Natalie Dale

She found her passion in the cloud 

Natalie does not exactly remember the time when her interest in technology was ignited – back in high school or late primary school – but what she distinctly recalls is the excitement that she felt initially. It started with a love for social media sites that then progressed into dabbling with web designing.

It is no surprise, then, that she went on to finish her college degree in technology, a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology & Systems from the Australian National University. Initially, Natalie joined Deloitte Australia as a graduate in the Technology, Strategy & Architecture team; and through networking and guidance from mentors at various stages of her career, Natalie has been able to find her passion – cloud advisory.

Natalie now sits within Deloitte Australia’s Cloud Engineering practise, specialising in client advisory services. Though the type of work in cloud may be quite broad, Natalie took the opportunities to try out different types of engagements and to work on a variety of things that really focus on her specific interests within cloud—as when she provides advice to Deloitte clients on their medium- and long-term cloud strategies, including helping them determine which of their applications are suitable to move to the cloud.

For Natalie, “cloud services introduce organisations with opportunities to modernise and become future-ready through a variety of services and capabilities.” Natalie plays an important role helping Deloitte clients use cloud and find innovative and practical solutions to complex pain points – one of the recent examples was an Australian bank project, where she successfully executed a cloud migration.

The most exciting part about cloud for Natalie is the change. She points out, “There are so many different and so many new capabilities that are being introduced through cloud services. For me specifically, that keeps it interesting because things are always changing and there’s always something new to learn.” She continues, “My favourite kinds of engagements and my favourite type of work are really some of those long-term pieces of work where it starts with initial conversations with the client around what are the possibilities and some of the new capabilities that they may look to unlock.”

Working in the cloud is more than just a job for Natalie and she strongly recommends cloud to the aspiring colleagues who share a similar passion for technology. She wants to pass on the same advice that she received from her mentors, “Don't be afraid to fail. It’s ok to do things you haven't done before. You won’t always get it right but learn from the past and have a go.”

Natalie advises young aspirants to invest in themselves and suggests that a good place to start getting an understanding of cloud services is through certification and learning courses. In addition, Natalie strongly advocates the need for more women in cloud, as “everyone brings their own background, their own experiences and their own previous knowledge. Having more and more women working in cloud can only help us progress further because it's really bringing in different ways of thinking about how to approach a problem.”

Personally, Natalie has really enjoyed her journey with Deloitte – the opportunities to explore various aspects of the cloud, the impact she has been able to make with different clients, and most importantly, the culture and people that have helped her to thrive.

If you share the same passion as Natalie, join her at ndale@deloitte.com.au to soar with cloud.

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