A career across several communities
Thérèse Vien describes moving from architecture into technology, then through business development and executive search into startup investment. Her account includes developing software for sewage-system design, a practical connection between her original training and computing. She presents her career as a sequence of opportunities and relationships rather than a single professional identity.
What a company sale did not guarantee
Vien recalls investors benefiting from a company sale while restrictions delayed her own chance to sell stock. By the time she could sell, a market crash had reduced what she received. The experience complicates a simple success story: a sale can have different consequences for different people involved.
Choosing people and recognising limits
For younger people, she emphasises finding an immediate manager who is trustworthy and inspiring, rather than choosing only by an employer's name. Vien says she has not doubted belonging and feels part of several communities. Later, however, she recalls being denied a management role because she was a woman. She declines to identify those involved or discuss the details.