After a 15-year career break, Elizabeth decided to channel her passion for volunteering into a career at Oracle.

Elizabeth’s resume displays multiple volunteering experiences, from being part of the leadership team of a non-profit to founding a school committee that delivers meals anonymously to community members who are dealing with a life crisis. “These experiences show up first on my resume, not at the end,” she explains. “I treat them like a job on my resume, owning the break in my career.”

Elizabeth’s perspective has been invaluable in the design and launch of our formal Oracle Career Relaunch program for people returning to work after a career break. “Oracle recognizes that those who have taken a break from the workforce bring a unique set of talents and perspectives to the workforce,” she emphasizes.

Kimberly has long believed that people are the cornerstone of any successful initiative, and that building a diverse and inclusive organization is the key to helping us all achieve our full potential. It’s a philosophy she brings to her job every day as executive director of finance thought leadership at Oracle.

“New technologies, processes, and strategies will only work if team members are motivated and appreciated,” she explains. "Managers and leaders at all levels must develop inclusive leadership techniques to promote cohesion, collaboration, and cooperation.”

Read on for Kimberly’s top 7 tips for practicing inclusive leadership and the business value it can bring.

Since joining Oracle as a fresher ten years ago, Praseetha has found Oracle to provide a working environment that’s designed to help engineers do their best work.

“This is a place that encourages developers to innovate and be creative,” Praseetha observes. “There are no hierarchies here. Anyone can propose the next big idea. It’s the complete learning experience.”

Phoebe is one of our jet-setting employees who has taken full advantage of Oracle's support for career mobility. She was working as a program manager in Oracle Asia when opportunity came knocking.

"I had never even thought about moving to Ireland before," she admits. "When the opportunity came up, I thought about whether it aligned with my personal plans, and it did. It seemed like a fantastic opportunity to grow within our organization. I had very little insight about this part of the world and how business works there and that's when I just thought, why not?"

Phoebe is of the belief that experience is something you can gain over time, but the real key to success is having the right attitude. "The most important thing you can have is the willingness to learn and an open-mind. Then you can gain whatever experience you need on the job."

Mona was blazing her trail as a successful sales account manager when she was nominated to attend the 2019 Oracle Emerging Leader Summit in Amsterdam. By the time she returned, she had set her sights on a new career goal: starting Saudi Arabia's first ever OWL community.

"I had a strong urge to highlight the real image of the Saudi woman and show that we are talented, ambitious, and hard working," she explains. "We are constantly looking for opportunities to develop ourselves, just like any other women around the world."

There's no one size that fits all when it comes to careers here. Instead, we encourage our employees to embark on a lifelong journey of self-discovery and personal growth.

For Ulla, that meant making a career change; for Anja it was about exploring new sides to her role; and for Lena it was taking time out for family. Whatever your calling, Oracle’s focus on career flexibility means you have the freedom to pursue what’s important to you, learn new skills, and continuously realize your potential.

When Caroline finished college, she set out looking for a program that would teach her sales strategy and prepare her for a career in technology. That's when she came across Oracle's Sustainability Report on LinkedIn—leading her to apply for a role on our business development representative program.

"I saw the company had a huge commitment to sustainability," she explains. "When I went in and did the onsite interview, I saw solar panels installed, which made me realize that our values aligned."

Kara discovered her path as a woman in technology thanks to Oracle Academy; our program that offers free STEM education to millions of students around the world. For Kara, it sowed the seeds for what would become her professional passion: Today, Kara is a data scientist at Oracle Data Cloud.

"Trust yourself," she advises. "Never let anyone tell you that a career in technology may not be for you. That's not anyone's decision to make, but your own. Technology is such a wide-ranging field that if you find yourself even remotely drawn to it, then it's absolutely something worth exploring."

"Along the way, you may find yourself loving some aspects of technology, but hating others—and that's okay! Cherish when you finally find something that clicks with you, that 'aha!' moment that gives you a sense of excitement."