More than just work experience – an Intern’s story

May 5, 2022 | 4 min read

Author

Rachel Meijer

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Not only do we invest in our Roboyo employees, but we also have a thriving internship program. Across all business units, our interns provide valuable support, offer a new perspective and in many cases become a permanent fixture on the Roboyo team.  

Here, Marketing Executive Rachel Meijer interviews Consultant Intern Imane Bouazzaoui to find out why she chose Roboyo and what knowledge and experience she’s gained from her time at Roboyo. 

Rachel: What was the main reason you decided to join Roboyo?

Imane: It wasn’t planned, that’s for sure! A few months after my graduation, I found an internship in a Spanish start-up and decided to move forward with it…until I met with Roboyo. 

One of Roboyo’s HR team contacted me on LinkedIn and seeing every interview as a learning or training opportunity I decided to give it a shot even though I had little knowledge about the Intelligent Automation field. As soon as I met the team and started talking about the role, that’s when the Roboyo magic happened. I immediately felt a sense of belonging with the people but also with the company values and culture. 

Rachel: As a young professional and graduate what are your career goals?

Imane: Having long-term career goals and objectives is important but I’d say that I’m a strong believer of: “Time will tell”. In my opinion, the key to success lays in being proactive, open to learning and to feedback but also in our ability to identify the right opportunities and seize them. Networking is also key to boosting your career and ensuring opportunity flows your way.  

For now, my short-term objectives are to broaden and expand my skill set while growing my network globally. Porte Gale, author of ‘Your network is your net worth’ says: “I believe that your social capital, or your ability to build a network of authentic personal and professional relationships, not your financial capital, is the most important asset in your portfolio.” I’d highly recommend this book to any networking enthusiastic. 

Rachel: Coming from a non-technical background, how did you manage to become an Intelligent Automation Consultant? 

Imane: That’s Roboyo’s magic! Coming from a management and marketing background with no knowledge of Intelligent Automation or RPA, the beginning was tough. But the fact that Roboyo gave me the opportunity purely based on my ability to learn and my openness to the Intelligent Automation field was a huge motivational boost.  

In an increasingly competitive marketplace where getting your foot in the door of the best consulting firms is getting harder and harder, I felt extremely grateful to be given the opportunity to learn, deep dive into the automation and RPA worlds and work with a solid portfolio of clients such as Roboyo’s.  

I quickly saw how Roboyans were great at nurturing best practices whilst constantly innovating and providing the latest learning resources for the industry (make sure you check out the Roboyo Academy).  

Roboyo is definitely a workplace promoting its employees’ development and evolution and thanks to that, I was able to get my UiPath RPA Business Analyst certification. 

Rachel: As a woman in tech just starting out in your career, what do you see are the industry’s limitations? 

Imane: As my fellow Robayans would say, the Sky is no longer the limit. My experience at Roboyo has showed how a tech company (in a traditionally male-dominated industry) can and should create a workplace where women thrive. Not only have I worked with the best women in the industry but it’s great to see Roboyo’s leadership actively sponsoring events such as European Women in Technology and supporting their female employees at all stages of their lives. 

In the wider world, I have noticed some stereotypes and misconceptions about the tech industry which contribute to gender disparity. Sometimes, those stereotypes and misconceptions are spread at very early stages in middle or high school for example. Women tend to be less exposed to or less encouraged to pursue careers in tech. On the other hand, a lack of female role models within tech fields is also reinforcing the perception that a career in tech isn’t for them.  

According to PwC, only 3% of women are considering a tech career as their first choice, 78% of students are not able to name a famous woman working in tech and only 16% of females have had a career in tech suggested to them (33% for men). This was shocking to me but not surprising.  

In my opinion, tech companies, industry leaders and educational systems must work together to break down barriers, build awareness, nurture talent in STEM (Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), incorporate diversity and provide support for managers to lead change.  

Only by working together can we make this dream a reality!  

Rachel: Now you know more about the world of Intelligent Automation, would you recommend it as a solution to a future employer or even your own business? 

Imane: 6 months ago, I probably would have said No, or I don’t know. Working for Roboyo enabled me to take a deep dive into the Intelligent Automation world to discover technologies such as RPA and Artificial Intelligence (AI) but most importantly to understand how they can drive forward digital transformation.  

I’ve seen first-hand how RPA and other Intelligent Automation technologies are generating impressive ROI. If a company is asking ‘How do we save money and time?’ ‘How do we become more competitive?’ ‘How do we make our employees’ work life better?’ – I can now say that the answer to those questions is Intelligent Automation.  

I would therefore happily adopt Intelligent Automation in the future and to use Roboyo’s brand phrase ‘Take my company to the Next Level. Now’. In a constantly changing and fast paced world, RPA and AI are becoming key contributors to a company’s long-term success 

With its expertise and strong portfolio of partners such as UiPath, Bizagi, Cognigy etc., I’ve seen how Roboyo is delivering effective Next Level services and solutions for their customers, putting them head and shoulders above their competition. 

Rachel: What’s the next step in your career Imane? 

Imane: With my background being in Marketing, I’d like to purse that further so I’m about to start a master’s degree in Marketing (whilst keeping a keen eye on your Marketing department job vacancies in the future!!!).

Rachel: Imane, thank you for sharing your insights into your internship, it’s been great to have you on board the Roboyo ship these past few months. We wish you every success in your degree and future career.

If you want to take your career to the Next Level, we have the perfect role or internship for you. View our job vacancies and apply today! 

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