Tagged: women in tech

10 December, 2012

Focus of Femgineer Forum’s Inaugural Event

Having a long career in tech and having had many roles, I’ve experienced, and have been presented with a number of issues that women in tech face such as:

Interviewing at male dominated companies
Communicating concerns effectively with supervisors
Crafting an ASK for an offer, promotion, raise, or just a change in role

While we can claim that tech is merit based there are many women who are highly skilled and very talented who do not receive the same attention as their counterparts. The common methods of addressing these concerns such as panels, content, or simply pointing to aspirational figures such as Sheryl Sandberg or Marissa Mayer isn’t enough. While we should continue to champion the efforts of those who are trying to attract more women into the field by teaching and supporting young women and girls, there is little to no support for women already in the field. Women who have already begun their career or are mid-career need strategies and solutions to keep them motivated, and help them achieve the career they dream of!

We also don’t want to play the victim card, which is why the goal of the Femgineer Forum’s inaugural event is to provide strategies and suggestions to help women who struggle with these common topics. While I do no claim to be a psychologist, I have personally dealt with a number of these situations. Through my experience I’ve been able to effectively come up with a system of strategies that has helped me, and many other women in tech avoid settling, asking for what we need in order to be taken seriously, making six figures, and succeeding while still staying sane!

If you’re a highly skilled and talented women in tech, don’t stand in the way of your own success, learn the strategies you need to have the career you want! Come to the first ever Femgineer Forum and learn compelling communication strategies. Looking forward to kicking this series off with you!

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27 May, 2012

How I Fell In Love with Building Software

Engineering is often an enigma. In the following interview with Semil Shah of TechCrunch we chat about how I discovered engineering, then startup land, and how I’m trying to demystify it through mentoring and blogging.

I originally joined Mint.com as a founding engineer because I wanted to learn how to setup a company, and experience the entire process of software product development (ideation, prototype, and launch).

When I’m not building I’m doing yoga. I have been practicing for 8 years now, and I’ve also done some tech consulting for studios. During my time consulting and volunteering I saw a number of these community businesses struggle with managing their interactions with their customers. The biggest problem being customer retention. After searching for technology solutions to help these community businesses, and not finding many that met their needs I started building BizeeBee.

I’ve already built for consumers (Mint.com) and enterprise (Synopsys). I wanted to tackle a group that was being underserved by the tech community. Basically I like creating products that solve a real need, and I saw one in this space.

Couple corrections while I did “dropout” of my Masters at Stanford, I do have a BSEE from Duke University in Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science.

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21 April, 2012

She++ Conference

Excited to be heading off to She++ at Stanford today! The conference is hosted by an amazing group of young femgineers. These young ladies have already recognized a dearth of femgineers in the Silicon Valley, and are taking steps towards inspiring their generation of women to get interested in engineering and the tech industry. Their approach, pretty simple and courageous:

Find women leader in the tech industry and showcase them as role models
Luncheon to given the speakers and the young ladies a chance for mentorship
Educate a day in the life of a woman in tech by highlighting various careers

Honored to be a part of this conferences and will do my part to help you young ladies out out!

Last night they hosted a dinner for the speakers and I was amazed at the thoughtfulness of the group. They were systematically thinking about ways to decrease attrition rates from computer science classes, and motivating their peers to try out a computer science course. Not sure who is mentoring whom

What was also fascinating to me was each of them sharing stories of how they got interested in engineering and technology. The vast majority spoke about an early childhood experience with either a parent or adult figure who spent time with them and showed them how to build something. It empowered them and arouse their curiosity. That just might be the secret to she++.

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16 April, 2012

Why a CS major would want an MBA

I was initially a management major, but my college required one computer science class during our first semester. It was in that class, amidst loops and pointers, that I fell in love with programming. Soon, I switched my major to computer science. Now, I’m about to graduate as a software engineer, and I love what I do. I feel alive when I solve problems and create new things that improve people’s lives. I especially love the endorphin rush I experience once I get a pesky bug fixed!

During my junior year, I went on a software development internship where I was often the only woman, the youngest, or the only Asian in the room. During those six months, I realized that the trailblazers of technology, or at least the ones we know of, were all powered by testosterone.

And it made me wonder — why don’t we have a Martia Zuckerberg or even a Steph Jobs? I look around me, and I notice that there are simply not enough women running tech companies or founding the next Apple. Actually, there are not enough women on the top, period. In a TED speech, Facebook COO and Harvard Business School alum Sheryl Sandberg commented that only fifteen to sixteen percent of executives in the corporate world are women. In fact, companies such as Facebook and Zynga do not have a single woman in their boards. Those dismal numbers have to change, and I want to be part of the solution.

That is why I want an MBA. I want to leverage technology and business to change that ratio. I want to equip myself with the skills that I will need to run a tech company with that mission someday. Maybe, I’ll be gutsier and even start one myself.

Some people are brave, though. They found companies right away, but at the young age of twenty, I feel scared that I won’t know anything or that people won’t take me seriously, especially since I do not have an American undergrad degree. Perhaps that’s the imposter syndrome talking, but I do feel that an MBA will better prepare me for the career path that I see for myself. I will get to be intimate with every nook and cranny of a company’s structure, finances, etc., before I have to do it in real life. I guess that’s just my style – I want to have a broader view before I have to make tough business decisions, whether for my own venture or for the next Twitter.

But whether I do go for an MBA or not, one thing is for sure: I will stay in the tech industry because I believe in its capacity to ignite social change. In fact, what I love most about tech is that it is a great “democratizer.” Imagine, a poor student from the streets of India who does not have the means to hire private tutors can still learn through organizations like the Khan Academy. Students who are not privileged to attend prestigious schools can still have access to the same caliber of information through ventures like MIT Open Courseware and Harvard’s courses in iTunes U.

Growing up as the daughter of an immigrant in a small, Midwestern town, technology is what empowered me to be what I am today. It was the backbone of my education, the very reason I was able to have a job in a top ten software company. I want to use that unique quality of tech, coupled with solid business acumen, to empower the underdogs of the world, the children of underprivileged immigrants, all young women. I want them to be able to look up to strong women like what I aspire to be, and realize that yes, they can code, they can be scientists, they can be CEOs. I want them have the opportunity to be leaders, not just followers. I want to be part of the transformation of our society into an America where women creating tech startups and running big corporations is part of the norm, rather than the exception.

Frances is about to graduate with a degree in Computer Science with specialization in Software Engineering. Previously, she interned for six months for Accenture Software and will be joining them as a Software Engineer in June. She also contributes to The Levo League, Women 2.0, and STEMinist. A proud geek girl, she’s sure she is the only one who can’t play video games. Follow her random musings at @FranAdvincula.

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17 March, 2012

Celebrating Five Years of Femgineer.com

Its been five years since I started Femgineer.com. I can vividly remember the process I went through when I was deciding on a name for the blog, I wanted something that would capture being feminine and an engineer, because my mission was to show women and girls that they could be an engineer and still have feminine qualities. They didn’t need to change who they were because the field of engineering was male dominated. After a few funny back and forth name ideas between Jason Putorti, Dave McClure, and myself while we were building Mint.com, Femgineer.com was born!

On this five year anniversary I’d like to share what I’ve experienced, and how I see the femgineer and tech community evolving.

Evolution of Femgineers

When I first moved out to Silicon Valley almost 8 years ago there was a different ambiance. There was less infrastructure and encouragement for femgineers in high tech. Sure there were femgineers working at startups and large tech companies, but at the time most people just complained and very little was being done. In fact I saw most women leaving engineering altogether to become product managers, sales people, or pursue motherhood full time. This was a little disheartening as a young and impressionable femgineer. Nevertheless, I kept searching.

Then another dynamic began to emerge about two years ago. One that was focused on complaints about organizational structures, fostered by panels like “what its like to be a girl coder and how much it sucks”. There were in fact a number of articles published and some pretty bad talks (here’s looking at you TechCrunch). In the midst of the negativity emerged a third movement, one that was focused on nurturing women. A few organizations that led the way were Women 2.0, some communities like DevChix and Women Who Code, social enterprises like Invent Your Future, and programs to empower and educate young girls like Iridescent Learning. These organizations have been supported by large tech companies, women, and a lot of men!

This is when things got really interesting… Because instead of sitting around and complaining there were bright women who were just femgineering. They were starting companies, building products, hosting workshops on how to code, and creating organizations that were pushing for the cause of having more women in engineering. They were leading by example, which is what any good role model does!

Change Isn’t As Easy As Hiring More Women

However, there are still some fundamental ideas that need to change. There are still too many leaders of startups and tech companies who want there to be more women but don’t know how to bring them in. The problem isn’t one of searching for women, it comes down to the type of environment that is present in these organizations. Here are the top three reasons most women don’t join teams.

Teams dominated by one sex I know there are more than a handful of women out there who don’t mind working on a team of all men, but it can be lonesome. The reason its lonesome is because of the difference in communication style and goals between the sexes. After awhile you either have to give in, or leave if people can’t empathize with your perspective.
Rigid culture Most women and I’m not speaking for our entire species here, are more into working for a collaborative and cooperative culture, but if the primary sentiment of the team is being results oriented it can be off putting for many women.
Inflexible work environment Women play many roles during the course of their lives, and one of the roles outside of working is being a mother. Unfortunately, too many organizations don’t understand how mentally and physically taxing this role can be. Long hours, tough deadlines, and less than understanding bosses make it hard on the role of a nurturer. While women are willing to make due with hiring nannies or sending their kids to daycare, it still doesn’t really capture what they need most, time, to spend with their family and loved ones. Even for young women without families they need time to create a support structure for themselves, and yes time to date. I know the choice to pursue a competitive career does require trade-offs, but it shouldn’t mean having to fundamentally give up on other life goals indefinitely.

What’s in store for the next 5 years

I don’t doubt the tech community will continue to pave the way in being progressive and encouraging women to pursue careers in engineering. But I am worried about the additional burden it will place on women’s roles. Encouraging young girls to pursue engineering is great, but they will still need to have environments where they are free to be themselves and pursue other life goals.

Balance is something that both sexes actually need to achieve. But balance doesn’t mean just taking time off. It means encouragement, and being mindful in how teams communicate and the way organizations structure and achieve their goals. The tech community is very competitive, and while competition can build great products and companies, it can also make it hard to attract talented individuals.

I haven’t yet figure out how to breed a healthy culture that is competitive, but I’m searching and experimenting with my own startup. I’m also encouraging younger girls by continuing to share my experiences through speaking engagements.

I look forward to continue being a femgineer and I want to thank a few who have actively supported femgineer.com over the years: Aaron Patzer, Angie Chang, Dave McClure, Jason Putorti, Liz Wiltsie, Lyndi Thompson, Noah Kagan, Shaherose Charania, and especially my dad who strongly encouraged me to take my first computer science class in college.

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23 September, 2011

Want more femgineers?

Looking back 21 years ago I never would have fathomed I would have become a femgineer or been involved in high tech. At the age of 8 I had decided I was going to be a lawyer, writer, and professor because I loved to read, write, and speak. I spent the next 10 years of my life working toward that goal. In elementary and middle school I wrote short stories, in high school I joined the debate team, and when it was time for college I chose Duke because it has a really great law school. So where did I get of course and decide to become an engineer, pursuing 2 majors (Electrical Engineering and Computer Science) then decide to move to California, work in the tech industry, then join startup, and then start my own company? Well the truth is I was NEVER encouraged by anyone to become a lawyer. In fact, as I’ve pointed out in this blog a number of times most of the men in my family are engineers. And when I told most people I wanted to be a lawyer people were actually shocked that I didn’t want to be a doctor or engineer despite coming from an Indian immigrant family.

But what led up to me actually switching? While I was growing up no one told me to be an engineer, my family didn’t even push me towards a particular career they just figured I’d end up in finance, engineering, or medicine. But there were a couple things that were happening on the sidelines. First my mom and dad really pushed me to excel at math and science mostly because they wanted me to keep up with the other Indian kids, which I didn’t really care about but it did make me more competitive in other areas like high school debate. Second, I’ll never forget the day I went to my cousin’s house and saw she had a computer, I really wanted one badly… Why? Because I wanted to play video games, type up my short stories faster, explore on the internet, and submit pretty book reports to my teacher. I just wanted a computer to live a full life and accomplish goals I had. Finally, there was the time that my dad took me to see his fab when he worked for Texas Instruments (my dad has actually worked for a lot of the big players in high tech: Sony, TI, Intel, Samsung, and Microchip). I was just blown away when I saw how the little robotic arm picked up each wafer (computer chip) and moved it over. I just sat there and stared at it for hours. Despite the curiosity of how things worked, the lifestyle of being an engineer was not glamorous to me. I grew up watching Ally McBeal…

So what did finally got me into engineering? Realizing I was a builder. I realized that all my life what I really enjoyed more than anything was building and creating things that made life more enjoyable. I always loved technology, I taught myself how to make my first webpage using Geocities in high school, I used to hang out with the nerdy boys who would burn CDs on the weekends, and spent hours on the internet reading, researching, and of course chatting with people who I wasn’t supposed to (a/s/l ring a bell?!).

I was literally sitting in my freshman economics class bored to tears and tired of just reading and writing papers. I wanted to build something. I wanted to create. And that’s what drove me to taking my first computer science class in college. The rest is history.

How do you encourage engineering?

But enough about me, this is about how we can encourage young women or girls to become femgineers and get interested in high tech. Well let’s start with what it means to be a femgineer. I coined the term almost 5 years ago and started this blog. To me being a femgineer means you are an engineer at the core, you enjoy building things in software or hardware, but you are chic and sophisticated, you have a personality beyond being a nerd. Maybe you like to travel, speak a few languages, play sports, enjoy cooking, and the list goes on. Its not enough to tell girls what they should become or what society needs, you need to sell them on the vision of what life will be like, and how you affect the world. In order to that you need to have role models.

When I was growing up there were hardly any women in engineering that were strong role models. Until I met my college professor Lisa Huettel. She was the first female engineer who inspired me. She was young, energetic, and I loved her method of teaching and the time that she took with each student. She was one of the driving forces for me switching into engineering in college.

We need more role models and we need to showcase them front and center. Point out their achievements both as an engineer and in life. Options are available for those individuals looking to make a difference in their life along with ways to help with the cost of an education. There are even opportunities for single mom scholarships to ease the stress from family while earning a degree. Its important to take a holistic approach, work isn’t everything.

How do you retain engineers?

When I was graduating from college I noticed a lot of my peers actually didn’t go on to become engineers both men and women. Even people who were better engineers in college than me! What did they go on to become? Investment bankers and consultants. Why? Because they saw absolutely no value in being an engineer. What they had experienced through internships were dull days of sitting behind a desk coding, little to no social interaction, and forget the opportunity for travel or making bank. Being a consultant had a glamorous lifestyle at least on face value.

Then I saw the same thing happen at large companies. Women who were engineers were leaving to become mothers or pursue other jobs where they could meet with people on a daily basis instead of sitting behind a desk.

Those who were initially interested in engineering are dropping out. Its not that they don’t like building or problem solving, they’re unhappy with the their job or the lifestyle. These people initially bought into the vision of building, problem solving, and creating products that improve people’s lives. But the reality of it was long hours, lack of appreciation, and unhappiness caused by sitting at a desk coding all day. Being treated like a cog will not inspire or motivate people.

We can encourage young girls and boys to pursue jobs as engineers all we want. But if we don’t do a good job of keeping them motivated they will drop out at some point whether its high school, college, or even after the enter the industry. Part of the reason many engineers join startups is because they get to be part of the product, process, and profits.

When children are growing up explain to them what it means to be an engineer, point out the jobs that are out there in hardware, software, and design. Show them the value in building and creating. Want more femgineers or mengineers? Encouragement them every step of the way, its the only way to inspire and motivate anyone!

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