How working mom becomes senior IT leader

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Biz & Tech IT TheKoreaTimes Saturday 08 February 2020)

How working mom becomes senior IT leader

Lee Kyung-hee, senior director at Oracle Korea / Courtesy of Oracle Korea

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By Jun Ji-hye

Updated : 2020-02-07 18:00

Lee Kyung-hee, a senior director at Oracle Korea, is cited as the first generation female professional in the IT industry here.

Lee, who currently heads the Tech Cloud Customer Success, joined the Korean unit of the California-based computer technology company in 1993 and has since served in major posts such as a senior regional director and sales consulting director.

Her achievement is considered notable, given that female workers still account for a small percentage of the domestic IT industry.

According to the Software Policy and Research Institute, the ratio of women in the IT industry was 21.6 percent in 2018.

"It is regrettable that women still account for less than 30 percent in the industry. There also have been limits to positions women could take," Lee said in an interview with The Korea Times. "This shows that Korea still has a long way to go. I think a lot of changes should be made in all areas including the government, companies, universities and women themselves."

As a woman who has been forced to juggle between work and childcare due to a lack of support and affordable facilities, Lee, who has two sons, has also struggled throughout her career.

"Welfare systems related to childcare were even poorer in the past, and my posts involved a considerable amount of business trips. I had to do everything on my own," she said.

To prove that she was capable of doing the required tasks at the same level as male employees, she sometimes brought her children to her office when everyone left after getting off work, to complete her work on time.

"Also, I often came to the office late at night after putting the children to bed, and worked all night," she said. "I think women should create opportunities on their own if they are not given any. In my case, I studied a lot to develop myself by reading many books and participating in mentoring programs."

In a bid to help female employees better display their abilities and foster leadership, Lee has led the Oracle Women's Leadership, launched in 2012, promoting information sharing and network building.

"To survive in the IT industry, women should cope actively with the rapidly changing environment and be open-minded," she said. "I also want to ask them not to give up although they have so many critical moments, as success will be just around the corner."

jjh@ktimes.com