Each month, the Anita Borg Institute profiles Senior Technical Women. We have selected 7 questions and asked each of these amazing women to share their answers.

How did you decide to pursue a career in technology?

My MBA includes an emphasis in Computer Science, so I started out with the interest and education to pursue a career in technology. My graduate school experience actually taught me a lot about myself that has influenced how I approached my career. I discovered that I really had a talent for analysis, for a logical approach to solving business problems, and that discovery changed the kind of career I looked for.

I started out in tech operations roles, but quickly moved to more customer-focused roles that included business analysis, project management, and leading development teams. I would say, however, that the broad range of experience and knowledge that I gained by working in different areas of the technology organization has helped attune me for more senior roles that span technology organizations.

Based on your own experience, what skill(s) or characteristic(s) do you think are most important for technical women to succeed?

Broadly speaking, I think the most important trait anyone needs to be successful is the ability to collaborate. Of course, there are a number of skills within that, all of which are important: communication, the ability to manage details and remain focused on results, the ability to successfully influence others’ decisions. Good collaboration is really about managing relationships to keep everyone focused on a common goal, making sure you have good transparency in your processes, making sure everyone knows their roles and has the information and the tools to be successful.

What was the greatest challenge that you overcame in your career?

That’s a hard question. I think my greatest challenge relates back to the skill I consider most important, collaboration, and it came when I stepped in to lead a large, enterprise-wide project in 2006. Until that point, I’d been leading large organization where I had a large number of people who reported in to me directly. It’s pretty easy to influence the outcome of a project when you have that many resources in your direct control. With this role, I had broad scope but very few resources reporting to me—I had to hone my skills to sell the program and persuade others in the organization to allocate their time and resources to execute on the goals. Maybe that’s why I consider collaboration to be such an important characteristic. I had to influence others and build relationships to make sure the program was successful, and ultimately, I have found that to be very fulfilling work.

How do you deal with work/life balance?

First of all, it’s important to have a strong support system to help you keep things in perspective. There are times when project deadlines or events in your life outside of work are going to get out of balance. Knowing who you can rely on for advice, support, someone to let off steam with, whatever you need, that’s really important.

The other important piece of maintaining balance is to regularly take time for you, even if it’s only a few minutes a day. It’s important to step away from the demands of your personal and professional life so you can clear your head and refocus. I’ve found that after doing that, I’m often able to better prioritize all the things that need to get done.

What advice would you give to women in high tech who want to advance on the management track specifically?

Find your personal style (brand, if you will) and be true to it. That’s your value proposition, the unique value you bring to your organization. You have to be authentic, trust in your convictions and have confidence in your abilities. If you find you’re changing who you are or what you believe in to please a boss or fit in with an organization, how is that your success?

Early in my career, I wrote a personal mission statement that set out the things that defined success for me, and I still revisit that and use it as a litmus test for success. You have to understand what success is for you to know when you’ve achieved it. That shouldn’t just mean a specific title or salary; it’s about what you’re doing every day.

How do you stay current in your technical field?

I’m fortunate that a big part of my job is ensuring that our technology organization is positioned to take advantage of new technologies, so I have to stay current with technology. Luckily, it means that I have a Chief Architect and others in my organization who filter information. I also have vendor briefings, CIO exchanges, and reports to condense the information so I have time to absorb it all. And importantly, I have opportunities to visit with our customers, so I’m not just getting the side of the story that relates to our uses of different technologies, but what’s relevant to our customers as well.

In your opinion, what (if any) are the remaining barriers faced by women in technology?

Some of the barriers, or choices that we face, are common to women and men—long hours, extensive travel, the ability to balance our responsibilities at work and outside.

For women, I think one of the real challenges is being deliberate in creating a network.  We have to be more methodical in our approach to reach out to men and women colleagues and make the connections we need to advance our careers. And, to some degree, it goes back to the importance of collaboration: we have to build the relationships we need to be successful in our work, which will help position us better for bigger and more complex roles.

Another issue that really concerns me is the shrinking pool of qualified women entering technology disciplines in college.   As our numbers shrink, we need to be more committed to discussing technology careers with junior high and high school age girls and taking responsibility for building the talent pool so we can continue to have a diverse workplace.