In honour of International Women in Engineering Day, we asked Sylivia Ng, Systems Design Engineering alumnus, a few questions about her journey as a woman in Engineering. She shares her story to highlight the importance of gender equity in Engineering. Women belong everywhere.
Introduction
I'm
Sylvia,
a
mom
of
2,
cancer
survivor,
and
a
tech
professional.
I
have
done
a
number
of
things
which
include:
analytics,
marketing,
growth,
and
product
at
companies
like
Google,
eBay,
and
500px.
My
last
role
was
a
General
Manager
role
at
Shopify.
Right
now,
I
run
two
companies,
an
e-commerce
returns
business
called
ReturnBear,
and
a
cancer
care
box
brand
called
Amidira.
As a young girl, what were your goals and aspirations?
I have always wanted to do something at the intersection of art and science. I considered studying architecture or biomedical imaging, but eventually landed on Systems Design engineering which allows me to build creative things. Nowadays I like to think that I’ve managed to merge my creative and analytical sides through building businesses.
In a male dominated field, what major qualities helped you break through the glass ceiling?
I
wouldn’t
say
I
possess
this
quality
naturally,
but
over
time
I
have
come
to
realize
that
not
having
a
victim
mentality
is
key.
It’s
great
that
women
are
sharing
their
stories
more
and
more,
but
those
stories
can
be
constant
reminders
that
we’re
victims
of
a
rigged
system
that
seems
impossible
to
change.
I’ve
seen
this
victimhood
mentality
lead
to
depression
and
anger,
cause
closed
minded
dialogues,
makes
people
withdraw
from
finding
solutions,
and
generally
causes
women
to
give
up
in
frustration.
We
may
be
victims
of
certain
things,
but
I
try
to
not
let
that
define
who
I
am.
After
all,
only
10%
of
life
is
what
happens
to
you.
The
remaining
90%
is
how
to
react
to
it.
Any advice for aspiring and current women in engineering?
Stay positive and happy! Happiness breeds success, not the other way around.