The gender gap in tech is gradually decreasing, and the mobile tech industry is doing its part to offer more leadership roles to women.
Aarki is passionate about strengthening women’s leadership and voices. Here we continue our series highlighting women in the mobile industry.
Snezana Djuric 
Chief Marketing Officer / Head of Publishing at Peaksel DOO
"We live and we learn."
Q: What do you love most about working at Peaksel?
I love the way we work together. Peaksel is a team of so many different individuals and I believe that we work together so well precisely because we embrace all those differences. We have always believed that sharing is caring so we make sure we are there for one another, be it to offer help, share knowledge or just have a chat and exchange experiences.
Q: What motivated you to pursue this career?
Curiosity. I started working at Peaksel several months into my Master’s studies. My idea was to write a thesis on language in gaming, given that I was doing an MA in English Linguistics. I ended up changing my topic but stayed in the industry because I got addicted to the pace of changes and the opportunity for continuous professional and personal development and growth.
Q: What are the common challenges women face today in the world of tech?
There’s the obvious difference in numbers when it comes to how many men and women work in the world of tech. However, I have been fortunate enough to be a part of an all-women managers team and to lead a predominantly female Publishing team (the gents in the team are awesome, too).
Another issue that has been brought to my attention recently (and perhaps goes for women in any industry) is the inner struggle women face when it comes to belonging (or the impostor syndrome if you’d like); the feeling that we are never good enough and the constant questioning of our abilities. On the other hand, we are expected to be gentle and humble so when a woman is more decisive and confident, she is more likely to be perceived as arrogant rather than ambitious, which makes career advancement a bit harder.
Q: What do you think are the trends that will shape the mobile space in the coming 1-2 years?
Given the fast pace of changes in the mobile space, it’s hard to tell what could turn into a trend. What I’ve been seeing recently is the shift towards more data-driven decisions. Gaming studios are diving deeper into data, getting more granular in order to accommodate as many users as possible on a level as personal as possible. With that in mind, I expect to see more UA activities leaning towards personalization and machine learning becoming the standard as mobile gaming keeps growing and becoming popular in the emerging markets.
That sometimes things are just good enough and that I do not have to be responsible for everything. I learned these the hard way, but those are some valuable lessons I can teach someone else so that they can skip some steps I had to make.
Q: What words do you live by?
We live and we learn.
Q: What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done?
Leaving home at 14 to get better education. At the time, it didn’t seem like a big deal but looking at it now, it was a pretty bold move to start living on my own at such a young age and I am very thankful to my parents for supporting me all the way through it.
Q: What kind of art do you appreciate the most?
I’m going to look at art from its broader definition and say dance and literature.
Q: If you were to leave your current life behind and run away to follow your dreams, what would you be doing?
I’d be traveling, immersing myself in other cultures and writing travel books.
Q: Who are the people that inspire you in your life?
People who are well-grounded and driven. Those who know that you need to ask for what you want instead of waiting for it but who also know that progress and changes take time and are ready to be patient for it. I’ve been fortunate enough to meet such people throughout my life, some of which are now like family to me.
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