How women at OneSpan are inspiring inclusion
This International Women's Day, OneSpan joins organizations worldwide as they celebrate women’s achievements, promote gender parity, and take action to understand, value, and seek out the inclusion of women.
At OneSpan, that means celebrating the countless contributions that women bring to the tech and cybersecurity industries, addressing the gender gap in these industries, and fostering leadership and career development opportunities for women.
To learn more about how women at OneSpan are celebrating women in the industry and inspiring inclusion on their teams, the OneSpan team caught up with three women at OneSpan. Read on to hear the perspectives of Ralitsa Miteva, Global Manager of Product Marketing and Strategy, Tongtong Zheng, Senior Manager of R&D, Meg Ryan, Chief of Staff and VP of Global Revenue Operations, and Caroline Vignollet, Senior Vice President of R&D.
Q: How do diverse perspectives, experiences, and skills create a more resilient cybersecurity team/industry?
Tongtong Zheng: Diversity in cybersecurity teams enhances resilience by fostering innovative problem-solving, deepening the understanding of diverse threat landscapes, mitigating biases and blind spots, improving communication and collaboration, and attracting top talent. Embracing diversity and inclusion is critical not only for addressing the evolving nature of cyber threats but also for strengthening cybersecurity defenses.
Ralitsa Miteva: Diversity creates stronger teams. Different personalities, viewpoints, backgrounds, experience, skills – they all change the prism through which we analyze and tackle business problems. The complexity of cybersecurity challenges requires a deep understanding of the changing security landscape, contextual awareness of various attack vectors, assessment of potential impacts, and proactive anticipation of future threats. Embracing diversity ensures that these challenges are approached from a multitude of angles, fostering creativity, innovation, and adaptability within the team. As a result, diverse teams are better equipped to prepare holistic strategies and implement effective solutions.
Q: What advice would you give to women entering the tech industry?
TZ: Embarking on the journey of a career in tech is both exciting and demanding! My advice? Believe in yourself – your skills, talent, and resilience make you well-equipped for success in this dynamic industry. Stay true to yourself, embracing authenticity, and adopt a mindset of continuous learning to remain at the forefront. Embrace challenges fearlessly, pursue ambitious goals with unwavering passion and determination. Lastly, remember that setbacks are a part of the journey; stay resilient and allow them to fuel your drive towards achieving your aspirations.
Q: The theme of this year’s International Women’s Day is “Inspire Inclusion.” In your role, what’s one way you inspire inclusion with your team?
Meg Ryan: I remind everyone on my team they have a voice, and they shouldn’t be afraid to speak up if they have a thought on how to improve something or a concern for something that may go wrong. We are all different people, which means we all approach things differently, and it can be so powerful when we problem-solve together and come up with the best solution that everyone feels proud to be a part of.
Caroline Vignollet: As women, we must swim against the current, approach opportunities objectively, and dive fearlessly into discovering our passions. Inspiring our teams is our main role as leaders and related to diversity, I encourage the team to recognize everyone’s unique perspective and give enough space to everyone to share their views and inspire each other.
RM: Diversity and inclusion are essential to creating a thriving workplace, and women play a crucial role in driving innovation and progress. A core component of my role is to collaborate closely with our product team to make sure innovation is responsible and secure, and explore new innovative features that will safeguard our customers. This close collaboration wouldn’t be as effective without an understanding of how diverse perspectives generate better outcomes, and operating with an ethos of inclusivity throughout our work. It’s essential we continue to champion women's achievements, lift each other up, and work together towards a more equitable and inclusive future.
TZ: As a senior R&D manager and service owner, I aim to inspire inclusion by cultivating a culture of curiosity and autonomy, fostering cross-team collaboration, promoting continuous learning, and actively recognizing and celebrating innovative achievements. I empower my team to come together to push boundaries as we aim to deliver impactful solutions that elevate our products, benefit our customers, and positively impact the industry.
This Women’s History Month, OneSpan is proud to highlight the remarkable contributions of women who are at the heart of inspiring inclusion. Connect with us on LinkedIn to learn more.
