In celebration of International Women in Engineering Day, Honeywell checked in with six female engineers who are passionate about inventing, designing, analyzing, building, and testing every day. Here’s what they had to say about their work as a ‘Futureshaper’ at Honeywell and what motivates them.

Victoria Vangeison, Systems Engineer, Honeywell Aerospace

What aspects of engineering do you enjoy the most?

I love talking with the customer and helping them work through the logic of a problem in a way they can understand. I enjoy solving challenges that come from the field because no two events are the same.

When I get a set of engine data from a field event, I look at it as a puzzle. I have a starting point, but I must work my way through to figure out the end solution. This helps me gain a deeper understanding of the control system as I work through the puzzle to figure out the root cause. This is an extremely challenging yet rewarding part of my job.

What career advice can you offer women interested in building a career in engineering or other technical fields?

Be confident in your abilities. No one knows everything when they start a job. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. It can be intimidating, but you will grow professionally and personally the more inquisitive you are with the people around you.

Take risks, don’t avoid challenges, and look at everything as a learning experience that will aid in your professional growth. Taking on and owning large tasks may be daunting, but it will help you learn and grow in the long run.

Lisa Berry, Release Train Engineer, Honeywell Connected Enterprise

How would you describe yourself both professionally and personally?

Simply put, I am an engineer. I have a passion for technology, and a love of logic and data.

From an early age, I was constantly designing and building things and loved math and science. As I was choosing an academic and professional direction, I came to understand that those passions all blended well within the discipline of engineering – and for me, specifically, it became mechanical engineering.

During my engineering studies, I found that I gravitated towards thermodynamics and complex systems.

It is the blend of those two that have defined the main vision of my career path. I apply systems engineering every day, both at the office and at home.

How would you describe your role as a Release Train Engineer?

One day, a colleague made a statement to the effect of “you have pointed us down the road, and set up the guardrails to keep us there.” Keeping that mental picture has been helpful as I coach teams toward the intent or ideal, define what is acceptable in the short term, and target continuous improvement over the long term.

Valentina Di Mauro, Chemical Engineer, Honeywell Performance Materials & Technologies

How would you describe yourself both professionally and personally?

I am a woman and engineer, but also a wife and mother. Sometimes I feel more like one or the other, however most of the time these roles coexist peacefully. I am passionate about my job and dedicated to my family, and always strive to find balance.

How are you leveraging your passion for engineering with other women?

As a manager, I hope to help others develop within the organization and to provide them with career guidance and advice. I am quite passionate about diversity, so I have been advising fellow women engineers on career planning and sharing my experience with them over a cup of coffee. I am currently working to champion some initiatives within Honeywell in my region to promote women’s access to leadership opportunities.

Lori Pike, Systems Engineer, Software Engineer, Honeywell Safety & Productivity Solutions

What are some of the challenges and opportunities you face in your role?

There are not many women in the area in which I work. I am fortunate that there are good leaders at Honeywell that see people who want to make change and support them, like my managers and leaders.

What career advice can you offer women interested in building a career in engineering or other technical fields?

There will always be critics of what you do or how you do things. If your inner-self tells you that you are doing the right thing, you are. You must take risks.

Tammy Lee, Senior Software Engineer, Honeywell Connected Enterprise

What do you do on a daily basis in your job? What skills do you use most often?

My official job is a software engineer and my unofficial side job is leading the Honeywell Women’s Network. My day typically consists of Scrum-related meetings where our team talks about what we’re working on, planning for future work, and evaluating how we have been doing.

Then throughout the day I am in the trenches coding.

The skills I use the most in my day to day are my programming, problem-solving, time management, collaboration, and organization skills.

What career advice can you offer women interested in building a career in engineering or other technical fields?

Always advocate for yourself and if you ever are doubting your abilities, recognize your previous accomplishments. It’s easy to fall prey to imposter syndrome. In addition, something I’ve learned is if you aren’t at least a little scared, you aren’t pushing yourself enough. Failing is scary, but not growing is scarier.

Caroline Thomas, Electronics Engineer Apprentice, Honeywell Building Technologies

What got you into engineering?

Engineering ticked a lot of boxes for me. Growing up, I really enjoyed technology. I loved to take things apart and build mini-projects with my dad. I liked to be creative in designing and building, and engineering covered all of this.

Talk about your engineering apprenticeship with Honeywell

I am using this apprenticeship to figure out the right career path for me. I chose an industry that I was interested in and felt I could get excited about. Especially coming into an apprenticeship young, with a long career ahead of me, I needed to make sure this was something I loved and was passionate about.

For me, it is important that I’m working with a company that will support me and bring out the best in me.

The right employer will unlock potential you never knew you had.

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