More of us in the arena: how women can grow their numbers, influence, and careers in STEM

“When it comes to crises of confidence, it doesn't matter how powerful or confident or educated or high up you are in the food chain. So many moms who look like they have it all together still feel scared and confused and wonder if this is still what they want to do. Almost everybody feels difficult emotions inside through this transition of going back to work. When we don't talk enough about it, then there's no progress in terms of how we support working parents.”

In this episode, Pros&Babes founder and CEO Kinia Romanowska is joined by Claudia Gomez-Villeneuve, a professional engineer active in academia after managing pipeline projects with big corporations for over 15 years, to discuss how Claudia has made the attainment of the 30-by-30 initiative - bringing the number of newly licensed female engineers to 30% by 2030 - her mission.

Listen to this episode if you want to learn more about how Claudia tackles gender barriers in her profession and opens up the discussion on how women can lean onto networks to achieve professional success.

Claudia Gomez-Villeneuve has worked in engineering, pipeline construction, and project management for 16 years, and is now the founder of CGV Speaking, which delivers positive and practical professional development workshops and keynotes. Connect with Claudia via Linkedin or her website, https://www.claudiagomezvilleneuve.com/.

0:00 Intro

1:02 Meet Claudia

3:43 Claudia’s journey with confidence in a STEM career

8:01 How to use confidence as a navigator in all stages of motherhood

11:18 Claudia’s experience as a doula

16:56 How Claudia kept her motivation to get through to her professional designation

23:25 Claudia’s mission to get more women in STEM a career

38:01 Connect with Claudia

40:37 Endnotes

If you’re enjoying the show, I’d be so grateful if you left us a review on Spotify/Apple so we can reach more moms, just like you. No one should be alone with the crushing overwhelm of trying to balance family and career life.


Want more support from moms just like you? Join us for live sessions for support and networking: https://www.prosandbabes.com/stem-mom-webinars


Kinia Romanowska, BA, MA, is a well-traveled award-winning journalist turned entrepreneur, maternity leave strategist, and working parent whisperer. A wife and mom of three passionate about making sure the next generation doesn’t experience the “Motherhood Penalty,” she is the founder and CEO of Pros&Babes and creator of the MoMBA (Mom MBA), the pioneering 360-leadership and personal development program for the busy, ambitious mom in Canada. She is the host of the “Engineer Your Success, Leadership, and Life Harmony #likeamother” podcast.