Easyship is observing International Women’s Month by celebrating the amazing women who drive our company forward. Progress aside, women remain underemployed in tech and logistics. Historically, women have represented only 23% of all workers in logistics, and fewer still in the technology space.

Easyship is being the change it wants to see in the world. As a technology and logistics leader, Easyship is a proud irregularity to the employment standards of our industries. A full 35% of Easyship employees are women, with women comprising a growing share of our recent hires. We’re happy to grow by the grace of an inclusive, and in many departments, female-led workforce.

As our ranks continue to swell with the best women in tech, now seems an ideal time to highlight a few of our best and brightest. In a series of ask-and-answers, you’ll hear from 10 Easyship female employees on how to succeed in tech, and the productivity hacks they use to advance their careers and blaze a trail for those who would follow.

Komal Singh, Head of Human Resources

Komal is responsible for creating a work space in which all Easyship employees can succeed. Her efforts in recruitment, onboarding, and training have been vital to making Easyship the welcoming – and productive – workplace it is today.

In fact, research from McKinsey found that companies that focus on a diverse workplace perform better, hire better talent, and retain employees better than companies that don’t. As the data confirms, Komal is the compass we need to arrive at Easyship's brightest future.

What career advice would you give to someone trying to break into HR?

Aim high but don’t be afraid to start low. It’s not about the title but the learning you get at each level.

You could start as an intern on a one-person HR team, doing everything helping from recruiting to payroll. This will give you more experience than an HR executive on a four-person team.

What productivity hack has helped you the most in the last year?

Set 20 minutes aside before finishing the day to prepare the list of tasks for the next day that you need to finish and begin your following day by eating the biggest frog in the list.

Jackie Ostrov, Marketing and Partnerships Lead

Easyship’s ascent from startup to the world’s leading shipping platform is largely the result of Jackie Ostrov. As our marketing lead, she orchestrates the strategy that’s buoyed Easyship to its current success, and it will be her vision that guides us to the next milestone.

Jackie is a standout success in a typically male space, making her a consummate leader to women who would follow in her stead.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Marketing?

Take ownership and say “yes” to opportunities. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and always keep learning.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

I use the Zero Inbox method and Asana for project management and prioritization. [The Zero Inbox Method is the process of labeling and organizing your email to maintain zero unread emails for maximum task throughput and task visibility].

Shivanjali Bhaskar, Customer Success Manager

Customer success is pivotal in tech because only happy users add to your bottom line. In this way, Shivanjali is in charge of keeping Easyship afloat.

Without her savvy stewardship, our clients would miss the A+ personalized care they’ve come to love. Without her, we might spring a leak in the customer retention or loyalty department. Revenues would sink and then...well...let’s just say we love Shivanjali for empowering the success of Easyship.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Customer Success?

Be open to learning, making mistakes, and growing into your role. I say this as a former lawyer by education – but someone enterprising at heart. Also, ask a lot of questions after you've put in the time to figure things out yourself.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

I use a combination of the following:

  • Schedule my workday in full even if working from home. For example, if I had fewer client calls on a certain day, I would schedule my regular tasks on the calendar to fill that time.
  • Dressing up always helps me feel more put together and ready to take on the day.
  • Treat weekends differently by scheduling COVID-safe fun to create a bit of texture and clear my mind before the next week.

Hiromi Ochi, Senior Sales Executive

Hiromi is the rainmaker at Easyship. Following a distinguished career, she outshone the rest to claim the position of our sales team leader. Despite the macho vibe that swirls around tech sales, Hiromi has proven herself more than capable to male counterparts when it comes to bringing home the bacon.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Sales?

The best advice I can give to someone is to understand the “why” for the industry or company that you are trying to enter. What I mean is: try to find your industry’s true purpose, why the company’s product exists, and what exact problem the product is trying to answer. This is the best starting point to finding true value in your role, plus, how your product is beneficial to consumers.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

During the COVID-19 climate where we worked remotely, it was crucial to make meetings as productive as possible. Often, meetings were held more frequently than if in person, but the conversations were also briefer. Therefore, to increase productivity, I hold meetings with my team that justify the time spent – instead of having a meeting over a situation that can be solved over Slack.

Lilly Brown, Senior Digital Designer

Visual appeal is vital for digital brands. Thanks to Lilly Brown, our Senior Digital Designer, Easyship can effectively discuss the intangibles around shipping in ways that are both pleasing to the eye and easy to understand.

Though she prefers shape and color to words, Lilly is a chief communicator at Easyship, and we’re proud to have her speaking on our behalf.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Digital Design?

Get connected, organized, and inspired! Breaking into any field can be tricky. Your connections will be the key to your success. Find like-minded creatives and meet up with them to discuss design and share ideas!

As a designer, it's important to always stay organized. I had a professor who said, "The first thing you should do in the morning is make your bed — or you shouldn't be a designer." This always really stuck with me. At the time, I thought – WOW, HARSH! – but since that moment, I've always made the bed first thing in the morning.

I find that it's a great way to start the day in the right headspace. Organize your bed, so you can organize your day! Lastly, get inspired! My personal favorite way to get inspired is walking around. People, graffiti, nature, funny moments - they all inspire me creatively. Plus, walking is a fantastic way to activate your mind!

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

I always start the day by making a list of to-dos. I list them from highest priority to lowest priority and work from there! Once my projects are listed out on paper, they seem much more manageable. Additionally, coffee is a must.

Anjie Hanuman, Sales Executive

Anjie is a top breadwinner at Easyship. Though sales is typically male-dominated, Anjie’s regular position atop the sales leaderboard flies in the face of outdated norms. Having risen to the role of sales executive, her expertise enables the men and women on her team to reach their full potential.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into your Sales?

Walk into the role with confidence and don’t doubt your abilities to sell like a boss. Ask, ask, ask if you are ever unsure of something because I don’t believe there is such a thing as too many questions. Power is knowledge.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

Taking a quick walk during my lunch break gives my mind and my eyes a break so that I can come back refreshed and ready to power through the afternoon.

Daisi Zheng, Global Operations Associate

Daisi is a vital member of our Hong Kong operations team. She supports our partnerships with global shipping couriers, warehousing companies, and third-party logistics providers. The continued growth of Easyship as the world’s leading shipping platform wouldn’t be possible without the diligent and thoughtful attentions of Daisi Zheng.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Logistics Operations?

Enjoy your work & respect your time.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

Think creatively, think critically, and leverage your resources.

Jenny Kao, Data Scientist

The field of data science suffers a sharp drop-off between male and female employment. Though we lament this fact, Easyship counts itself lucky to have landed Jenny Kao as a data scientist.

Jenny’s insights guide our software development, tech releases, growth potential, and much more. We look forward to the day when more women like Jenny Kao have taken up their rightful place in tech.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into your Data Science?

Becoming an analyst/data person takes mainly three things: analytical tool proficiency, an analytical mindset, and domain knowledge to the company or project.

Analytical tool proficiency refers to your ability to work with advanced excel, SQL, or programming languages (Python, etc). There are lots of Youtube channels and blogs that have helped me along the way.

As for the analytical mindset and domain knowledge, these could be gradually built up by reading industry reports. Reading professional reports not only share industry-specific knowledge and trends but also show the thought process of transforming data to insight.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

  • Time blocking and planning for tomorrow one day in advance. This gives me clarity when I arrive and know what I need to work straight away. Also, this makes me push a little harder because now I have mini-deadlines for each task.
  • Scheduling tasks on a reminder app. Helpful when I think of something that needs to be done but can't do it right away, I will add the task to a to-do list app and schedule a time for it. This gives me peace of mind knowing that it won't be forgotten so I can focus on whatever I have on hand without fidgeting.
  • Dedicate myself to one note tool. Before, I had notes on my note app, Google Drive, Evernote, pieces of paper, in my notebook...they are everywhere. It was difficult to find the thing I jotted down when I needed it. Now I make sure I save everything in my notes app that can be synced between my phone and my laptops. It saves me a lot of stress looking around for the brainstorming lists or whatever diagram I’m using.

Cristina Simoncini, Backend Developer

It’s beautiful to see more women bring their logic to software development. Christina is a backend developer at Easyship, writing code for our website, shipping automation, and partner systems around the globe. Christina is the architect of our digital presence, and a vivid example of why women are so necessary in tech.

What career advice would you give to women trying to break into Software Development?

Be curious and keep exploring. Tech and eCommerce move fast and you might feel like you are left behind. Don’t, go with the flow. Try, fail, learn, and when you succeed, try something new and start over.

What productivity hack has helped you most in the last year?

As old school as it might sound, every morning I write down - yes, write down on paper! What I have to focus on that day and split my list of bullet points into two sections: AM and PM. That piece of paper – actually, a page of my notebook – is then be my faithful companion for the whole day and help me stay motivated, as I little by little cross all the items on the list, and on track when new things come along the way during the day.

The Women of Easyship Going Forward

Easyship is committed to realizing the equity of women in the workplace. Hopefully you've gleaned some helpful from our tour of the Easyship work culture as led by some of our best employees. Check back next year to see where we stand with women in tech, and how far we've come on the march to balance and opportunity.