How She Made It: A non-techie entering the tech scene

This podcast is part of “Women in Focus,” Tech in Asia’s campaign for International Women’s Day 2021. Through this initiative, we’re shining the spotlight on women making waves in Asia’s tech and startup ecosystem.

As the product lead for consumer experience at Grab, Minci Loh ensures that every user has a seamless experience with the app. We have her and her wider tech team to thank for today’s redesigned super app, with new services that have become a given in the version of the app that we all use today.

Minci Loh, product lead of consumer experience at Grab / Photo credit: Grab

But unlike most people who you’d find in such a role, Loh has a non-tech background. And as anyone who’s worked in tech would know, it’s not exactly the easiest field to break into.

On this episode of How She Made It, Loh shares how her career journey got her closer to working at the “heart of product” and how she overcame the challenges she faced as a non-techie joining the world of tech.

Timecodes:

00:00 – Have you ever looked at something you made?
00:34 – Meet Minci Loh, Grab’s product lead for consumer experience
01:28 – How a non-techie like her made it into the tech scene
02:15 – Starting her career as a management associate
02:50 – Falling in love with product development
03:33 – Seeking a change in pace
04:06 – Becoming a product manager at Grab
07:33 – Working with colleagues more talented in tech
09:33 – Taking on the product lead role
10:24 – Turning her non-tech background into a boon rather than a burden
11:53 – Continuing to grow
12:43 – Looking to the future

Download the full transcript here.

Featured interviewee:

• Minci Loh, the Singapore-based product lead for consumer experience at Grab

More episodes:

• How She Made It: A young tech professional navigating the corporate world, featuring Karinna Lai, an Indonesia-based product manager at Grab
• How She Made It: A working mom in a high-growth startup, featuring Adelene Foo, the Malaysia-based regional head of merchant and GrabExpress at Grab

How She Made It is a podcast by Tech in Asia, produced in partnership with Grab. Visit Grab’s career page to learn how you can be a part of its mission to drive Southeast Asia forward together.