International Women’s Day (IWD) 2025 is a global tribute to women's achievements and a call to drive progress toward gender equality. This year, conversations emphasize inclusivity, empowerment, and breaking barriers across industries. It’s a time to reflect on past struggles while inspiring future advancements in gender equity. Meet the women of Veeam Strategy Team as they share what this day means to them and their commitments to making a difference.
Emilee Tellez, Field CTO
My journey in tech began in 2013 after graduating from college, and for the past decade, I’ve had the privilege of growing and evolving at Veeam. Each opportunity has pushed me beyond my comfort zone, shaping my career in ways I never imagined.
#IWD2025 is always a moment of reflection—not just on my own path in tech but also on the incredible women I’ve had the opportunity to connect and collaborate with. Their stories prove that there’s no single formula for success; passion and perseverance take many different forms. The journey can often feel like a never-ending roller coaster, but having the right mindset, seeking support, and surrounding ourselves with advocates makes all the difference.
This year, #IWD2025 is about #AccelerateAction. My commitment is to actively support women pursuing careers in tech—whether through mentorship, advocacy, or even a simple coffee chat. If you need help or even just someone to bounce ideas from, you can connect with me on LinkedIn. Let’s continue to uplift and empower each other!
Karinne Bessette, Technologist
My career has evolved over many years, shaping me in unexpected and wonderful ways. I have always been passionate about technology and learning, landing my first jobs creating websites and fixing printers. Today, I am speaking on stages and live streams, discussing technology and culture with various communities.
Community is what drives diverse change and greater cultural acceptance. This drive is evident in many women groups like Women in Technology and Women in STEM. I am honored to be a part of many of these local and international groups, engaging as a mentor and mentee. My greatest advice to anyone struggling for direction or to gain traction is to take some time to find a community that aligns with your goals and promotes your mettle.
Right now, more than ever, women need to be promoted and supported through changes and cultural shifts out of our control. S.O.S was first used in 1905 as a quick way to send a distress signal. This signal later became known by many different acronyms and meanings, making it one of the most well-known backronyms. An Out & Equal seminar I attended proposed a new meaning to this backronym: Strength, Opportunity, and Support. I encourage you to find your strength or what I call your superpower; this can be as simple as being outgoing or a safe place; we all have them. Find your opportunity; every interaction matters, from large stages to one-on-one conversations. Last, find your support; whether it is a friend or a community, find your rock because no one can do it alone.
Kirsten Stoner, Technologist
My first experience in technology was when I landed a job in college, working the help desk at my college library. One thing I discovered about myself during this experience, was the desire to overcome everyday challenges with technology solutions. This led me to my position at Veeam, which has been an amazing experience leading me to grow so much professionally and personally.
Being a woman in technology, comes with its on challenges but also rewards. When I first started, many times I found myself, like others do, as the only woman in a room. At first this was intimidating, but I stuck my ground, learning from others and being uncomfortable, because I knew that if I stayed uncomfortable, it would leave space for other women to break barriers, be confident with themselves and show up, even when they feel like they don’t belong.
History has demonstrated that women are capable of remarkable achievements. From Ada Lovelace, one of the first computer programmers, to Katherine Johnson whose calculations were critical to the success of NASA’s early space missions, women have had a major impact on technology and business today. This year’s #IWD theme, #AccelerateAction to me means that we all should play an active role in showing up, supporting each other and making room for future women to excel and succeed expectations.
Julia Furst Morgado, Global Technologist
My career has been anything but traditional! I started as a lawyer in Brazil, then studied business at UC Berkeley, and eventually found my passion in tech. Along the way, I discovered the power of community, continuous learning, and the importance of representation. Today, as a Global Technologist at Veeam, I help organizations navigate solutions for resilience and scalability. Beyond my work, I’m deeply involved in fostering inclusive tech spaces as a CNCF Ambassador, AWS Container Hero, Google Women Techmakers Ambassador, and community organizer for Kubernetes Community Days New York, AWS Community Day New York, and more.
For me, #IWD2025 is a celebration of resilience and reinvention. I know firsthand how intimidating it can be to break into tech from a non-traditional background, and I’ve made it my mission to help others do the same. Learning in public, embracing discomfort, and surrounding myself with a strong network transformed my career, and I want more women to see that tech is a place where they belong.
If you’re looking to make a change, know this: your background is an asset, not a limitation! Keep striving, keep thriving, and let’s build a future where everyone has a seat at the table.
Landra Pierce, Technologist
For over 10 years, I’ve built my career in tech, starting at Apple as a Technical Trainer, where I developed expertise in problem-solving, customer engagement, and technical education. That foundation led me to Veeam, where I started as a Systems Engineer—a role that, at first, was overwhelming. Coming from a different technical background, I struggled with imposter syndrome, often feeling like I didn’t know enough. But through relentless learning, mentorship, and pushing past my comfort zone, I not only found my footing but thrived.
Now, as a Technologist on Veeam’s Product Strategy Team, I use my experience to bridge the gap between technology and real-world business needs, helping shape Veeam’s future while empowering others in the industry.
International Women’s Day is a reminder of how far we’ve come—and how much further we need to go. It’s about recognizing the strength, innovation, and impact of women in tech and beyond. It’s also a call to action: to break barriers, challenge stereotypes, and create opportunities for future generations.
To every woman in tech: You belong here. Keep learning, keep pushing, and keep inspiring. The challenges may be tough, but so are we—and we are redefining this industry, one success at a time.
Madalina Cristil – Principal Community Manager
Although my role isn’t directly technical, as a Principal Community Manager at Veeam and a member of the Product Strategy team, I collaborate with some of the top technical experts. This means I need to stay up to date with Veeam technology and innovation.
Before joining Veeam, I worked at Amazon in a technical role as a QA tester for Alexa. Additionally, I developed my own project, a travel platform in WordPress , which required me to learn basic coding. This sparked my interest in software development, leading me to earn a Front-End Developer certification.
I’m proud to be part of a team where women are well-represented and supported (hence the picture), but the broader reality is that the tech industry still struggles with gender imbalance in technical and leadership roles. True progress doesn’t happen by chance—it requires intentional action to dismantle barriers and ensure that success is driven by talent and expertise, not gender.
Being an ally isn’t just about support in words; it’s about actively challenging the status quo and pushing for systemic change. It means recognizing the obstacles women have historically faced and working to create a more inclusive path forward. No skill is out of reach for women, and it’s up to all of us to build a future where opportunities are truly equal.
Safiya Mohamed, Community Analyst
I entered the technology industry when I arrived at Veeam. Before then, my only experience in technology was a six-week coding after-school program in high school. Taking a role in an industry I was unfamiliar with was intimidating and can often cause imposter syndrome to loom. As I think about the theme of this year's International Women's Day #AccelerateAction, I am reminded of the support I have had along the way to elevate my progress. In fields of work where women make up a small percentage, having a community rooting for you to develop and succeed is crucial.
During 2024's Grace Hopper Celebration, AnitaB.org President and CEO Brenda Wilkerson said, "Power isn't conferred by the nature of our status. It's usurped by the nature of our determination." As I advance in my career, I push myself not to remain stagnant and confined to where I feel most secure. I would encourage others, especially those early in their careers like me, to do the same. Embracing curiosity and disrupting your comfort can carve a path never anticipated, and that journey is best taken with support along the way.
Nikola Pejková, Community Manager
My story is a reflection of constant action that has accelerated since I started working in IT more than 10 years ago. Although I had studied Adult Education in my Master's degree and didn't really have any previous experience with the IT world, I took a job as an IT headhunter and worked as a supplier of IT specialists to various clients of corporate size as well as some SMBs. During this time I learned about different roles in IT, programming languages used and different responsibilities in the projects as I listened to the needs of my clients. After a couple of years I felt the need to move on and accelerated a change starting with Oracle after my previous work experience in a small local company. The corporate world was completely new to me, I got an opportunity to live in Dublin for a month where we had a training and started to deep dive into the application I was responsible for selling in the Czech market. After some time I felt that it's not the environment where I want to continue and accelerated change another time and moved back to a small local company where I got responsibility for IoT projects, which was exciting as I love everything technical, especially when it helps improve the world around us. Unfortunately, this story was much shorter than it should have been, and after the accidental death of our boss, my department was closed and I accelerated the action again and went to lead a huge project as a project manager in a startup in cooperation with a major car manufacturer, which was again a completely new experience and a different world. After completing my task, I felt it was time to find a place where I could settle down and stay longer, as I was starting to get tired of starting all over again. And then I found Veeam in 2019 - a place where I felt I belonged. A pretty big company, still with a startup mindset, and most importantly, with an amazing mission - to lead the global IT community of Veeam Vanguards. And here we go, it's going to be my 6th year at Veeam and I'm grateful that I wasn't afraid to accelerate and move away from places where I didn't feel I was maximizing my potential, even though many people were skeptical after I changed jobs another time. But if you want to find the right place under the sun for you, there's no other way than to accelerate change until you get to where you're happy and where you are.
