Empowered Women in Tech: Orange Ramirez Breakthrough Story in the Tech Industry
All of us start somewhere to get to where we want to be. For Ms. Orange Ramirez, Vice President and Brand & Marketing Head of Converge ICT Solutions, perseverance became her fuel to reach remarkable milestones in her career journey. She exemplifies how determination, values, empathy, and adaptability can help one succeed in the ICT industry.
Empowered Women in Tech: Orange Ramirez Breakthrough Story in the Tech Industry
Upon joining Converge, Orange saw its genuine commitment to serving Filipinos, a value that resonated deeply with her personal goals. She believes that every individual matters, including small entrepreneurs, whom she sees as crucial contributors to the country’s development.
This commitment extends beyond mere business objectives; her passion for creating opportunities for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) has propelled her to excel in her role as the company’s brand and marketing head, which was shown within their partnerships with Converge’s SME clients. Furthermore, her proactive approach to understanding customer and employee needs echoes her values; seeking to positively impact people’s lives through her influence and hard work.
“[It] will help us build the right ecosystem for the SMEs to thrive and strengthen their competitiveness and widen their opportunities through digital technology.”
Orange Ramirez about the importance of heeding the needs of their SMEs
In the ICT world, maintaining relevancy is a constant challenge for her. Beneath her love for the challenge, the key lies in her prioritization of empathizing with the company’s stakeholders and customers. She finds fulfillment in this journey of learning, creating, and synthesizing. In doing so, as the Brand and Marketing Head, staying abreast of industry trends and having an innovative mindset brings Converge to the frontlines of ICT services.
As a woman, she fearlessly embraced her role as the company’s Brand & Marketing Head guided by her principles, integrity, and excellence. She leveraged her experiences as a catalyst for growth within the company. Now she takes up leadership roles with an intent to enrich communities—encouraging greater opportunities and career advancement for more potential applicants.
Orange Ramirez, as an Empowered Woman in the ICT world
In an exclusive interview with Village Pipol Magazine, she reminisces about some of her experiences overcoming challenges. Notably, working in a predominantly male-dominated industry.
Before, the majority of Converge’s staff consisted of men, as most of them were engineers. She fearlessly worked and pursued her designated role and stepped up to understand numerous technical jargon that she encountered along the way. Furthermore, doing this helped her deliver the intended result for the customers.
Since then, she has actively sought to widen the company’s boundaries by leveraging her skills and experience. She specifically intended to expand Converge’s application pool and provide them with knowledge and valuable skills that will aid in their professional development. As part of this strategy, she aimed to raise the number of female employees as early as 2022.
She also continues to stimulate a diverse and inclusive workplace culture by instilling a non-discriminatory policy against potential hires. For her, gender should not be the basis for employment but the skills and contributions one can bring to the company. This workplace inclusivity enables a diverse range of ideas for the Company’s advancement and strategy development to excel and acquire a percentage in the market.
During the interview, she mentioned their goal of having a market share and challenging the existing duopoly. Aligned with this objective, they crafted a strategy aimed at achieving their desired outcome. During an interview, Orange revealed that they mapped out their execution plan by drawing insights from the success stories and strategies of other companies. This helped them draw inspiration to tailor their plan to meet the specific needs of their own company.
Orange’s Idea of Career Advancement Extends Beyond the Typical Corporate Ladder
When she talks about ‘career advancement,’ she doesn’t equate it to titles, company positions, or higher pay. For her, it’s more about continual growth, both personally and professionally. One should always pursue upscaling their knowledge, skills, decision-making, and strategizing.
“There is greater fulfillment in knowing we’ve paved something for ourselves, for others, and the communities, than in getting the promotion. Promotion will come as a result of “a job well done,”
Orange, on how she views company promotions
Orange sees everyone like a diamond in the rough. A thorough believer that everyone is destined for greatness; they just need proper refinement and nurturement.
Moreover, her ability to think outside of the box has helped her manage the people within her supervision during trying times—like when the pandemic struck our country.
Her Definition of ‘Empowerment’ and How it Helped the Company During the COVID-19 Pandemic
“An empowered woman is someone who has the ability to think on her own, discovers her life’s purpose, deciphers what’s good for herself, makes decisions confidently, and faces challenges with courage.”
Orange, in her definition of an ’empowered woman’
Her definition of an empowered woman aligns with her perception of empowerment in the professional field. She emphasized that being empowered enables women to unleash their creativity and innovation, fostering a sense of fulfillment and productivity that benefits not only the company but also communities as a whole. This notion of empowerment mirrored her actions during the COVID-19 surge at the company.
“Looking back, I think the pandemic allowed me to see things and situations differently. I guess it was also because of the amount of focus and determination I had to resolve [the] challenges the company faced.”
Orange on her realization when the pandemic affected their company
During that period, she witnessed several days and weeks of the company suffering from understaffing. Due to the shortage of workers, they have had to address numerous complaints and be more understanding, which has been overwhelming for them. Despite those, Orange and her team still stayed true to their duties of doing their part to tend to the complaints.
She recalled the company’s COO sought her advice on what they should do next. It was at that moment it clicked that she needed to transcend her marketing skills. With no hesitation and unstoppable determination, she collaborated with other leaders and created a plan to recover from this recession. She gathered every leader and facilitated collaboration with them to execute solutions that ultimately elevated the circumstances.
With this encounter, she valued the act of stepping back and viewing things from a different perspective. Through this approach, the company learned to realign its efforts and continue its mission to serve Filipinos. Likewise, venturing beyond one’s comfort zone grants a broader understanding of the situation, invites new ideas, and develops new skills that could help them prosper.
The Advantages of Being a Team Player and a Great Listener
“If you take on a challenge, it is a must that everyone, each member of the team, had to be on board and willing to take it on as well. Everyone has to step up. It might be [a] gruesome experience but at the end of it, there’s an amount of learning that is unquantifiable.”
Orange, on her learning experience, turned the company’s challenge into a power move.
Truly, teamwork makes the dream work. Including everyone’s cooperation and perceptions on any matter will drive all to prosperity. Yes, it is scary to put up with challenges, but that is the only way we get to blossom and triumph. Ultimately, having a leader who supports and understands makes the journey less stressful and more fun.
As a leader, Orange has demonstrated the power of a woman to be the catalyst of change and the driver of success. Furthermore, she embodies a person dedicated to active service who exemplifies transformational leadership that can yield results exceeding expectations. Additionally, her commitment to advocating for women’s representation in the workplace contributes to changing how society views women and their capabilities.
The world has already passed by the negative preconceived notions about women. In today’s world, women are not only a source of love and care but also bearers of change and societal development. Drawing inspiration from Orange Ramirez, a woman leader in a male-dominated industry, we witness how females can cultivate raw talents and develop them for a greater purpose. Moreover, the secret to devising a solution lies in actively listening, empathizing with those affected, and providing for their needs while leading your team to recovery—a powerful move only within a woman’s capabilities.
