Cosa significa essere un Cloud Data Engineer e donne in ambito STEM? A raccontarcelo è Marianna Fusco, Cloud Data Engineer Specialist presso xTech, la Practice di BIP sule tecnologie esponenziali Cloud, Data, AI, 5G e IOT, che abbiamo avuto il piacere di intervistare in qualità di ex studentessa del Master di II livello in Cloud Data Engineering organizzato e co-progettato da BIP e Cefriel ufficialmente riconosciuto dal Politecnico di Milano.

What does a Cloud Data Engineer do? 

The Cloud Data Engineer rappresenta una figura chiave in processi che riguardano la raccolta,  l’analisi, la trasformazione e l’esposizione di dati. Si occupa di definire, gestire e monitorare flussi dato, costruire o perfezionare architetture che coinvolgono tipi di dati differenti garantendone la disponibilità e la qualità.

He has a broad knowledge of technical tools and of the Cloud, where these data are generally managed, and collaborates with various professionals (such as Data Scientists and Data Analysts) who analyse and process data. 

What motivated you to become a Cloud Data Engineer?

Ho un background scientifico con una Laurea Magistrale in Fisica delle Astroparticelle e ho lavorato ad una tesi sull’analisi di immagini per la ricerca direzionale di Materia Oscura con tecniche di Deep Learning. Sono una persona curiosa e mi ha sempre affascinato il mondo dei Big Data e la capacità di estrarre informazioni utili da queste grandi quantità di numeri. In diverse occasioni, ho imparato che una delle prerogative fondamentali per l’analisi del dato sta proprio alla base, nella sua raccolta e nella preparazione.

When I heard about the offer proposed by BIP and Cefriel, I did not hesitate to embark on this new experience. I would have been able to train and in the future play a crucial role in a rapidly growing field, Big Data, where I could put my knowledge to use and improve my skills.

What tasks does a Cloud Data Engineer typically perform? 

Non penso esista una routine tipica per un Cloud Data Engineer. Solitamente alcune attività sono continuative o periodiche come, ad esempio, il controllo e monitoraggio di flussi dato attivi oppure l’analisi di risultati di processi esistenti come la Data Observability (che comprende test e metriche per validare la qualità del dato).

 

Very often, however, it is necessary to put together ideas and technological tools and create new flows or extend existing ones to meet specific needs that improve data knowledge, quality or availability. And it is precisely in these circumstances that skills and abilities can be deployed to define and develop new, sometimes even innovative, solutions.

What are the skills of a Data Cloud Engineer and above all, how much did your university course influence their learning? 

For a data engineer, it is useful to have knowledge of data and its processing, to know access strategies and mechanisms as well as programming languages and tools for managing and working with data.

 

Tra le competenze non propriamente tecniche credo sia vantaggioso avere attitudine al lavoro in team, capacità di pensiero critico and a atteggiamento proattivo nell’affrontare le sfide quotidiane oltre che una buona capacità di problem solving.

 

My university career has helped me to develop many of these skills, which, being transversal, are easily spendable in different contexts. Many of the technical aspects I learnt by working directly on various projects, which often stimulated my creativity in the search for alternative solutions, and my curiosity then evolved into continuous learning.

What impact did the Master in Cloud Data Engineer organised and co-designed by BIP and Cefriel have on your career? 

Nel mio caso il Master di II livello in Cloud Data Engineering organizzato da Cefriel ha ricoperto un ruolo chiave nel processo di formazione teorica e preparazione alla professione di Cloud Data Engineer. Mi ha permesso di acquisire una serie di competenze di base in diversi campi utili a capire dinamiche e processi coinvolti quotidianamente nel lavoro di un Cloud Data Engineer.

 

I can say that it turned out to be an important and fruitful investment in my professional growth and that many of the technical skills I acquired were then expanded through direct experience on the job, study and individual updating. 

Given that Cloud Data Engineering is generally considered a predominantly male-dominated tech field, what advice would you give to other girls like you who would like to enter this world?

Be curious, read, research and inform yourself about this world and the different professional opportunities, there are so many of them and maybe you will discover new interesting profiles. You have to put effort and passion into it because there is competition but you should not be discouraged or intimidated by the percentages.

 

It is an ever-changing world where there are many opportunities for everyone, where you can prove you can do your job well and stand out, making your valuable contribution even in a predominantly male world. It is the quality of our work, the added value, that makes the difference and not how many we are. In the end we are only talking about numbers, right? 🙂

In 2022, BIP was awarded the Top Employer Italia certification for its commitment to implementing policies for the well-being of people, including gender equality and women's empowerment. Are you proud to be part of a company that makes it possible to create a fairer society?

I am proud to be part of this reality, in BIP I have found a stimulating, young and dynamic working environment, attentive to the needs of the worker. It is a company that pools its strengths to achieve common goals of improving the well-being of working life, ready to accept new challenges and adopt policies aimed at improving and growing its employees.

Se anche a te piacerebbe fare un percorso di carriera simile a quella di Marianna, candidati al Master di II livello in Cloud Data Engineering organizzato da BIP e Cefriel e riconosciuto dal Politecnico di Milano.
The costo del Master è interamente coperto da BIP e, una volta iscritt*, sarai immediatamente assunt* da BIP con contratto di Apprendistato in Alta Formazione della durata di due anni.