To help recognize and celebrate the women who support our company, Technologent surveys and nominates women each month to highlight. Please use this page to learn more about our monthly honorees and congratulate their efforts and stories by commenting below!
What does the phrase “Women of Tech(nologent)” mean to you?
This means building, or being part of a strong network of people who have different skills, all coming together to make Technologent successful!
Name a fun fact about yourself that you’d like more people to know?
Fun Fact about myself – baseball is my hobby. Last year I completed visiting all 30 current Major League Baseball stadiums by visiting Target Field in Minnesota.
How long have you worked in the IT industry?
Almost 20 years.
What would you say is the biggest challenge working in the IT field as a woman?
Lack of female role models in the tech field is one of the main challenges women confront.
What words would you use to inspire others facing an professional or project-related obstacle?
Stay motivated and focused. “Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”
Remember, obstacles are a part of life, they can be overcome with perseverance and determination.
Can you describe a recent positive experience working with another woman at Technologent?
I have many positive experiences working with all our wonderful women of Technologent – from working with Harvinder (trying to solve an International issue on payments) to Candy (trying to solve how to get our 1099’s electronically sent this year) to Jennifer (dealing with our many “Sales Tax” State questions that come up too often to mention) – amongst many others! I feel that the Women all over the country working for Technologent are the finest in the industry!!
What is a professional/career goal for you this year?
My biggest goal this year is to get the word out about our Company’s mentorship program to attract more professionals to this program. I truly believe it can help both Mentors get the satisfaction of helping someone achieve their career goals and the Mentee finding the pathway to build on for future success!
List 3 adjectives that you think are most important for exemplifying your best work self:
Determined: You are focused and persistent in achieving your goals, even when faced with obstacles or setbacks. You have a strong sense of purpose and are committed to seeing things through to completion.
Reliable: You are dependable and trustworthy, and you take your commitments seriously. You follow through on your promises and can be counted on to deliver high-quality work.
Creative: You are innovative and imaginative, and you bring fresh ideas and perspectives to your work. You are not afraid to take risks and try new approaches, and you are always looking for ways to improve and innovate.
Name a book, movie or music album you’re enjoying currently:
“The Ins-N-Outs of In-N-Out Burger” by Lynsi Snyder (how the burger chain started and grew to what it is today).
Are there any specific quotes, sayings or lessons that are important to you?
Life is about accepting the challenges along the way, choosing to keep moving forward, and savoring the journey – Roy Bennett.
Be the reason someone smiles. Be the reason someone feels loved and believe in the goodness in people – Roy Bennett.
What does the phrase “Women of Tech(nologent)” mean to you?
Women of Tech and Women of Technologent are groups of individuals that strive to increase communication, support, mentorship, and representation to one another. Overall, it’s being a part of a group of individuals that celebrate each other’s career and industry accomplishments, all while paving their own path in IT.
Name a fun fact about yourself that you’d like more people to know?
I’m the youngest of eight – four boys and four girls in my family; I was once on the cover of the Dallas Morning News Entertainment section in a picture taken front row at a Beastie Boys concert, 2004 – that was fun.
How long have you worked in the IT industry?
I’ve been in the IT industry since 2002; I worked at a data center in Dallas, TX as the Office Manager but moved into Marketing within a year of my career there – don’t do the math on that timeline, please.
What would you say is the biggest challenge working in the IT field as a woman?
It is male dominated – truthfully, at times, it feels like physical stature is my biggest challenge. The physical presence one brings into a room is important and when most men (even some women) are 6ft+ tall, it can be incredibly intimidating. When speaking, others have trouble hearing you. The expectation to be taken seriously after that almost becomes unlikely – it can be discouraging; It sounds trivial but it’s a reality.
Language in IT can be incredibly esoteric, which can also be intimidating – but focusing on your core job and collaborating with the SMEs around you, learning from what they’re sharing, can really help lift you above the weeds to focus on how to do your job successfully.
What words would you use to inspire others facing a professional or project-related obstacle?
There’s always an opportunity to try again – a key differentiator in successful people can always be found in those that keep trying, no matter what.
Can you describe a recent positive experience working with another woman at Technologent?
I really enjoy working with Lorena Straw – she’s always very positive, no matter how intense her workload is. She deals with a wide variety of personalities, expenses, situations, but she is always attentive, very understanding and the very best part is that she will educate you as to why something needs more explanation, itemization, etc…
By enabling me in how to expense correctly, I try to educate others that ultimately minimizes her workload (to an extent, lol!) but I feel better knowing we’re supporting each other.
What is a professional/career goal for you this year?
To keep learning – while Technologent is an established company with 20+ years doing business in technology, the Marketing department is still ever-evolving so my mentality about it all is to keep pace with how customers are consuming data.
The media industry changes rapidly, I want to ensure Technologent emerges a thought leader, partnered with the very best in the industry – learning how to showcase and deliver that message efficiently and cost-effectively will be my goal for the year.
List 3 adjectives that you think are most important for exemplifying your best work self:
Name a book, movie or music album you’re enjoying currently:
Lessons in Chemistry was a great book; however, Atonement and The Goldfinch are going to be top spots.
As far as music, anything Interpol, Doves and Radiohead are on rotation constantly at my house.
Are there any specific quotes, sayings or lessons that are important to you?
For me, the biggest life lesson has been understanding and embracing self-awareness – understanding what role you played in certain situations, what you can/can’t control, how to improve and how to better implement and maintain healthy boundaries.
Life is a tidal wave of emotions and personalities that collide with yours, having your feet planted firmly with a clear, positive outlook will help you overcome any doubt, adversity, imposter syndrome you might feel.