"Am I ready to lead?"
That was the question Franciane Porto Sant'Ana asked herself when she was still working as a Technician I at Cotesa and was offered the chance to step into a coordination role.
Today she is Coordinator of Scheduling, Post-Operation and Standards, a position that reflects a path built over almost 6 years at the company.
But her story in the power sector began much earlier.
At 22, Franciane took her first job at a power sector company, and daily contact with the technical teams sparked her interest.
That was when she decided to enrol in the electrical engineering technician course at IFSC, as the only woman in her class.
While still studying, in the middle of the pandemic, she joined Cotesa as a Post-Operation Assistant. Since then her career has been marked by steady progress.
In almost 6 years, Franciane has held different roles and taken part in transmission and generation projects on several fronts, broadening her view of how complex operating in the power sector really is.
For her, working in a historically male environment brings challenges, but also opportunities to grow. Franciane says she found trust, support and room to develop at Cotesa, and today she takes pride in helping to widen the presence of women in the power sector.
This Women's Month, she leaves a simple but powerful piece of advice for other women thinking of following this path:
"Believe in your own potential, keep learning, and don't be afraid to take up space where there are still few women. Knowledge, dedication and persistence make the difference."
