A career in control engineering

"I am a confident young professional with an excellent eye for detail and a great ability to work well within a team," says Colette Lisutu (CL) on her LinkedIn profile. In her discussion with Nompumelele Damba (ND), the Bulawayo bred Angol-American employed control engineer shares more about what inspired her to be an engineer and what aspiring female engineers can expect as the build their careers.

ND: You are a Control Engineer; can you explain what this is and what you do?

CL: As a Control Engineer, I work on the control system and with the instruments (system that automatically control the processing of our mined material to final product). I support our sites when they experience breakdowns, look into new technology and software, as well as assist with the standards that our sites must comply with.

ND: What inspired you to be in this line of work and how long have you been working in this industry?

CL: I had a module in university, Control Systems, which piqued my interest and I have been working as a control engineer for two years.

ND: What are the requirements for one to become a Control Engineer and where can someone study in Zimbabwe?

CL: I studied Mechatronic Engineering and I believe this is available at the University of Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT). There are some individuals in our team who did Electrical Engineering, but most studied Chemical Engineering.

ND: can you briefly describe to us how your day looks like as an Engineer?

CL: A general day has me attending meetings and working on my projects.

ND: It sounds like a lot, are many women taking up the challenge to be control engineers.

CL: To a certain extent, but I think more women are definitely needed in the field. And that is generally the fact for all the different types of engineering.

ND: What do you think is holding women back?

CL: I think the space isn't always welcoming for women, so some may have reservations or fears about going into space.

ND: What are the challenges that you face in your daily?

CL: Challenges are seasonal. There are personal challenges such as dealing with confidence in the workplace in terms of believing in my abilities, working through shortfalls, anxiety and stress depending on work-load. Then there are work related challenges such as managing time (balancing actual work and meetings) and not always getting work that will develop me in my career (admin work).

ND: How do you manage to overcome those challenges and what lessons have you learntfrom those challenges?

CL: It's a daily battle, I work through it once I've taken note that it is something I struggle with. I've learnt that pacing yourself is important so as not to stress out, when you have a lot to get to its important to prioritize and tackle one at a time. You have to have some level on confidence in yourself and your abilities. I also have a strong support system, my friends and family are such an important part of my life. The advice and support they give pulls me through. My faith is also a pillar of my strength, I lean on God and trust Him to direct my path, even when it comes to decisions and developing at work.

ND: Earlier you mentioned that the environment is not welcoming for a lot of women to take up engineering , what do you think should be done to bridge the gap especially by women themselves?

CL: I think we shouldn't let the fear hold us back from entering such spaces. If you're in the space mentor and uplift someone else working on achieving what you have. Raise future generations to believe they can enter whatever space they work hard to infiltrate.

ND: What are the business opportunities that come with being a Control Engineer and how easily accessible in Zimbabwe?

CL: One can specialize in different aspects which they can then offer as a service to mining companies. One can learn to program and offer that as a service, to design the systems and start a company that will offer that as a service.

ND: What advice can you give to those who aspire to be a Control Engineer?

CL: Put in the effort to understand the process which requires the control system and your job will make more sense. This basically means understand the basics as a starting point and foundation Find ways to develop yourself so you can add value and be different, that's how you become an asset.