Women in Technology – Megan Caufield

This blog is part of our ongoing Women in Technology series.

In her role as a Senior Director in the Strategic Client Solutions team, Megan provides a central point of contact for client support, reporting, and relationship management. In addition, she helps manage product and service costs by providing expert advice and assistance, tailoring Consilio’s processes, identifying efficiencies, and enforcing client quality standards against all projects. Megan supports some of the world’s largest financial institutions, as well as pharmaceutical and insurance companies.

Prior to joining Consilio in December of 2019, Megan was an associate in a law firm eDiscovery practice group, partnering with in-house legal, IT, and records management teams, as well as outside technology vendors, to provide start-to-finish litigation management.

How did you get into this industry?

After graduating from law school, I worked as a document review attorney and was eventually hired by the law firm where I had worked for years. In late 2019, I moved away from practicing law and joined Consilio as a member of our Strategic Client Solutions (SCS) team. I now work in an account management role, supporting clients in a different way.

What were some pivotal moments in your career that helped to get you to where you are today?

A few years into working as a document review attorney, I was given the opportunity to start working directly with clients. I conducted custodian interviews and coordinated data collection. This helped me develop my skills as an attorney, and better understand the importance of every step in the eDiscovery process. When I learned about Consilio’s SCS team, I was interested and curious to see what working outside of a law firm would be like. Making that career move from practicing law to the business side was scary, but pivotal.

Have you ever noticed a time in your career where your gender proved to differentiate you?

This is a difficult question. I’ve been very fortunate to work on many teams that were led by women, or where most team members were also women. This may be because of when I attended law school, I was a beneficiary of the work that other women did in generations before me. It’s hard to point to something that differentiates me when I’ve been surrounded by so many colleagues of the same gender.  I have likely taken that for granted at times.

What is your advice for someone working in a predominately male workplace?

We all bring our unique perspectives and experiences to work with us. Remember that your ideas are valuable, and you need to speak up. That doesn’t mean you need to be the loudest or most verbose person in the room, but you do need to make sure that you are part of the conversation. We have diverse clients, and they look to us for advice on how to solve all different types of problems. That requires a diversity of thought and creativity from everyone within an organization.

What do you think companies could do to motivate more women to pursue careers in technology?

First, I think it’s important to provide employees with opportunities to meet others throughout an organization and learn about what they do. There are so many different roles at technology companies. Finding where you best fit can be a daunting task. Second, asking employees to share their thoughts, and listening, can be so valuable for making women and other members of a team feel included. For someone who is new in a field where they may not see a lot of other people who look like them, having someone specifically ask what they think can go a long way. Finally, it’s essential to have women in positions of leadership throughout a company. As I noted earlier, having the experience of being part of organizations where women were in prominent leadership positions had a huge impact on me and my career.

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