And there were degrees. Two master’s degrees, actually, an MSc in Cybersecurity from the University of Hertfordshire in the UK, and an MSc in Information Technology from the National Open University of Nigeria, sitting alongside my undergraduate Computer Science foundation from Babcock University. Not because I needed to over-qualify myself to be taken seriously, though if I am being honest, that thought crossed my mind. But because the problems I wanted to solve genuinely demanded that depth. Building SIEM systems that detect threats in real time. Designing CI/CD pipelines that are both fast and secure. Deploying containerised infrastructure on Azure Kubernetes Services. Applying Terraform to make systems repeatable, scalable, and resilient.
This is serious technical work. What I will be doing is to say it plainly, without having to hedge, the reason being that women in technical fields have spent a very long time softening statements about their own competence.
I am good at this. And it took me longer than it should have to say that without an apology attached.
There is something that journey from IT support into cloud infrastructure, DevOps, and cybersecurity, taught me, and I carry that knowledge into every conversation I now have about women in tech. Surprisingly, the barrier is almost never ability. In fact it is almost never intelligence or aptitude or passion for the work. Instead it is access The barrier is access. These features in so many forms, it’s evident in the absence of mentors who look like you.
It is also the scarcity of communities where you can freely ask beginner questions without fear or having to feel like by asking you have just confirmed someone’s suspicion that you do not belong. Even more, It is also the quiet, cumulative weight of being in rooms where your presence still feels like an exception rather than an expectation.
I have worked across finance and business development alongside my technical roles, and what that cross-industry experience gave me is perspective. It showed me that the organisations doing the most interesting, most impactful work are the ones that understand technology is not just an IT function, it is a business strategy. And the women who can sit at both tables, who can translate between the technical and the organisational, who can build a Terraform module in the morning and present infrastructure strategy to leadership in the afternoon, those women are exactly what the digital economy needs right now.
But they need to be equipped. Not just with technical skills, though those matter enormously. With confidence. With community. With the knowledge that the path exists even when they cannot yet see it clearly.
The digital economy is not waiting. Cybersecurity threats are not waiting. Cloud infrastructure is not waiting. The question of whether women will help build and secure the systems that run our world is being answered right now, in the choices being made about who gets trained, who gets mentored, who gets hired, and who gets told, early enough to matter, that this field has a place for her.
I want to be part of answering that question well. Not just by doing the technical work, which I love, but by being visible doing it. By showing up in spaces where a younger version of me might be watching and wondering if someone like her can build a career at the intersection of DevOps and cybersecurity.
She can. The tools are there. The opportunities are there. What she needs is someone to say clearly: come in, the work is worth it, and you are more than ready.
About the Contributor
Eka Racheal Onagbesan is an IT professional working at the intersection of DevOps engineering and cybersecurity, with expertise in building secure, scalable digital systems. Her experience spans CI/CD pipeline design, cloud infrastructure management, containerized deployments using Azure Kubernetes Services, Infrastructure as Code with Terraform, and security operations including phishing threat analysis, network traffic investigation, and real-time SIEM systems.
She holds an MSc in Cybersecurity from the University of Hertfordshire, an MSc in Information Technology from the National Open University of Nigeria, and a BSc in Computer Science from Babcock University. With experience across technology, finance, and business environments, she brings a well-rounded perspective to building resilient digital infrastructure and represents a growing generation of women shaping and securing the digital economy.
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