Emily Strang

I completed my Trinity College London Performance Diploma with Distinction. The skills I learned through Speech & Drama have helped me in many situations, from public speaking and presentations, teamwork, and networking, through to problem-solving and especially improvisation; the ability to think on your feet. I wouldn’t be the same without developing these skills, and they have definitely had an impact on my journey so far!

A highlight of my degree included the development of a mobile application for a local business, which inspired me to pursue an internship at a software development company.

I graduated from the University of Otago with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in August 2018, double majoring in Information Science and Management.

I started as a graduate in February 2019 in the Risk Advisory Cyber team. My first client engagement was a Privacy Audit in the public sector, which was where I gained exposure to New Zealand privacy legislation.

I was part of a Physical Security engagement. This required us to tailgate staff into restricted areas without being detected, and to use our cover to obtain staff access cards and access staff computers. This was never something I thought I would have the opportunity to be part of, and it was a great experience. We delivered our recommendations to the client and were later asked to feature in a security and awareness training video for the client to describe the vulnerabilities and risks we encountered.

One of my passions is to encourage and support women in the technology sector, and I have been part of several initiatives such as ShadowTech and Summer of Tech to raise awareness of career paths in this industry.

I was invited to be a Women in Tech panellist for an audience of second and third-year university students where I discussed gender diversity in the technology field, and experiences of what it’s like to work in a male dominated field.

My role isn’t just technical, and it’s exciting that we are able to adapt our problem solving skills in different ways and learn new skills to solve the issues in front of us. This role is also client facing which provides us the opportunity to meet with industry professionals and understand a range of industries.