My best job was actually an internship

Mary Onguko, Head of Customer Relations Department at iSAT

Education: Joel Omino Primary School, Lwak Girls High School, BSc. Information Sciences with a major in Information Technology at Moi University, and a bilingual MBA in Strategic Management at JKUAT.

Experience: My experience spans over 10 years working for leading Telcos in Africa including iWayAfrica Kenya Limited, Callkey Services Limited and MTN Business Kenya. I have worked in different capacities such as Business Development Manager, Service Delivery & Strategic Projects Manager and Customer Support Engineer.

Awards/recognition: I have been recognized as a founder board member of Project Management Institute of Kenya and a former mentor at AkiraChix and Safaricom Technovation Challenge.

First job/salary: My first job was an internship, earning a gross salary of Sh10,000.

Worst/best job: My best job was actually an internship at UUNET. The pay was not the best in the world but it taught me the very first tricks of the trade in the Telco industry.

Missed opportunity: I gave up a job opportunity in a multinational IT company because it involved 75 per cent travel, yet my children were still so young.

One thing I regret: Giving up several lucrative positions that I believed would have interfered with my work/life balance.

Unforgettable person: Dr. Matthew Dobbs, a clubfoot specialist based in the US who offered to treat my daughter’s clubfoot free of charge. Also Jeff Soyiantet from Vitendo For Africa in the US who supported me and my family while we were there.

Best advice ever: You can never give from an empty cup. Self-care is key.