Career plans rarely survive contact with an actual career. Most people working in tech can point to a decision that completely rerouted them, one they never would have predicted, let alone written into a five-year plan. Klara Matousova has more of those moments than most, and by now she’s stopped being surprised by them.
Klara studied Microelectronics and Technology, with a future in the lab somewhere on the horizon. Instead, her path wound through a medium-voltage business, industrial sales, a now-or-never move abroad with no real plan behind it, and eventually into project management. Today she’s a Project Manager at Schneider Electric.
She’s one of three speakers joining us at Women in Tech for the panel discussion “Career Journeys: The Turns, Twists & Lessons of Working in Tech.” Here’s what she shared with us about the twists and turns that shaped her career.
Looking back, it was probably saying yes to a job abroad with a simple “now or never” attitude, without really thinking through the practical details. Things like how—and more importantly where—I was going to move my butt. I ended up living in an Airbnb for weeks, trying to settle into a new country with an accent that was very different from the one I knew from Friends, while wondering if I’d ever have a wardrobe to unpack my one carry-on suitcase into.
It’s definitely not the relocation strategy I’d recommend, but it turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve made. It pushed me far outside my comfort zone and taught me a lot—not just about the world around me and how business works beyond the walls I knew, but also about myself.
I once made a presentation at university about my career plan, and if I’m honest, the only thing that went according to plan was graduating. I studied Microelectronics and Technology, which has very little to do with the medium-voltage business I joined in my third semester. That’s where the twists started. What was supposed to be a future in the lab somehow turned into project management, industrial sales, and now… well, your guess is as good as mine.
Imagine that classic movie moment: “Yep, that’s me. You’re probably wondering how I ended up in this situation.” That was basically my first year at the university.
There were only a handful of girls in the program, and most of us were just trying to survive the first exams without having a complete meltdown. Meanwhile, some of the guys even seemed to have fun - they were running simulations for fun, casually playing around with Faraday cages and flashes, while I was standing there thinking, “Right... and this thing is called an oscilloscope?”
And then there was the social side of things. Some of the guys were so uncomfortable around girls that every lecture looked like a poorly planned social experiment. Wherever I sat, a perfect two-meter exclusion zone appeared around me as if I was radioactive. I felt completely out of place. Like everyone else had received the Engineering Survival Guide and mine had somehow been lost by Czech Post. There were definitely moments when I wondered whether I belonged there at all.
And what kept me going? Pure stubbornness. It took time to catch up, build confidence, and stop feeling like an accidental visitor, but eventually I got there. Honestly, that may have been one of the most useful lessons university taught me: don’t give up and keep trying. Nobody is completely sure what they’re doing at the beginning—some people are just better at looking like they are.
I remember that when I first started as a Key Account Manager on the Czech market, some customers seemed to assume I was there to smile politely, take notes, and maybe admire the factory tour - not to talk about technical solutions. I won’t lie, that was a bit frustrating at first. But I quickly noticed that the “young girl who can’t possibly know the business” label had a very short lifespan. Usually, it lasted right up until I opened my mouth. A few technical questions, a proper discussion, and suddenly nobody was treating me like the intern anymore.
Honestly, I don’t think there was just one person. Every job I’ve had has introduced me to people who’ve permanently rearranged the furniture in my brain. Sometimes it’s not even intentional — even a small kid can show you a completely different perspective if you’re willing to listen. Along the way, some colleagues taught me to look beyond my own bubble, some taught me how to read technical drawings, and some taught me how to drink coffee. All equally valuable business skills, if you ask me.
A “safe” choice would’ve been becoming a teacher, just like my parents always expected. Or maybe not - there’s a decent chance I would’ve ended up arguing with twelve-year-olds about homework and questioning all my life choices by Wednesday afternoon.
The truth is, I don’t think any of life’s big decisions are ever truly safe. Every change asks something of you, but it also gives something back—often along with a good story that you, or at least your friends, will laugh about later.
I’m really happy to see more women in tech leadership today. When I first started, finding one felt a bit like spotting a unicorn - everyone said they existed, but you hardly ever saw one. Seeing more women not only step into management roles but also excel in them is genuinely inspiring. It’s also made me realize that a career in tech can take many different paths, including some I probably wouldn’t have imagined when I was just starting out.
Turns out I’m actually a pretty good driver, no matter which side of the road I’m on or how tiny the parking space is. And on bad days, I keep a card with a phone number on my dashboard just in case.
Life rarely goes the way you planned it, and mine definitely didn’t. There’s a place in my city with a particularly unusual cocktail menu. My first visit I got an upgraded version of Bloddy Marry – even I hate tomato juice I was nicely supprised. But another time, my “drink” arrived as a tatratea paste served on a bacon chisp. I tried it, immediately regretted every life choice that had led me to that moment.
Careers are often like that. The opportunities that shape us most are rarely the ones we carefully planned for. Sometimes you say yes to something unexpected and discover a part of business that excites you more than anything you imagined. Other times, the experience teaches you exactly what you don’t want - and that lesson can be just as valuable. (I still get goosebumps thinking about bacon chisps.)
If you’d asked 20-year-old me what work was all about, I probably would’ve said it was simply what you did to afford the fun parts of life: earn money, pay the bills, buy the things you need (and occasionally the things you don’t), and hopefully save enough for a holiday every year—or every quarter if you were lucky. The idea of actually enjoying your job seemed a bit suspicious to me back then.
Today, technology is part of everyday life, and working in tech has become a big part of who I am. The field is far more diverse and rewarding than I ever expected—even if getting three people to agree on a single solution can sometimes be more challenging than solving a triple integral.
