Miryana Markova, a VP Professional Services at AIOPSGROUP, loves to travel, meet new and different cultures, and learn about their past and present. According to Miryana, gender inequality continues to be a global problem. She thinks that the key to success is hard work, dedication, continuous improvement of skills, increasing
knowledge and a certain amount of luck.

Let’s also greet Miryana Markova, who is working for AIOPSGROUP as a VP Professional Services. She describes herself as a travelling-lover, who enjoys meeting new cultures and getting to know everything about their past and present. She said that she loves challenges and mysteries– solving technical and organizational problems gives her a lot of energy. Miryana told us that her career in the IT field began years ago when she was a sophomore at the university. She adds that her working atmosphere has always been very dynamic and each day she learns something new. That’s exactly what made her work in the IT sphere for 20 years. According to her, this tendency hasn’t changed a lot. Her opinion is that technologies are improving very fast and you should constantly study and adapt to them in order to keep on track. Miryana shares that the teams she’s worked with always included International members from different parts of the world with various cultures and perspectives. She adds that tolerance and respect have always been part of her work. That’s exactly why she has never faced any problems concerning being a woman. When it comes to gender inequality, Miryana shares that during the last two decades there has been huge progress regarding this topic, but unfortunately nowadays it remains a problem all around the world. To her, the key for solving this problem is changing the point of view of society. She thinks everything begins at home and work – a woman is and should be treated as an equal partner who has her own duties and rights. To Miryana, appearance is never a factor for accepting someone. She wouldn’t go to a Business meeting dressed in shorts or a T-shirt, but apart from that, what matters the most in order to be successful is to have the right knowledge and skills. In order to achieve a balance between her personal and professional life, Miryana prioritizes her tasks daily and never puts off anything for the last moment. For her, the key to success is hard work, dedication to what you’re doing, constantly improving skills and expanding knowledge… and a little bit of good luck too.

“Senior Managers have strategies for the development of the organization and add constant improvement, in order to reach maximum effectiveness. They aren’t afraid of making decisions and support their teams in hard times.”

Share something about yourself that we can’t find on LinkedIn.

I love travelling and getting to know new cultures, their past and present. Some of the most exotic places I’ve visited are Angkor Wat, Cambodia, Easter Island (Chile) and Petra in Jordan.

Have you ever faced challenges in your career regarding the fact that you are a woman?

No, or at least, if it happened, I didn’t realize the reason was being a woman. The teams I’ve worked with have always included international members from different parts of the world, with different cultures and perspectives. In those teams, we’ve always tolerated and respected each other.

Read More Inspiring Stories for Women in Tech in WRTech here.

Do you know how many women work in your position?

The percentage of women in senior roles globally is around 25-29%

Do you think that the problem with gender inequality still exists in Bulgaria and globally?

There’s been huge progress in the last two decades, but unfortunately, the issue with gender inequality still exists globally. There are still countries, where the educational access for young girls is limited or they are discriminated against or abused. To me, the key to fixing this problem is changing the perspective of society. Everything begins in the family or at work–a woman IS and should be seen as an equal partner, who has his rights and duties.

Do women’s appearance and charm help you be successful in a professional way?

I don’t know. I never thought that appearance is something we should judge someone on. Of course, I wouldn’t go to a business meeting dressed in shorts and a T-shirt, but outside of that what matters the most are your knowledge and skills.

How do you get along with men in your company? Do they treat you differently?

As a professionalist, the atmosphere in AIOPSGROUP is very open and one of the main values is teamwork. Our experience is proof that we can only succeed if we are together and in our workplace there is no separation in any aspect.

How do you balance your work with your personal life?

The balance between my work life and personal life is extremely important to me. In order to achieve it, I prioritize my duties and never leave the not so urgent things for the last moment, I delegate and rely on the help of my colleagues.

Which sources would you recommend to us? (podcasts, webpages, influencers, youtubers, etc.)

I like TED Talks because of the variety of topics. I follow Richard Branson’s post, as well as those of Bill Gates and Satya Nadella.

Which policies does your company encourage regarding gender diversity?

In AIOPSGROUP we create a working environment focused on respect and tolerance between the employees without considering gender, ethnic or race background. In the company, there are people from different countries and cultures–Bulgaria, USA, Serbia, Bosnia, India, Maroco; our clients and partners are from huge international companies. Around 25% of the employees are women and the ones on management level are 50%.

How did your professional development in the technological sphere begin? What inspired you to choose this path?

I started working in the IT sphere when I was a second-year university student. By the time, the technological companies in Bulgaria weren’t that much and most of the workers were students and young people. The working atmosphere was very dynamic, everyone was encouraged to share knowledge, everyday we learned new things, which I enjoyed the most and that’s why I’ve been working in the area for 20 years. This trend hasn’t changed, technologies keep improving dynamically and in order to follow them, you have to study constantly and adapt.

As being a woman what is the key to developing such a successful career in the IT industry? Are there any secret recipes for success?

I wouldn’t say so. Success relies on hard work, dedication to what you’re doing, constant self-improvement of your skills and expanding your knowledge. And of course a little bit of good luck.

Which are the main qualities that a successful Vice-President Professional Services should possess in the tech sphere?

Senior managers have strategies for developing the organization, they constantly improve it in order to reach maximum efficiency. They aren’t afraid of making decisions. Every Senior Manager should support its teams and should be focused on constructive actions, not
on mistakes and failures.

“Technologies keep improving dynamically and in order to follow them, you have to constantly study and adapt.”

What recharges you in a professional and personal plan?

I love adventures and mysteries – solving technological and organizational problems gives me energy.

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