Changing the Narrative: Women Who Qlik On Telling a Better Career Story
The power of data analytics is in finding the real story: the one that reveals the truth and shows the best path forward.
Often, however, unhelpful and persistent narratives prevent women from forging ahead confidently:
“I’m not the right person for that role.”
“I always have to put my career first.”
“I shouldn’t brag.”
Women Who Qlik is changing that.
Founded by female leaders, the Women Who Qlik community is reframing these narratives and encouraging women to create their own stories. Ashleigh Chapman, Gwen Stamp and Ruthann Wry share how a shift in perspective can make all the difference.
Own the career journey
Careers rarely continue the same trajectory from start to finish. Sometimes, they involve a high-risk moment that requires a leap of faith. For Chapman, Stamp, and Wry, seizing the opportunity meant learning to back themselves.
Ashleigh uses data analytics in her role as CEO of human rights organization Engage Together. She found her driving motivation at age 11, when her family fostered three children who had been “abused in every possible way.” Since then, she’s dedicated her life to building solutions to address oppression and abuse.
Decades later, she had obtained a law degree and was running a leading university research center dedicated to these issues, when budget cuts led to a stark choice: pull back on the center’s work to support global projects or continue that work separate from the university, without funding for resources or staff.
Ashleigh couldn’t turn her back on her purpose, even though it would mean rebuilding everything from scratch.
“It was a massive risk and mountain to climb, I’m not going to sugarcoat it, but the work we do is here today because I took that step,” she said.
Gwen faced a similar moment. When she was just a year into her IT career, her company announced mass layoffs and offered her a severance package. She wanted another option.
“I was on the help desk, and I was supposed to grow and evolve,” Gwen said. “I decided, no, I am not living this life again for another year. I’m not going down on this ship. I need something more.”
She told her manager she wanted to leave with skills that would help her land a role beyond another entry-level help desk position. He gave her the opportunity to take on business analyst responsibilities alongside her help desk role, allowing her to gain valuable experience and position herself for the next step in her career.
That experience led to her next role where she was introduced to Qlik. It proved to be a turning point that changed the trajectory of her career. Today, she’s the associate director of the Qlik Center of Excellence at Raymond James.
One of Ruthann’s defining career milestones sprang from a far happier moment, when she was offered a promotion to chief people officer at Qlik. Rather than giving an immediate answer, she took time to carefully consider the opportunity.
“Quite honestly, it scared the heck out of me,” she said.
She liked being behind the scenes, and moving into leadership had never been on her radar. She was also unlike the person who previously held that position.
“My boss finally said, ‘I don't need you to be like her. I need you to be you,’ and those words have stuck with me forever,” Ruthann said. “I’m glad that I took that leap. It’s the best thing I could’ve done, but I needed that push.”
Years later, Ruthann can see her imposter syndrome for what it was, and encourages others to take hold of that self-doubt early. Gwen learned a phrase as a teenager that she repeats to this day: “Confidence is a byproduct of work.”
“The more you work, the more confident you become, the more you are the person you want to be,” she said. “That’s the story you’re building.”
“Confidence is a byproduct of work. The more you work, the more confident you become, the more you are the person you want to be. That’s the story you’re building.”
—Gwen Stamp, Associate Director, Qlik Center of Excellence, Raymond James
Find work-life integration at every stage
For years, professionals have been told that success comes from hitting the right work-life balance. Ruthann believes there’s no such thing. Instead, she said, it’s about the personal and the professional spheres working with each other, not on opposite sides.
“It’s work-life integration: How do I make sure I’ve got my priorities right?”
Those priorities naturally shift, and there has to be a way to respond, like when Ruthann took a three-month leave to support a family member during a challenging time.
“It gave me time to figure out what was within my control and how I could be my best for my family,” she said. “They were three fabulous months, I did return to my job, and my family was better for it.”
Gwen enables space for prioritization by setting meaningful boundaries for herself and others. During the COVID-19 pandemic, for example, people worked varied hours, yet emails had the same urgency as before. That disconnect caused friction.
Knowing others took their cues from her, Gwen added a note to her emails: “Unless marked urgent, please respond at your earliest convenience.”
“It’s setting an example of how you want to be treated,” she said.
Just as leaders can redefine expectations of others, Ashleigh’s big shift came in redefining her expectations for herself. Whether at work or at home, she now aims to show up with excellence, not perfection.
“Perfection feels impossible to reach because it is,” she said. “But excellence you can do every day. It’s giving everything I have in that moment, and not feeling like I’m missing the mark by putting it out there today with what I have to give.”
“Perfection feels impossible to reach because it is. But excellence you can do every day.”
—Ashleigh Chapman, CEO, Engage Together
Share achievements: It’s branding, not bragging
Leaders know that sharing wins and demonstrating impact is crucial to a team. Talking about achievements doesn’t always come naturally, but it can help to think of it as branding, not bragging.
“Doing a thing really well and being transparent about that isn’t bragging. Find those opportunities to share what you’re working on. That’s the way you show you have an impact.”
—Gwen Stamp, Associate Director, Qlik Center of Excellence, Raymond James
It’s just as important to celebrate with others. Ruthann made a ritual of doing so with her daughters when they were younger.
“I wanted them to see that what I’m doing is important to me,” she said.
Gwen does the same, while stressing that they each have their own distinct path and successes.
“Even though we all have different journeys, I bring them into what success looks like for me,” she said.
Focus on solutions to find your distinct path
For women starting careers or those pivoting their careers, Ashleigh encourages them to ask:
“What lights your fire? What are you burdened by that you feel passionate about making better?”
Answering those questions makes it easier to channel energy effectively. At the same time, it’s not enough to fixate on problems.
“Stay solutions-focused, not problems-focused,” she said. “That brings a different energy, and you’ll go much further.”
Regardless of focus, any success story can depend on managers who are willing to nurture talent. Cultivating relationships with people who recognize potential can be the difference between a rewarding career and a lifetime of wandering.
“Some of the best leaders I’ve worked for have been women who saw in me something I didn’t see in myself. So be a mentor or find a mentor. We need to help each other.”
— Ruthann Wry, Chief People Officer, Qlik
The well-trodden paths have become far and few between, but that leaves room for women to create the roads that they want to take. By changing individual trajectories, women can choose to step out from behind the scenes, own their achievements, and lift others up, rewriting narratives for all women.
Join Women Who Qlik in reframing the narrative — it’s open to everyone!