Women in Data Podcast

Are we becoming worse at our jobs because we use AI?

It’s a question so many of us are quietly asking. If AI can write the code, summarise the findings, build the deck… are we still building our skills, or slowly outsourcing them?

In this episode, I sit down with AI researcher Nora Petrova to unpack the guilt, the anxiety, and the real risk behind AI tools. But instead of fear-mongering, we focus on something practical: how to use AI as a learning accelerator.

Nora shares a simple but powerful framework:

Stay in the driver’s seat

Never outsource what you don’t understand

Use AI to invest in yourself, not automate yourself

Test whether you’re actually learning (or just feeling productive)

We also talk about the illusion of learning, the difference between junior and senior professionals in this new landscape, and how to navigate uncertainty without spiralling.

If you want to use AI confidently without losing your edge this episode is for you.

Tune in and rethink how you’re using AI today.

 Nora recommends to also watch: https://youtu.be/z3kaLM8Oj4o?si=Jr9amKNncuE4egKi

In this cohosted episode Karen and Cecilia reflect on questioning their careers in data from imposter syndrome and leadership doubts to navigating fast-moving industry change. They challenge the idea that seniority brings certainty, instead considering how ambiguity is constant and self-questioning can be an advantage. The conversation explores resilience, shifting environments, and detaching identity from job titles. They share a practical framework for gaining clarity: reflecting on strengths, tracking interests, learning from past roles, reality-checking through conversation, and defining what to start, stop, and continue—emphasising growth is an ongoing, imperfect process.

The hiring system carries bias, and it shows. While efforts are made to solve this, it’s important that we take ownership of our own career.

In this episode, Karen is joined by Nuria Muñoz, Global Talent Leader at Munich Re, to unpack what really happens behind the scenes in hiring, promotions and pay decisions.

They talk about why job descriptions are wish lists, why being a perfect match is actually a red flag, bold interview questions that change the dynamic, and how to handle high-pressure interviews with confidence. Nuria also shares negotiation strategies for salary offers and for promotions. For her, treating your career like a business plan is essential.

If you’ve ever hesitated to apply, struggled to negotiate, or wondered how to fast track your growth, this conversation is your playbook.

You don’t need permission to grow. You need strategy.

Starting a new job is meant to feel exciting but often, it’s also tiring, awkward, and quietly overwhelming. Even when it’s the right move.

In this episode of the Women in Data Podcast, Cecilia is joined by Rianna Kelly to talk honestly about what it really feels like to start somewhere new. From confidence wobbling and long hours without visible output, to rebuilding trust, navigating new relationships, and feeling like the “new person” all over again, even at a senior level.

This isn’t a “how to succeed in 30 days” conversation. It’s about normalising the discomfort, redefining progress in the early months, and learning when to push yourself and when to give yourself grace.

If you’re in a new role, about to start one, or wondering why you don’t feel settled yet, this episode is a reminder that you’re not behind you’re in transition.

Further listening:

This episode builds on earlier Women in Data conversations, including Episode 64 with Neha Wadhawan on establishing yourself in a new role, and Episode 146 with Beth Bauer on the data behind the care.

In this episode of the Women in Data Podcast, hosts Cecilia Oliveira and Karen Jean-Francois pull back the curtain on the "dirty little secret" of the data world: exactly how they are using AI to change the way they work.

Moving past the headlines and the hype, Cecilia and Karen share a vulnerable look at their initial skepticism and how they shifted toward an "Augmentation Mindset." They dive into the practicalities of using AI as a junior collaborator—from cleaning messy data and writing SQL to the "meta" moment of using AI to help structure this very podcast episode.

Whether you're feeling "productivity guilt" or pure curiosity, this episode is a guide to making AI work for you, so you can focus on the work only you can do.