We are EMBL: Mila Coniff on teamwork and tech

From setting up laptops for new starters to coaxing stubborn printers back to life, the IT Service Desk team at EMBL-EBI keeps things running smoothly. As a Senior Service Desk Officer, Mila Coniff has seen it all.

Coniff shares her experience of working at EMBL-EBI and why a positive team culture and strong interpersonal skills complement technical know-how, especially when supporting the diverse IT and human environments at EMBL-EBI. 

Tell me a little bit about your background.

I’m originally from Kazakhstan, and despite an early interest in international law, I have a degree in computer systems and software. In the final year of my undergraduate studies, I spent a semester at the University of Eastern Finland, which inspired a deep love of travel in me.

When did you first hear about EMBL-EBI?

As a fresh graduate, I really wanted to work abroad. While looking for jobs, I came across the role of Graduate Helpdesk Technician at EMBL-EBI. Oddly enough, I got the job offer at the same time as a scholarship to do a Master’s abroad. At the time, I figured this was the universe conspiring to help me travel more.

But the universe has a strange sense of humour, because all of this was happening just as the COVID pandemic unfolded, so I spent the first few months at EMBL-EBI working remotely from Kazakhstan. 

What does the IT Service Desk team do?

We’re the first point of contact for any technical issues that EMBL-EBI staff and students might come across. Colleagues can use ServiceNow to submit any technical questions or problems. We sift through queries, and action or reallocate them depending on their nature. 

All of EMBL-EBI’s 700+ staff and students will interact with our team at some point. We set up the computers for all our new starters, and help them understand the range of systems EMBL-EBI uses. We help colleagues when their computers need replacing or repairing. We also keep colleagues informed about outages or issues.

What is your role within the team?

When I started, our team was very small, with just three of us. Over time, the team grew and I had the opportunity to take on more responsibilities, progressing first to Service Desk Officer and, more recently, to Senior Service Desk Officer. As part of my new role, I deal with a lot of the questions we get, and I represent the team in a range of meetings. 

What is it like to work at EMBL-EBI?

I’ve had different opportunities to grow and learn new technical skills – such as using ticketing systems or working with Apple products – as well as soft skills. Believe it or not, conflict management, active listening and empathy come in handy when you work in IT support.

My team is incredibly collaborative and has taught me everything I know. We all help each other and there’s no such thing as a silly question. 

There’s a lot of healthy competition between the IT and Technical Services (ITS) teams. Intense games of table football and table tennis are a common occurrence, and we’ve even had a go at playing rounders – a bat and ball game played between two teams. I never heard about it before working at EMBL-EBI but having had a chance to play against my colleagues, I really enjoyed it!

Do you have any unusual hobbies or interests?

I have a two-year-old who keeps me busy, and I’m currently working on my Master’s dissertation at the University of Bath. I’m using multitask machine learning to predict engagement and dropout risk in long-distance learning. 

In the little free time I have, I love sewing. When I initially learned it at school, I didn’t like it but I grew into it as an adult. My next goal is to create the perfect tote bag, which needs to be a combination of sturdy and functional, and have a range of pockets!