Oct 7, 2026 · 31 min · 11 segments
Karen Somal has spent much of her career working across HR, recruitment and recruitment technology, giving her a close understanding of the challenges businesses face when their systems do not quite…
So as an Asian woman in the UK, how has that influenced your career? We know that obviously being a woman in tech is challenging.
And initially when I first got married, I... married into a very, very traditional family.
So when my parents met my husband's parents for the first time, they were a bit, oh, Karen, are you, you know, are you sure you're going to be able to mix within the family? You you know, wife, you know, working is not a no-no, but it's usually, you know, a couple of hours a day, maybe part-time, being at home, taking care of the household.
So when my, I think when my parents did say to my, you know, in-laws at the time, you know, she's educated, she doesn't know how to cook and clean.
And obviously when I got married, moved into the family home, I think, you know, they were just like, oh, she really doesn't.
And I used to go off to work and, you know, I'm very, very lucky in that aspect as well.
My father-in-law as well, he's just always pushed me in my career, you know, never said nothing to me.
He's so proud of me and my mother-in-law as well, you know, always helping out where she can.
And so from both aspects and both sides, I don't, you know, I do understand I have family and friends within my same age group and they've had it a lot different, let's just say.
So I feel that I'm very, very lucky that actually, you know, especially my in-laws like adjusting and changing things.
So as an Asian woman in the UK, how has that influenced your career? We know that obviously being a woman in tech is challenging.
And initially when I first got married, I... married into a very, very traditional family.
So when my parents met my husband's parents for the first time, they were a bit, oh, Karen, are you, you know, are you sure you're going to be able to mix within the family? You you know, wife, you know, working is not a no-no, but it's usually, you know, a couple of hours a day, maybe part-time, being at home, taking care of the household.
So when my, I think when my parents did say to my, you know, in-laws at the time, you know, she's educated, she doesn't know how to cook and clean.
And obviously when I got married, moved into the family home, I think, you know, they were just like, oh, she really doesn't.
And I used to go off to work and, you know, I'm very, very lucky in that aspect as well.
My father-in-law as well, he's just always pushed me in my career, you know, never said nothing to me.
He's so proud of me and my mother-in-law as well, you know, always helping out where she can.
And so from both aspects and both sides, I don't, you know, I do understand I have family and friends within my same age group and they've had it a lot different, let's just say.
So I feel that I'm very, very lucky that actually, you know, especially my in-laws like adjusting and changing things.
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