Women in Tech at Principal®: Navigating Development Opportunities as an Employee and a Leader

Originally published on Principal.com

Principal® employees tend to flex their skills and hop around the company. It isn’t unusual for someone to work in several different roles and parts of the business throughout their career.

It’s—in part—because leaders like Jackie know the value of development opportunities firsthand.

See how she’s paying it forward for her own team members.

How did you get into IT at Principal, and what’s your role today?

I actually didn’t start out in IT.

I’d been working in a business role in our former health division for a few years. At the time, I was getting my MBA and was looking to apply more of my business knowledge and get deeper into problem solving and solution creation.

I moved into a variety of different leadership roles—taking on more responsibilities and bigger teams. And I’ve been in my current role, director of engineering, for about five years. I lead technology teams who support functions like worksite safety and security, global risk, law, and government relations. When an employee scans their badge to enter a building, that’s safety and security technology, for example.

What excites you about the work?

The power of technology in problem solving: How do we make things better? Sometimes it’s offering a new system; sometimes it’s making improvements to a manual process.

The better we can serve our employees and the easier it is for them to find what they need, the better their experience is and the more time they have to support our customers.

How else have you gotten involved at Principal?

I've been fortunate to have a lot of job opportunities, but I’ve also experienced great networking and growth through Principal groups and forums. I’m involved in several employee resource groups (ERGs), and I’m currently the co-chair for our LGBTQ ERG. I also support our Global Giving Campaign, which drives positive change in the communities where we live and work.

How have you helped support other women in tech at Principal?

I’m very focused on leadership. I spend a lot of time thinking about development opportunities, inclusion, and how everyone’s being supported.

I think it’s part of my responsibility as a woman in leadership to help bring others along. So, I mentor formally and informally on leadership skills, work-life balance, career development, and daily challenges.

Being a working woman and a mother, I feel like I can mentor and coach with empathy. Sometimes it’s just taking time to ask, Why do you think you’re stuck on that? How do you think you can work through it?

Other times, the best thing I can do for someone is help connect them with an ERG, a different mentoring relationship, or someone who can tell them about a particular area of the business.

And how have you been supported?

I've never felt like because I’m a woman, my voice wasn’t heard or I couldn’t speak up. I’ve never felt less than. I think it comes down to the culture at Principal.

We’re focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion through and through. I see it in my leadership chain and know the executive management group champions it, too. Everyone has a voice.

Also—on a more pragmatic level—we invest a lot in development opportunities. Not only for technical skills, but also competencies like influence, approach, and leadership.

What’s your advice for someone looking to break into tech?

Being curious in technology is critical. Find something you care about and invest in yourself through continuous learning. I’m so impressed by how much our interns and young professionals have read and the questions they’re thinking about.

I also think developing competencies is important: understanding how you work through conflict, how you speak up if you’re unsure about something, how you communicate effectively, all those things.

Make sure you’re honing both of those important skillsets.

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