better, wiser and kinder person, both with others and herself.
According to Aimee, there are indeed stereotypes that need to be challenged in the tech industry so that it can become more welcoming, not just for women, but for people of all types.
She also discusses how she dealt with the challenges of remote working before it was even a thing and how motherhood changed everything she thought she knew about herself.
B&T: Why is it important to you to support Women Leading Tech?
AG: I’ve been working in technology for the last seven-or-so years and I think it’s important to continue to support women leading tech for a couple of reasons.
The definition has typically stopped people from entering the industry, so I think being able to redefine what technology actually means will open up conversations with women coming in.
But also, really driving home the ability to identify and address unconscious bias (which is not restricted to the technology industry) but it does tend to creep in pretty aggressively given we’re typically led by males. And that’s really apparent during the recruitment process.
B&T: Can you tell us a bit about your work history and current role?
I started my career back in 2006. I completed a degree in journalism and public relations and ended up in digital media. I started back over at Foxtel when it was still named MCN (Multi Channel Network) and my task over there was learning how to write ad tags.
That was a very interesting way of getting into the industry because that was not something I had ever envisioned myself doing but having that groundwork of how the technology works in our space definitely set me up for my future roles. It was back in the day when digital marketing was still in its early stages and there was not a lot of value placed behind online advertising.
From there, I spent some time over at REA, which was a job I completely fell in love with, it was in the property industry which a lot of Australians are obsessed with, so it was really cool to learn how to work in a digital-first company. I still am very connected to that brand and it’s nice to see them continue to grow and develop their technology as well.
From REA I got the opportunity to be one of the earliest Quantcast employees when they opened their office down in Sydney in 2016!
B&T: What were the greatest challenges you’ve had to face in your career?
One of the biggest challenges I’ve had since moving into Quantcast was when I had the opportunity to move up to Brisbane, working in a remote capacity five years ago.
I found it to be challenging because I am typically quite ambitious so I wanted to make sure it didn’t impact my output or ability to really drive the business forward, and ensure that my bosses didn’t have any issues with my work. So I found myself always making sure that they didn’t know that I was remote!
When you are working remotely you don’t get that immediate feedback: the visual, the audio or just body language queues. So, when you’re asked to complete tasks and you don’t have that immediate conversation around them, it does tend to run around in your head.
As a result of that and as I have progressed through the industry, I have found that the likes of the imposter syndrome tend to creep in. So that has been a challenge which I’ve definitely had to work through; understanding that I actually am good at what I do. And having a lot more confidence in what I do or what I say because the worst that could happen is that someone says ‘no’. And if someone says ‘no’ that’s a bit of learning or a redirection as to the work that I’ve been doing!
So, they’re probably two of my biggest challenges or obstacles but every day they become smaller as I learn to work with them.
B&T: What would you say is your most career-defining moment?
Definitely becoming a mum for the first time in 2018 has changed the way I approach my career. I guess you would say this moment has helped define my career, as opposed to being career-defining, if that makes sense.
Prior to my daughter Millie being born, my biggest investment was my career. Everything I did was based around work and secondarily it was my family, my mum and dad, etc. But when Millie arrived, she definitely helped reprioritise my life.
I think as a result, I have learned to be kinder to myself, because you can be a jack of all trades but a master of none. I’ve learned to better manage my time and the expectations of those around me, but also my own family.
B&T: Do you think there are any ways we can empower and encourage young girls to consider a career in tech?
Definitely! I mentioned this earlier but I feel that we need to redefine what a career in tech actually means.
The word of technology encompasses a wide range of definitions, and it’s not always restricted to the STEM-type technology that most people would think it is, right? The tech industry is not just computing as we used to think it is, and it’s actually about creating ease as we go through our life.
We also need to understand that tech doesn’t mean technical. And once we’re able to reposition that meaning, it’ll definitely be able to gauge the interest of more people in general, not just females, to take a chance on making our future better.
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