You are an outstanding young leader. What is your personal story?
I grew up as the oldest of three girls. My mother joined the Army a few years after I was born so that she could provide a better life for my siblings and me. Having to move around often as a military dependent helped me to learn to adapt in different environments quickly.
Being that the military was what I grew up around for the majority of my life, it made perfect sense to me to join once I graduated high school. I was quickly met with disappointment when I was told that I would not be able to fulfil this dream that I once had as a young girl. Although college was not a part of my original plan, I set out for this new journey attending The University of West Alabama. During my time there I built many meaningful relationships with my mentors and now lifelong friends. While completing my undergraduate degree I decided to step outside of my normal comfort zone and became a part of multiple organizations which include Active minds and Alpha Phi Omega National Service Fraternity. I also had the pleasure of leading both Enactus and The Minority Business Student Association as President.
I graduated in Spring 2020 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Computer Information Systems. Currently, I am pursuing a Master of Business Administration in Cyber Security, Cyber Crime and Policy where I am set to graduate the Summer of 2021.
Zania, you were in the 2019 class of GlobalMindED leaders. How did you get to GlobalMindED, what did you learn, and how did you grow your leadership skills through this experience?
In 2019 I was offered an internship with the National Young Farmers Educational Association through The College of Business and Technology at The University of West Alabama. My partner and I attended the GlobalMindED conference to help improve our leadership skills and learn the importance of networking and how to conduct ourselves in a professional setting. While attending this conference I was able to take part in several breakout session where I learned what it meant to be a leader and how to effectively communicate within a team. After attending GlobalMindED, I was able to take what I learned and apply it throughout the rest of my college career.
How did you decide to pursue cyber security and your MBA? What are your professional goals?
Growing up I was always interested in computers. I remember being a young girl in elementary school and my favorite time of the day was the trip to the computer lab. It was not until I got into my sophomore year of college and decided to switch my major from general business to computer information systems. As I enjoy challenges and frequent change, I felt that the tech industry was the best choice for me. While learning more about cyber security I’ve discovered that industry is very broad and there are several paths that you can take to gain new skills. Knowing that there is always room to learn and grow is very intriguing to me. Currently my professional goal is to get into the GRC (governance, risk and compliance) side of cybersecurity. Once I gain some experience, I would like to push to become a CISO (Chief Information Security Officer).
What kind of company do you most want to work for when you graduate?
Ideally in the near future I hope to work for a company in the public sector that is family oriented and has room for growth and advancement. I strongly believe that since the COVID 19 pandemic has hit, it is important to know and understand the morals and values a company possesses as well as what steps were taken to ensure job security and safety for their employees.
What will you bring to your future employer that is unique about you and the contributions you can make as you ascend within your career?
What is unique about me is my drive and motivation to succeed in any environment I am in. If I don’t have the answer to a specific question or task, I always make sure that I research or ask questions so if the problem presents itself again, I am prepared. I would say my main contributions to any company I join would be my motivation, determination, enthusiasm, and leadership. I believe that it is important to have the confidence and idea that many people may be able to do the same job as you but no one person is able to do it the way that you do.
What are your personal and professional goals over time? How can the GlobalMindED Community help you to achieve these goals?
Over time I plan to be able to use the skills that I learned in the professional environment and give back to those within the community. I believe that many students have this idea that because the tech industry is so large that all that is needed is a college degree to get their foot in the door and that is sadly not the case. I want to be able to provide students with the knowledge that I have acquired while trying to break into the field, in hopes that their transition would be smoother along the way. I believe the GlobalMindED community can help by setting up forums for undergraduates and graduate student to speak about the common issues they have faced, and how they tackled and overcame them.
