This narrative of WE Local Europe 2019 highlights was contributed by SWE Member Devna Chauhan.
Just like the previous two years, the 2019 WE Local Europe conference very pleasantly surprised me! This year was special for me as I was attending as a participant and as a SWE Global Ambassador.
Personally, my favourite part of the conference was the networking opportunities – whether the networking reception organised on the eve of the event or the interactions that take place during the conference. I found myself being involved in and learning a lot from such interactions during the sessions as well as the breaks. The most interesting aspect of these discussions is the similarities we have when it comes to the challenges faced by women engineers across the globe. I appreciated the great suggestions and advice from more experienced engineers/leaders regarding those challenges.
Being part of a global company with colleagues spread across the globe (Europe, China, USA, etc.), the opening keynote was particularly impactful. Allyson Stewart-Allen spoke about acknowledging the unique cultural context of our colleagues and business partners in different countries and delivered inspirational remarks on how to be successful in a VUCA world. Her keynote provided me with a better understanding and tools to help me break boundaries across cultures, teams and individuals.
The breakout sessions were very interesting and diverse in terms of covered topics. The technical sessions were refreshing as I got a peek into different industries within engineering and how technology is changing for them. On the other hand, the career journeys and personal stories were simply eye-opening and inspiring.
“The most interesting aspect of these discussions is the similarities we have when it comes to the challenges faced by women engineers across the globe. I appreciated the great suggestions and advice from more experienced engineers/leaders regarding those challenges.”
As a SWE Global Ambassador, I had the opportunity to be a part of the ‘SWE Global Programs Facilitated Discussion’ and share my experience, feedback, ideas as well as suggestions to support SWE’s European programs. The conference offered many opportunities to interact with SWE leaders and share ideas.
The final keynote about resilience was extraordinary. Listening to Smita Tharoor share her personal journey was very encouraging and moving. As the Berlin conference ended, I could not help but feel a sense of pride in being part of the conference and SWE.
I invite all women engineers in Europe to join me virtually in 2021 for yet another opportunity to connect, learn and be inspired at WE Local Europe!
About the author:
Devna Chauhan is an applied controls – technical leader for Cummins Ltd in the UK. She has worked for Cummins UK since April 2014. During her time at Cummins, she has held 4 different roles in Electronic Controls (both as a leader and team member) across 2 different Cummins businesses. Prior to this Devna has worked 3.5 years as Software Engineer in Pune, India. Devna has a Bachelor’s degree in Electronics and Telecommunication engineering.
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