What is your current job?
Founder and CEO of Virtual EyeSee a technology solutions company. I play multiple roles within this company. As a consultant I help businesses leverage digital technology to increase their revenue, connect with their customers and optimize their internal processes. As an entrepreneur I have taken an idea, conducted a feasibility study to see if this idea is viable from a business perspective, raised funds and now building it.
What made you want to pursue a career in engineering?
I always loved math in school and got my first computer when I was 12 years old. I took computers for my O’Levels and learning to develop programs opened up a whole new world for me. However the biggest influence was my father who was an engineer and growing up I was fascinated by the different jobs he had and the limitless career possibilities. This combined with my interest in computers led me to study engineering in university.
After working in industry for several years and running my own consulting company I wanted to change the focus of what I did and help technology companies grow their revenue and be successful by changing their business model and making changes to their products. This lead me back to university where I pursued a M.Eng. in Technology Innovation Management at Carleton University.
What’s your favourite part of your job? I have had a very interesting career and had the opportunity to work with some great companies and very talented individuals. I am currently developing an innovative el-earning tool for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Although I have never done this before every job or project that I have worked on in the past has prepared me for this challenge. It’s exhilarating to venture out into the unknown and secure funds, hire talented people take risks and solve problems. Taking an idea to a product is quite an adventure and I learn something new and challenged everyday.
How do you celebrate National Engineering Month?
When I was in university I organized conferences to encourage young women in high school to study engineering in University. Upon graduating I would volunteer to go out to the various schools and talk to the young children about engineering in day to day life and what I did at work. This was then followed profiling engineers on my blog and being a guest speaker at various student events.
What advice do you have for young women who hope to pursue a career in your field? Stick with the math and science in high school as it will open many doors for you in the future. Attend the various technology meetups in your area, programs that the universities host like research day etc….
Just go for if and don’t second guess yourself. There are many amazing opportunities out there and there is a need for talented individuals to innovate and create the up and coming technologies.
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Natasha D’Souza is an award winning technology strategist specializing in web, social media and mobile technologies. She obtained her B.Eng. in Electrical Engineering from Concordia University. She then went on to work as a Test Engineer for Newbridge Networks (now Alcatel-Lucent) followed by account management at Neutronics. She was part of a team the launched an online community to connect entrepreneurs. This was followed by a project manager for a healthcare IT company to finally launching her own consulting company, Virtual EyeSee. She is a graduate of the Technology Innovation Management at Carleton University.
She has over 15 years of industry experience working with a variety of organizations from Non-Profit, Fortune 500 companies to mid-size businesses building technology strategies and solutions.
She also works with organizations and teaches them how to use and leverage technology in their business. Natasha is a speaker and corporate trainer. She keynotes and participates as a speaker, moderator and panelist at many industry events and she conducts workshops and seminar teaching about technology, social media and mobile.
