Seizing opportunities can lead to the career you want

Mayara Viana

Talent Acquisition and Mobility Manager UK&I, Schneider Electric

Ambition and determination have brought Mayara Viana across the world to pursue the career she always dreamed of having as a young girl who grew up in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Mayara is the first in her family to become university-educated and has now been living in the UK for 18 months after proactively seeking out and securing her first management role at Schneider Electric through their internal platform: Open Talent Market. 

She has taken a leap in her career, starting as a sales recruiter in her homeland back in 2016. Now, as the company’s UK&I Talent Acquisition and Mobility Manager, she maintains a strong focus on diversity and inclusion, especially around women in the workplace.

Inspirational role model 

As a tenacious role model herself, the job allows Mayara to inspire others to follow in her footsteps. However, she readily admits that taking the plunge into a leadership role didn’t come without feelings of insecurity and its own challenges. 

“For me, there has been a real need to focus on building my own confidence,” she says. Quite often, women suffer with imposter syndrome and from my personal experience of being in a non-native country, it can be required for women to find a sense of belonging. One of the company’s policies around diversity and inclusion is to support with mentorship programs and invest in employee development.

Mayara’s managers have helped her further develop her skills, and now, she has the chance to learn from senior leaders with the company’s Ireland Country President, Chris Collins, as her current mentor.

We run a global, prize-winning competition called ‘Go Green’ where we invite students to share ideas for addressing the challenges our planet faces.

Early talent aquisition

Mayara is responsible for identifying young talent to join Schneider Electric where they can develop their skills, knowledge and network through from early career stages.

“Starting with graduates and MBAs, we run a global, prize-winning competition called ‘Go Green’ where we invite students to share ideas for addressing the challenges our planet faces,” she explains.

“In this male-dominated industry, if we’re to truly pave the way for change, then we must support, educate and encourage early career talent from early stages in their education. There are many opportunities to succeed in this industry and it takes change today to be able to build for the future.”