She Talks Tech

63 - Hard Work and Focus: Silvia Gonzalez on 27 Years in Industrial Automation, Global Leadership, and Paying It Forward

Silvia Gonzalez has spent 27 years in industrial automation, moving from her first role at GE Fanuc in Mexico City to her current position as Global Head of Software Business at Emerson, where she holds global P&L responsibility and sits on the board of directors of Progea SRL. Hers is a career built on learning fast, staying curious, and refusing to be defined by the rooms she walked into alone.
In this conversation, Silvia takes us through the full arc of her journey: from tearing apart radios as a child in Mexico, to training sales forces on PLC programming before she felt ready, to developing critical control solutions for some of the largest oil and gas companies in Latin America, to leading global software teams across multiple time zones and cultures. She is direct about the moments she doubted herself, the leaders who believed in her before she did, and what it took to eventually believe it herself.
This is a conversation about what it actually looks like to build a career over decades, not overnight.

What we cover
Growing up in Mexico with an engineer father and a brother who pushed her to compete, and how that shaped her early drive
Walking into her first job at GE Fanuc without feeling ready, and what she learned from getting up to speed fast
Building the critical control business across Latin America, working with Pemex, Petrobras, and PDVSA
Spending over a decade at GE across multiple restructures, and when she first started thinking of her work as a career rather than just a job
The move to Baker Hughes and why she said yes to a role that took her outside everything she knew
The shift from individual contributor to global leader, and how the narrative changes when it stops being about you
Owning a global P&L for the first time and what it feels like from day one
Sitting on a board of directors and learning to communicate from the driving seat
Leading across time zones and why she does 6 AM calls without complaint
Being a woman in industrial automation, what has changed, what has not, and how she approaches mentoring the next generation
The leaders throughout her journey who saw something in her before she saw it in herself
Her blueprint for anyone building a long career with integrity

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62 - Show Up and Do It Well: Sinah Legong on Ecosystems, mLab and Staying the Course

Sinah Legong is someone Hlulani has known since the early days — back when they were both finding their footing at mLab in Pretoria, surviving on noodles and showing up to every event that had free food.

Today Sinah is at the forefront of one of South Africa's most enduring tech ecosystem builders. She has opened provincial offices, managed partnerships at executive and grassroots level, walked startup founders through their first business registrations, and sat with them when the wheels fell off. She has been doing this work quietly, consistently, and without stopping.

In this episode they catch up properly — and the conversation covers a lot of ground.

From growing up in a household where entrepreneurship was just survival, to stumbling into computer science because a university application arrived too late, to becoming the person who holds the ecosystem together when everyone else is chasing the next big event.

In this episode:
Growing up in a family where business was a daily necessity, not a career choice
How a missed application deadline redirected Sinah into computer science
What mLab actually is and why it is the only one of five African labs still standing
Why big tech companies are still treating youth programs as KPI tick boxes
What early stage startups consistently get wrong — and where the real drop happens
The hidden cost of working in silos across South Africa's innovation hubs
What it takes to build an ecosystem that people actually trust
Why she still shows up, even in rooms where she was told she did not belong

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#SheTalksTech #WomenInTech #GirlsInSTEM #WorkCulture #AfricaTech
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Go to the Ground: Precious Lesupi on Accessibility, Neurodivergence and Building for the Margins

Precious Lesupi is back. Cybersecurity specialist, accessibility advocate, BRICS gold medallist, and one of the most honest voices to sit across from Hlulani on this platform.

This time they are in the same room, and the conversation goes everywhere.
From getting dirty in a primary school in Welkom teaching kids to use AI for grief support, to facilitating cybersecurity training for human rights defenders at the UN, Precious is doing the kind of work that does not make the LinkedIn highlight reel but changes lives anyway.
They talk about what corporate spaces get wrong about neurodivergent employees, why Precious stopped trying to change the rooms that would not listen, and what it actually looks like to build inclusive tech from the ground up rather than waiting for permission.

In this episode:
Why accessibility advocacy only made sense once Precious went hands-on in communities
Working with UN Women to protect human rights violation records safely
Competing solo at the BRICS Skills Competition in Russia and taking third place
What corporates get wrong about autism and ADHD in the workplace
Why Precious stopped advocating in implementation rooms and went straight to policy
Documenting African art and knowledge before it disappears
Building a virtual reality fitting room for wheelchair users

Support the show buymeacoffee.com/shetalkstech
#SheTalksTech #WomenInTech #GirlsInSTEM #WorkCulture #AfricaTech
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Systems Create Behaviour She Talks Tech

In this episode, we sit down with Palesa Sibeko, co-founder of Better Work and Girls Invent Tomorrow, for a conversation that goes well beyond the buzzwords. Palesa has spent over a decade asking a deceptively simple question: what would it take to make work more human? From the digital agency frontier of early social media in South Africa, to building custom PCB hardware through Signal, to coaching leaders navigating change, her career is a masterclass in following curiosity without apology.
We talk about why systems create the behaviour we complain about, what it really means to listen in an organisation, and why fixing culture in a two-hour workshop is a fantasy. We also get into Girls Invent Tomorrow, the girls in STEM organisation she has poured her heart into for over 14 years, and what it will actually take to change the numbers.

What we cover
Growing up in Soweto, reading everything in sight, and how curiosity became a career
The early days of social media for brands in South Africa and pioneering digital engagement on Mxit
Why systems create behaviour and how Better Work approaches change from the inside out
The gap between an organisation's intent and what employees actually experience every day
Return to office, trust, and why one-size-fits-all workplace policy rarely works
Signal: building custom hardware, PCB boards, and gesture-controlled experiences, until COVID ended it
Girls Invent Tomorrow, what has shifted for girls in STEM and what stubbornly has not
The invisible barriers in the home that shape what young girls believe is possible for them
What Palesa would tell her 10-year-old self

Support the show
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Connect with us #SheTalksTech
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Finding Your Voice in Rooms That Make You Feel Small

Have you ever walked into a room and immediately questioned whether you belonged there? In this episode of Emerging Tech Voices, your hosts Hlulani, Modeni, and Lanni get candid about the moments their voices trembled, faded, and eventually found their footing in professional spaces.
From boardrooms to consulting firms, the trio reflects on the universal experience of imposter syndrome and what it actually takes to speak up when everything in you wants to stay quiet.

In this episode, we cover:
The first time each host felt small in a professional space
What "having a voice" really means and how it evolves over time
How upbringing and birth order shape the way we show up in rooms
The role of community, mentorship, and relatability in building confidence
Why identifying gaps and taking ownership can amplify your voice in tech
Practical advice for anyone who has shrunk for too long and wants to start speaking up again

Key takeaway: You were chosen for the room you're in. The moment you truly believe you belong, everything changes, including your voice.
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