Women in Tech: Marlena Clark faces challenges head on

Marlena Clark, Systems Engineer, R/S & Security Force 3

Summarize your experience and what you do now. Please give a brief summary of your current role.

In my current role as a Systems Engineer at Force 3, I provide support for my customers and sales team in determine what network devices, design and configurations would make their end goal successful. These network devices I work with include switches, routers, firewalls, as well as others and accompanying software.

It is my job when the customer comes to us with an idea for what they want to accomplish or a vague list of devices, to research and use my knowledge to ensure that what they are attempting to implement in their network will be compatible, assist the architect in designing the new network, preparing the proposal and technical write-up, and finally traveling to the customer site to install these new devices to match the design we've created.

Once we've installed these, we can provide training to the customers on how to manage the devices and remain for a short period to troubleshoot any issues that may arise.

Also a part of my duties are to interact with the customer while providing excellent customer service to them so that they feel confident in my suggestions and knowledge and consider me their go-to engineer.

I definitely feel that being a statistical minority in the Tech world has given me that extra push to become a top performer in my field.

Currently I am one of only two female engineers at my company out of a group of about 50! Even while going through college, I was usually the only female in my class out of 20. Given these two situations, it is easy to feel alone, looked over, and sometimes as if the other don't view you as being smart enough to perform the technical duties at hand. Being in these situations only motivates me and makes me work that much harder. I take the challenge of being the only woman on my team and use it as fuel to push that much harder to reach my goal of being the best and at the same time being an example for other young women who may feel that they can't enter or make it in this field.

Being an African-American woman in the IT field is hard because I can't look around and see anyone that looks like me or that I feel I can relate to. This can be discouraging at times, because who doesn't want to feel like they can be related to? But I do not let this get me down, and instead, I look at it in the view that I must help to pave this path for others and leave a mark so that other women coming into the field will have  a trail to follow that is viewed in a beautiful, positive light by all.

Upon deciding that I wanted to change my life and make a better future for myself, I began researching what careers had the most growth, security and income potential. From this research, I found that the Healthcare Industry and IT field were the two that met all of these criteria. I do not do well with body fluids, so the IT field was my choice hands down.

Then, I began to narrow down the areas of speciality in the technical field. Networking and Security seemed to have topics that would be interesting to me and a college near me, AACC, had a great program that would allow me to learn about both. So I enrolled into the Information Systems Security program, with no knowledge of technology beyond using Windows and surfing the web.

It was so difficult!! I wanted to quit by the first semester, but thanks to my drive, the support of my family and the awesome professors at my college, I hung in there. I am so thankful that I did because all that I learned and completing my degree did just what I set out to do, it changed my life. Because of this degree, I have been presented with opportunities and placed in situations that I never would have been had I not chose the technology field.

I do feel that I am leading a better, more productive life and my future is much brighter.

One of my favorite things about what this change has brought, is that I feel that I am setting a better example for my nieces and nephews. They saw me struggling through school, hang in there, reach my goal and the difference it has made in my life. I hope this will seal concretely in their minds that if "Auntie Lena" can do it, so can I!

Yes, I do feel that the technology field does provide me with the opportunity to think more creatively and innovate more freely than other fields.

One of the things I love about the tech field is that it is constantly changing. It doesn't seem that you can ever get tired of technology, because there is always something new to learn.

When attempting to solve an issue or develop a solution for a customer, I am using my creative juices to come up with a unique solution to solve the problem. No two customer issues are just alike, so this allows me to be creative for each individual one.

There are so many jobs that require the employee to perform the same tasks day after day. Even if you work the same position for years, the majority of your tasks will remain the same. For example, prior to entering this field, I worked two jobs to pay my way through school, as a maid and a bartender. For years, everyday, I would clean the bathroom the same, vacuum the floor the same, mix the drinks the same.

Not my tech career. It is challenging, but it is so rewarding to create solutions and see your work allow information, that is so vital to everyone, to successfully traverse the network and be secure at the same time.

Speaking on innovation, this field definitely provides the opportunity to be that. One of the projects I am currently working on is to create a solution that will allow admins to have very granular control over end user devices as well as network devices to better manage their power usage and save money. It is my task to research multiple technologies that I have no prior knowledge of, determine which ones to use, which areas that's I need to create another option for, and make this a one stop solution to present to future clients.

Yes, I definitely feel that this field allows me to create and innovate more freely than others!

• Do not be afraid - The thought of entering this male dominated field can be daunting and discouraging. You are woman and let them hear you roar! Know that we as woman can do anything we put out minds to.
• Don't let the technology intimidate you - Looking at the information that must be digested and learned in this field is not for the faint at heart and can make you want to turn and run. Believe in yourself and your brain power. Just imagine, with all of the obstacles you've overcome in your life and the challenges you've conquered, these fancy words and numbers that mean nothing to you now (but will later), don't stand a chance!
• Let no one or nothing turn you around - You are looking at entering a field where not many women have gone, you will more than likely have to work with all men, you will have to study harder than you ever have, kiss your social life goodbye during school (if you want to be successful), you will have to constantly learn new technologies, and other awesome things. Take my word, none of this will matter when you reach your goal and have the title of Engineer, Analyst, or Consultant behind your name. It will be a distant memory.
• Believe in yourself - There are going to be times that all you have is your vision of what you want to accomplish and your will to not quit to keep you going. This is all you need. That belief in yourself will make anything you have set your mind to do possible. It a powerful thing and you need to embrace it.
• Just do it - It is easy to procrastinate about taking this technology bull by the horns. Don't let procrastination determine your future. Take the reigns, research the various technology fields to see which one fits you best, go and sign up at a school that offers that technology program the next available semester, be faithful to your studies, hang in there, and finally walk that stage with the new attitude that this accomplishment due to all of your hard work has brought! Just do it!!

What factors in your childhood or life gave you this drive to be able to make it and maintain a positive attitude in the tech field?

Growing up, I was surrounded by women who in my eyes were powerful. They carried themselves with such confidence, respect and honor, that I had no choice but to emulate them. The way I saw them behave, the things they taught me, and how they made me feel about myself are all huge factors in my ability to enter and make it in this technical, male-dominated field. My Mother, Grandmother, Aunts, big cousins and teachers have so much credit to take for my successes in the technology field and life. It is this solid foundation that enabled me to tackle the big task of entering a field I had no knowledge about and carrying myself while in this field, in a manner that I do believe makes it visible that I plan on conquering the IT world.