Shaila Rahman Lima completed her BSc. in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology (RUET). She has 12 years of experience in Telecom sector with 10 years in Leadership role. Expertise in Project Management. She is currently the Head of Technology Strategy & Transformation at Grameenphone Ltd.

Questions & Answers with Shaila Rahman

What is your specific area of STEM?

My specific area in STEM is Engineering. With the background of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, I’m working in Telecommunication sector/Grameenphone Ltd. for 13+ years with 11+ years in different leadership role, currently in the position of General Manager , Head of Technology Strategy & Transformation in Technology Division.

When did you first become interested in tech and was there a moment where you knew you were going to be a (computer programmer/ Professor / Network engineer/ etc)?

While in my early stage in school, I always had high score in math and the discussion around the family was that I’ld pursue my career path in engineering sector. And from that moment I know that Engineering is my future & I prepared myself for this track. Most of my family members are working women and my grandmother was the pioneer here. So, the family environment was always like every girl will must have their own identity. That’s why it was obvious to be a working person & as math/science was my interested area so STEM became the ultimate destiny. I’m so lucky for having this kind of family environment where there was no dissemination within our siblings (regardless of gender) , received all kind of supports & opportunities to prepare ourselves ready for future and all of the three siblings are in STEM field.

How would you explain your STEM field to young girls?

The tough journey started from the higher education time. In my era, the % of female students was very minimum & the perception was like a girl in STEM field education is only to fulfil the hobby but it can’t be a long term plan like build career in this area. That’s why most of the time female students was not taken seriously. And due to some challenges in our overall eco-system & traditional mindset ,it was always challenging while doing Lab work/ thesis readiness /etc . But the real challenge started while I came in the job market. Here still the mindset exists “STEM is not the field for women”. Here we need to put 2x efforts than a man to prove ourselves. Technology is fully male dominating and being the first female in leadership role inside Technology Division in Grameenphone; breaking the glass ceiling was the major challenge. Empathy & boldness as a leader and passion, knowledge and continuous success story for achieving business target were the enablers to establish the fact that “Technology doesn't have any gender” and “Females have the equal protentional in STEM field even in leadership role ” There are very bright side as well, specially who really loves to take challenges. Technology is changing everyday and lots of learning prospects and diversified working opportunities are always here which inspired me to take new challenges . So, the journey altogether is quite challenging as well as interesting as well.

What traits might a child possess that may indicate an interest or aptitude for your STEM field?

While we think on this , the 1st thing came in our mind is to be very good in math/science/relevant topics. But right now, in my age I realize it differently. Only good in education is not the real quality to create career in this domain. Rather boldness & challenge taking mindset is more important than the brighter educational track record. We are very much familiar that a high % of our female are not in career track while having a very good academic qualification. And every year we are losing certain % of our female workforce in STEM who are giving up due to many logical challenges. So, my realization is a child have to have some inner quality & independent mindset on top of good interest in relevant academic area.

Why did you choose your STEM field? Were you inspired by someone?

As I mentioned above there was not other alternative in our family environment for “Not to be a working person”. And having the encouraging atmosphere inside the larger family I know from my very early stage that STEM is my only field. It may sound strange that having huge confidence on my ability I was dare to take challenge for not applying any other subject or university in the time of admission for higher education. My only interest was in EEE and I know I’ll not be able to handle the pressure of staying without my family so I was determined for RUET (as its in my home town) & my favorite subject EEE. I have not even appeared for exam in any University (not even BUET) or any other subject. Having trust on my capability, I took the challenges & also got opportunity to fulfill my dream. I am heavily influenced by my mother & grandmother. Though they were not in STEM filed (both were in Govt. service) , but the way how they are treated in the society & family that always inspired me to be an independent women & create my own identity in the society.

What is the biggest challenge you face as a woman in STEM?

Clearly men and women will always face challenges in their career, regardless of whether they work in STEM related fields or something entirely different. However, the challenges that women particularly face STEM are quite specific, like :

• Unconscious biasness
• Predefined mindset
• “men’s club” concept- Not enough women at the table/Non-Inclusive Workplaces
• Lack of role models
• Sponsorship—Not enough leaders are sponsoring highly qualified women by speaking up on their behalf.
• Women can struggle when attempting to balance the need to behave in masculine ways in order to be seen as competent, but also expected to be “girly” and feminine when to be accepted by peers.
• Women can struggle when attempting to balance the need to behave in masculine ways in order to be seen as competent, but also expected to be “girly” and feminine when to be accepted by peers.
• Work-life balance: They more we grow, our professional responsibility also increases parallelly (regardless of gender). And in our culture , the family responsibilities for girls also grow significantly high in parallel of our ages. Maintaining a real work-life balance became vital for managing both responsibilities & same time ensure a peaceful life. In general, presence of Tech girls percentage in STEM field is very less having the fear in job nature & social/cultural barriers. The challenging and men dominating environment does not always support to grow the female leaders in STEM.
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Do you still see sexism and discrimination in the workplace?

From a holistic view, this issue is one of the primary reasons behind the discrimination we face worldwide. When we achieve, win and even fail, we are being judged as a woman; our successes are packaged with “gender advantage” and failures with “we are weak”. However, I am lucky that I work for Grameenphone, where tolerance for sexual harassment is zero. From top to bottom in our organization, we are guided by strict policies, processes and commitment to promote women leadership and inspire gender diversity. On top of this, our performance-driven culture makes sure people with the right potential, skills, and drive grow within the organization, not our gender bias.

What is Shaila's life like in 2025?

I would like to see myself in the top position in the STEM field where I will be able to use my experiences & skill and will add greater benefit for the society. I not only desire for creating strong footprint as a female leader by impactful business delivery , overcoming social & cultural barrier as a female but also to be the mentor for the growing female community . Being heavily engaged in many social activities specially in STEM field where I’m continuously working to increase the profile of women in leadership role , my challenge is to ensure best support & create real impact for the female community who wants to overcome barriers & take a stand to set example.

What inspirational message would you give young girls to inspire them to pursue STEM?

We were very used to bookish knowledge but that needs to change, familiarity with real life applications is of the essence. For career growth, it is essential to pick up traits of taking ownership. There is no alternative to being hardworking and the need to be passionate about where we wish to see ourselves. It is what we do with what we have learnt that matters. And most importantly, Be bold, value ONLY what matters most.