Mentor Opens Door to Unexpected Career Path
When Skyla Loomis began studying information technology at RPI, where she focused on learning about
communications over the Web, visual and Web design, and writing, she figured she’d want to work in a
startup or similar environment.
"I was interested in computers as a tool to accomplish something great," she recalls. "And I had
thought of IBM as old and stodgy and not a place I’d be interested in."
But now that’s exactly where she is, working as a software engineer at IBM’s Silicon Valley office.
Her work includes technical writing and graphical user interface (GUI) development, among other things,
and that variety is one reason she’s really happy with her job—which she says she wouldn’t have if she
hadn’t met Julie Schuneman, her MentorNet mentor.
Hearing the Voice of Experience
Loomis matched with Schuneman, an IBM technical sales executive, in her sophomore year. “I asked her
what she did and what IBM was like, and she described it as going to a customer, trying to solve their
problem, and having a lot of tools in your pocket to help them. That really appealed to me.”
As a result, Loomis checked out IBM during a recruitment program at school the following year, and that
summer she interned at its Silicon Valley office. She then worked part-time for IBM during her senior
year writing technical documentation.
Schuneman says she merely encouraged her protégé to consider IBM. “I guess she decided I sounded like I
was having fun, and she thought she’d try it as well!” she says. "Skyla was involved in everything, so
she didn’t need any encouragement to get out there and do more than just study and get good grades. I was
more of a sounding board. … I was able to offer a life and career discussion."
"She gave me a lot of perspective on the types of jobs that are out there and on how what I was learning
could be applied once I got out," Loomis says. "And she helped me understand, on a day-to-day basis, what
working was like. That was really valuable."
Loomis adds that she's always struggled a bit with deciding what she wants to do. "There are so many
options, it’s hard to commit to one thing," she says. "Julie helped me see that just because you go into
something doesn’t mean you’re stuck with it forever."
Success Breeds More Mentoring
Schuneman and Loomis's relationship lasted only a year, but it stuck with them both. When Loomis began
working at IBM she got back in touch with her old mentor; in December they met in person for the first
time. Their reunion was such a success that they're striking up a mentoring relationship again.
There's a "whole world" of mentoring within IBM, and the company promotes it, says Schuneman. "We're so
huge that there are enormous opportunities. I’ve been around forever and have lots of contacts, so I'll
be a good conduit for Skyla to get a taste of what the rest of the company is like."
Loomis has also hooked up with a potential mentor in her lab who has had a career track similar to the
one Loomis is considering.
"I think you get as much out of [mentoring] as you're willing to put in, and if you put in a little bit
of effort, you can learn a lot," says Loomis. “There isn't really any other way to get that kind of
personalized help to figure out your direction, sort out your own thoughts, and make them a reality."