Sofia Colakovic

Hi Sofia, thank you for taking the time for this interview. You have been in software development for over 8 years and gained your first experience in monitoring at your previous station. Since January 2021 you are part of Checkmk and moved from Croatia to Munich for us.

Why did you choose us as your new career station?

I decided I wanted to move from Croatia to Munich to gain new experiences, both professionally and personally. The key thing that drew me to Checkmk was the fact that I would develop an open source project. I loved the fact that it’s possible to work for the company that thrives and work on the open source project at the same time. The interview process was friendly, but challenging enough to know that I would be working with a lot of smart people.

What made you decide to get involved with IT?

I was always interested in scientific and technical fields, so when I decided to pursue a Computer Science degree, it didn’t come as much of a surprise. The thing I love the most in software development is that the range of tasks I work on is very broad. It never gets boring because every task or project is different. There is always the need to learn new things.

What fascinates you most about your job at Checkmk, and what are your tasks?

The best thing about working in Checkmk is that quality is never sacrificed over speed. It’s great to work in an environment that allows you to do your very best. Also, because we develop a monitoring solution, you get in touch with a lot of different technologies, which is very interesting.

I'm currently introducing an API which will be used for writing plugins by both the users and the developers of Checkmk. Additionally, I'm involved in development and maintenance of the Check Engine, BI and check plugins.

IT is still considered a typical male domain. Do you have the feeling that you have to do more than your male colleagues?

Maybe I’m lucky, but I never had this feeling. In Checkmk as well as in my previous positions, I never noticed being treated differently because I’m a woman.

Have you ever had the feeling that you were not taken seriously or accepted less as a female IT employee? How did you deal with this?

I never had this feeling with my team members or direct superiors. I think it doesn’t make sense to waste your time in a company like that because the way women are treated is part of a company culture. A good sign when choosing the next position is to see that female employees are treated with respect by other colleagues, which was for me evident from the beginning in Checkmk.

What advice do you give to women who want to work in IT or mathematical-technical professions?

You shouldn’t underestimate yourself. The common pitfall is thinking that you constantly perform worse than your peers. It’s probably not true and if your colleagues make you think that way, you should change the position. You shouldn’t lower your ambition because of others.