STEM Diversity Podcast

23: Launching Apps for Non-technical Entrepreneurs - Interview with Amanda Spann, App Founder and Marketer

stemdivpod — Fri, 12 Jan 2018 07:40:31 -0400

Amanda started Happii, a startup studio that helps non-technical entrepreneurs create apps and scale them into companies, including product and technology development, marketing, and project management. Amanada acts as a co-founder of these companies as part of the arrangements. Two of these companies are Afridate and Tipoff. Afridate is a dating app that connects black singles. It allows you to search by nationality or ethnicity. Tipoff is a word guessing game customized to African-American vernacular.

Amanda started her career in entertainment PR. But she wasn't fulfilled by it. Later on she started hackathons aimed at the Black community, and also started Tiphub, a tech accelerator in Africa. Amanda went to Florida State University and Georgetown University.

Amanda says that as an African-American, she is a subject matter expert and her work has often veered in that direction and it is intentional. However, she says it makes good business sense overall to focus on minority markets which are underserved right now.

linkedin.com/in/amandaspann/

twitter.com/amandaspann

instagram.com/theamandaspann/

http://amandaspann.com/

Florida State University

Georgetown University

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

22: Supporting Production Software Systems at Scale - Interview with Jeffrey Smith, Manager of Production Operations at Centro

stemdivpod — Sat, 06 Jan 2018 17:34:04 -0400

Jeffrey Smith is Manager of Production Operations at Centro, a media services company that helps brands and ad agencies execute their digital advertising strategies. These companies have broad advertising campaigns, and they come to Centro to get help with the digital parts. Centro provides web-based tools with standardized workflows in an industry which has in the past been very disorganized and analog. Centro also has a demand side platform (DSP), allowing advertisers to bid on digital ads in real time auctions. Centro's main business is in placement of ads on digital properties, based on the user viewing the site. Centro is planning to ramp up in the social media advertising space too.

Production Operations (ProdOps) ensures that production environments are up and running, that they are patched appropriately, that security rollouts are maintained and updated. ProdOps at Centro (and in the industry as a whole), is starting to move beyond just supporting customer-facing production, and also support internal business processes and systems, such as internal software applications, testing, demo, and training environments. The reason is that ProdOps has the domain expertise to handle these, and therefore, should.

When non-tech people think of technologists, they think of just programmers. But there's many technical folks beyond programmers that support the entire technology platform of a company. Jeffrey says that running software on a programmer's laptop is very different from running it in a production system with thousands of users at the same time. There's different problem domains that programmers are not equipped to solve. This is were Production Operations come in.

As manager, Jeffrey warns that a "working manager" is a myth. Management is a full time job, and you can't just do it on the side, while also doing individual contributor work. One of his jobs as a manager is to identify work that does not uniquely require his team, and to automate away or otherwise remove that work from the team, so that the team can focus on their unique contributions to the organization. Another way to remove that work is to simply pay an outside company for a common service, ultimately outsourcing it since it's not unique to the business.

Growing up, Jeffrey was interested in computers and computer games. But he did poorly in school and was working in a furniture store after high school. Eventually he ended up doing an entry level data entry job. He sat right at the entrance of the IT department, and befriended the manager of IT operations there. He was fortunate enough to get noticed and given an opportunity to work on the IT team, and worked his way up the ranks at MVP Healthcare, while also going back to school. Jeffrey has a degree in Computer Information Systems at SUNY Empire State College. Jeffrey eventually worked at Grubhub, managing the SRE (System Reliability Engineering) team, before ending up at Centro. Along the way he intentionally learned management and added it to his skillset.

Jeffrey says technology is a tool that serves the business. It helps him collaborate effectively with business folks in organizations.

Jeffrey warns against unconscious biases. Everybody has it. It's important to recognize it and guard against it, and don't let it drive your decisions. This applies to job descriptions and interviewing. Jeffrey knows many African-Americans working in technology. But he has only interviewed only two African-Americans. He's concerned about the unconscious biases that are preventing candidates that get to him. In regards to inclusion, something as simple as dietary constraints should be considered when for example, doing a team lunch. It is part of the bigger picture of an inclusive culture.

Jeffrey says there are many technical roles/fields. Not just programming. These include, network engineering, production operation support, release engineering, security (both technology and policy), and technical writing. He says that if you get into a technical field, make sure you are passionate about it, since you have to continually focus and hone your skills on it. It is a career, not just a job.

linkedin.com/in/jeffery-smith-37a0162/

twitter.com/darkandnerdy

allthingsdork.com/

jeff@allthingsdork.com

Centro

Demand side platform

The Myth of the Working Manager

MVP Healthcare

SUNY Empire State College

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

21: From Building Dating Apps to Building Affordable Urban Homes - Interview with Brian Gerrard, Co-Founder at California Modular and Co-Founder at Bae Dating App

stemdivpod — Wed, 03 Jan 2018 20:50:58 -0400

Brian Gerrard is Co-Founder at California Modular, an Oakland-based real estate development company, that addresses the rising housing costs in many US urban communities. He is also Co-Founder of Bae, a dating app for Black millennial singles. Brian is based out of Oakland.

Brian says that in the Bay Area, the supply for affordable housing has stayed constant, but the demand has grown exponentially. Consequently, the cost of housing has risen by 75% in the past 5 years in Oakland. Family salaries have not risen by this rate, so there is a tremendous need to be solved. The demand is spilling over from San Francisco, where big tech companies are attracting folks moving in who are able to pay much higher rent, and thus displacing the original locals. He says that the people living in these areas are not getting access to the education in order to be able to get these jobs offered in their cities. This is the real problem that needs to be addressed.

With California Modular, Brian and his co-founders saw the opportunity to cut the cost of housing in half for people in the Bay Area, by building houses at 10 times the speed and one tenth of cost of a normal unit. To do that, they've been using tiny homes, which can be built in 6 to 8 weeks, which are smart-home outfitted, and they are located in micro-villages, with many community amenities like fire pits and basketball courts. Some of the homes are even built using shipping containers.

Brian says that people have been living in small homes for many decades in the past. Think the trailer park. But what's changed recently is the demographic that can be served with these homes. Nowadays millennials don't want 30 to 50 year mortgages and be tied down to a specific community. People can rent or finance these small homes. Or they can even live in an accessory dwelling unit (ADU), which is a small structure attached to part of a house property (such as in the backyard). California Modular builds the ADU and enters into a revenue share with the property owner for rental income.

Brian wanted to be an entrepreneur before becoming a technologist. He got a bit dizzy with the tech narrative, and so moved into the analog world of building houses after building phone apps. He sees real estate as a great business to be in. But he does say the regulatory hurdles are difficult. If you submit an app, you just have to get past the Apple review team. But for building houses, you have to get past the mayor, the building code, the zoning and planning office, and you're waiting 6 to 8 months to be approved or rejected. Also the capital required to start this business is a lot higher.

Brian started Bae, the dating app for Black millennial singles when he and his co-founders realized Tinder was not serving the Black community effectively. He said that the reason nobody built this prior is that nobody is thinking to solve problems that affect this community. Because people in these communities who are affected by these problems often don't have access to capital. Bae was very successful and was eventually acquired by if(we), which itself was acquired by The Meet Group. Brian joined The Meet Group as Director of Product Marketing. He eventually then left to start California Modular.

Brian grew up in New Jersey and was encouraged by his family to take risks in life. He was the number one fencer in the state for multiple years. He learned that he could be the best and excel, helping him later in life as an entrepreneur. Brian graduated from the University of Virginia, and planned to be a lawyer, but ended up as a kindergarten teacher in Queens, New York. Later he landed a position at the NBA, helping their international efforts in building the NBA League Pass International app. He then worked at Nielsen as a consultant to help clients transition from TV to mobile. He then started Bae afterward.

Brian is concerned that large tech companies, even with their current work demographic, are already performing financially well and have no real incentive to change. He is also concerned that there are more fundamental problems facing the African-American community, such as very low high school graduation rates, prison industrial complex, and high rates of single-parent households leading to lower household incomes. The lack of diversity in tech companies is ultimately not the underlying issue.

Brian is featured in CA Technologies' STEM10 series highlighting future leaders in STEM fields.

For career advice, Brian says don't create your own barriers. If you want to launch an app but don't have money to pay a developer, then learn how to code online for free. Or build a low cost / free website to validate your product ideas, before investing in building an app. Brian also recommends positive social peer pressure. Tell your personal network that you're working on an idea with a deadline. So you give yourself pressure to follow through. Brian also says put your money into your business. So that forces yourself to commit to it and raise the personal stakes.

brian@brianjgerrard.co

linkedin.com/in/brianjgerrard/

twitter.com/brianjgerrard

California Modular

Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU)

Bae: Before Anyone Else

if(we)

The Meet Group

University of Virginia

NBA

Nielsen

Prison–industrial complex

CA Technologies STEM10 Brian Gerrard

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

20: Covering Technology and Business in Asia - Interview with Dr. Bernard Leong, Head of Post Office Network & Digital Services at Singapore Post and Host of Analyse Asia Podcast

stemdivpod — Sat, 30 Dec 2017 21:31:18 -0400

Bernard started Analyse Asia podcast about three years ago, as a way to do long-form storytelling, in order to cover business and technology in Asia. The podcast is focused on companies who have at least received a Series B round of funding, and the movers and shakers in that world. Guests include executives of US companies based in Asia, executives of Asian companies, and industry watchers and journalists. Bernard is planning to grow the podcast into a broader media platform.

Bernard is Head of Post Office Network and Digital Services at Singapore Post (at the time of recording). Singapore Post is a publicly listed company. It's the largest global logistics provider across Asia Pacific for ecommerce logistics. As part of the executive leadership team, Bernard helped bring Alibaba into investing $282 million into SingPost. Bernard is responsible for the digital strategy across the entire company (except for the ecommerce team, which is run like an independent startup). He built out the digital platform to connect customers to SingPost through web, mobile, and even physical kiosks, as part of a larger, longer migration strategy as the demographics become more digitally savvy over time.

Bernard grew up in a traditional Chinese family in the 1970s in Singapore. He was interested in space at a young age, influenced by the Space Race at the time. He studied Physics and Material Science at the National University of Singapore for an undergrad degree, and Theoretical Physics at Cambridge University for a PhD degree. His thesis was in cosmology, investigating big bang background radiation to study the early universe. He also worked in the Human Genome Project at the Sanger Institute. He even did research in economics.

Bernard founded two startups after leaving academia. SGEntreprenuers, a media startup, and Chalkboard, a location-based advertising company. After the two companies, he decided that he needed to learn how to scale companies and how to build culture. So he entered the corporate world to learn that. Eventually, he wants to build three companies: A media company, a finance company, and a real estate company.

Bernard was already mentoring students as a PhD student, continuing to do when he was working in the startups and at SingPost.

Bernard's career advice that he actually uses himself is:

Learn from Everyone
Follow No One
Observe the Patterns
Work like Hell

linkedin.com/in/bleongcw/

twitter.com/bernardleong

bernardleong.com/

Analyse Asia Podcast

Usborne Space Books

A Brief History of Time

National University of Singapore

Singularity University

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

19: Connecting Math and Science to Students with Black Panther and other Modern-day Relevant Experiences - Interview with Shareef Jackson, Founder of Math Looks Good and Co-host of Spawn on Me Podcast

stemdivpod — Sat, 23 Dec 2017 18:03:05 -0400

Shareef Jackson is the founder of the math and physics tutoring service Math Looks Good and a co-host on the Spawn on Me podcast. He is based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Shareef started the Math Looks Good tutoring service while working at a corporate job. He's since left the corporate world and done this full time. He works with high school students. For some students, he has developed a custom curriculum for them. Shareef uses plain English and modern examples. He says he used a Black Panther movie trailer to illustrate the laws of motion. He helps students see that math and science are not abstract concepts, but that they are already interacting with day to day.

In 2011, Shareef was doing a lot of work with NASA, and started a blog called Science Looks Good, which focuses on space exploration and diversity within science. He says we often overlook the contributions that people of color have made to science, throughout history. He says a lot of students don't seek out these majors, because they don’t see it as something for them. It starts as early as elementary school. Shareef sees himself, as an African-American man, as an example, to show to people that they are here. And that he is not an exception. There is a history.

Shareef is a co-host on the Spawn On Me podcast, which celebrates the diversity in the gaming industry. It is an interview show and they discuss diversity issues.

Shareef grew up lower middle class in a dangerous part of Paterson, New Jersey. He was fortunate enough to stay out of trouble and do well in school. He participated in New Jersey SEEDS, a program that prepares high-achieving low-income students academically, and sends them to private high schools. He was then finally challenged and motivated to excel academically. Shareef went to Brown University for undergrad and then Case Western, both in engineering. He eventually gave up a high-paying job as a data analyst to become an entrepreneur and started the tutoring service.

Shareef says a lot of the problems that people attribute to inner cities start in young folks. These inner city schools are focused on disciplining the bad students. They are not challenging the average to great students. Some students get lost and start hanging out with the wrong crowd. This has been a problem of public schools for a long time, since they are under-resourced.

Shareef says for folks entering a technical field, they should seek out help. There's many resources online nowadays to help educate yourself. For folks seeking the entrepreneurial route, don't be afraid to network and share your ideas. Put yourself out there.

linkedin.com/in/shareefjackson/

twitter.com/ShareefJackson

Case Western Reserve University

Harlem Children's Zone

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

18: Protecting Enterprise Security for Startups - Interview with Kathy Wang, Director of Security at GitLab

stemdivpod — Sat, 16 Dec 2017 19:47:52 -0400

Kathy explains her role as Director of Security at the startup, GitLab. She’s responsible for securing the company, which involves setting guidelines on how to store customer data and other sensitive data within the company infrastructure. She works with other teams in the organization to ensure that the product that is rolled out is as secure as possible. Kathy says that security teams at companies often do security research while discovering vulnerabilities.

Kathy advises companies who make security products. Having spent much of her career evaluating security products, she is able to advise them on what are good products, and what is good business strategy. She says many security products are already commoditized today, such as firewalls, antivirus software, and VPN software. So these wouldn’t be good businesses today, and doesn’t move the industry forward.

Kathy was raised in Michigan. She studied electrical engineering in college and graduate school, and worked in hardware early in her career. She eventually moved into software, and in particular, did Unix administration work at the beginning of her software security career. At The MITRE Corporation, Kathy learned a broad background in security. MITRE was already also promoting women and diversity back then in the early 2000s.

Kathy says security has lower numbers of women compared to other technical fields. She mentors women in security at the middle-level stage of their careers.

kwang@gitlab.com

linkedin.com/in/kathywang/

GitLab

Krebs on Security

Pluggable authentication module

The MITRE Corporation

linkedin.com/in/steve-christey-coley-66aa1826/

Common vulnerabilities and exposures

linkedin.com/in/dezbeck/

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

17: Designing with Data for Mobile Apps - Interview with Dr. Ranjitha Kumar, Assistant Professor at University of Illinois Department of Computer Science

stemdivpod — Sat, 09 Dec 2017 18:37:12 -0400

Ranjitha talks about a data-driven approach to digital design. She explains the research work her group does at the University of Illinois in the Department of Computer Science. The applications are very board, including mining user interactions in mobile apps and even the fashion vertical. Ranjitha talks about growing up in the Bay Area. Her parents encouraged her to have a broad education, influencing her to now have an interdisciplinary approach to her current work. Ranjitha previously co-founded Apropose, based off her graduate school work in Stanford, before becoming faculty at University of Illinois.

ranjitha@illinois.edu

linkedin.com/in/ranjitha-kumar-005a293/

twitter.com/ranjithaskumar

University of Illinois Department of Computer Science

Research and publications

ZIPT: Zero-Integration Performance Testing of Mobile App Designs

An Experimentation Engine for Data-Driven Fashion Systems

Apropose

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

16: Transforming Local Economies with Modern Technologies - Interview with Dr. Mark Gabriel Little, Executive Director at UNC Business School Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise

stemdivpod — Sun, 03 Dec 2017 00:35:57 -0400

Mark talks about Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise, a business policy think tank in the business school of UNC Chapel Hill, where he serves as Executive Director. He shares how the institute, through its portfolio of centers, partners with businesses and local governments to work on projects benefting local communities in economic need.

Mark also talks about Black Communities: A Conference for Collaboration. It is an upcoming conference connecting academic researchers an black communities across North America.

Mark traces his broad career path in earth sciences, research and academia, government and policy, as well as business engagement.

linkedin.com/in/mark-little-a5b99a37/

twitter.com/magabritle

UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School

Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise

NCGrowth

Black Communities: A Conference for Collaboration

Geological Society of America

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

15: Breaking Down Venture Capital and the Business of Startup Investing - Interview with Dr. Angela Tran Kingyens, Partner at Version One Ventures

stemdivpod — Tue, 28 Nov 2017 20:21:07 -0400

Angela, Partner at Version One Ventures, explains venture capital. She explains the business of unicorns and how it is a high risk high reward type of investment.

Angela talks about growing up in Toronto in an immigrant family. She did biomedical engineering in undergrad, and applied those engineering skills to finance in her PhD.

Angela co-founded Insight Data Science, a program that equips PhD graduates with real-world data science skills, and places them in top tech companies.

linkedin.com/in/angela-tran-kingyens-38262131/

twitter.com/ATKingyens

angela@versionone.vc

Version One Ventures

Insight Data Science

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

14: Developing Financial Models in Banks - Interview with Dr. Edmond Choi, Vice President of Model Development at BMO Capital Markets

stemdivpod — Sat, 11 Nov 2017 22:53:42 -0400

Edmond talks about developing financial models using stochastic processes, similar to those used in physics. Does a lot of research and software implementation day to day.

Edmond talks about growing up with math as a hobby, with a mathematician father. Following sports stats in baseball and basketball. Playing chess and card games like black jack and poker. Edmond always enjoyed applications of math, and chose a career in math finance.

Edmond says it’s important for Asians to break free of the stereotype of just being good at math or analytics fields, and also have leadership and management roles.

linkedin.com/in/edmond-choi-61779920/

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

13: Educating Space Science with Science Fiction - Interview with Dr. Erin Macdonald, Space Technical Consultant and Public Educator

stemdivpod — Sun, 05 Nov 2017 07:24:21 -0400

Erin talks about how speaking at Comic-Con and Dragon Con led her to create a YouTube series explaining science in science fiction. She explains the science behind the Heisenberg compensator in Star Trek. She talks about her career as a science consultant for the entertainment industry.

Erin explains gravitational waves and the recently announced discoveries as well as some of the related postdoctoral research work she did in the area.

Erin says representation matters, and she makes a conscious effort to mentor young kids. Diversity is not great in astrophysics. She says growing up, she had to rely on fictional characters like Dana Scully and Captain Janeway as mentors.

linkedin.com/in/erin-macdonald-phd-b9a053137/

twitter.com/drerinmac

Dr. Erin Explains the Universe

Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle

Heisenberg compensator

Gravitational wave

Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO)

Mae Jemison

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

12: Protecting Sea Turtles in the Caribbean - Interview with Sara Ramirez, Conservation Biologist

stemdivpod — Tue, 31 Oct 2017 22:06:57 -0400

Sara talks about sea turtles in the Caribbean island of St. Kitts. She explains her research work in the sea turtles and the promotion work of protecting natural resources on the island through the St. Kitts Sea Turtle Monitoring Network (SKSTMN).

Sara recalls having a lot of opportunities connecting with nature while growing up, and advocates for all people to do the same, to truly understand how our day-to-day human decisions impact the greater ecological system.

linkedin.com/in/sara-ramirez-12421485/

twitter.com/saradramirez

instagram.com/saradramirez/

saradramirez@gmail.com

St. Kitts and Nevis

St. Kitts Sea Turtle Monitoring Network

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

11: Designing the Dashboard at Toyota - Interview with Frankie Reed, Design Release Engineer at Toyota

stemdivpod — Sat, 28 Oct 2017 01:29:01 -0400

Frankie talks about how his software skills, hardware skills, and project management knowledge come together in his role as Design Release Engineer. He shares about his time at the University of Michigan, where there were very few African American students, and even less in the engineering program. He talks about how it’s important for organizations like the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE) to help build and maintain the pipeline of underrepresented folks in learning engineering at a young age, going through college, and transitioning to industry.

linkedin.com/in/frankie-reed-16838794/

fbreed@umich.edu

Electronic instrument cluster

National Society of Black Engineers

Center for Engineering Diversity and Outreach

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

10: Designing VR (Virtual Reality) at Facebook, Interview with Gabriel Valdivia, Lead Product Designer at Facebook

stemdivpod — Sat, 21 Oct 2017 15:14:46 -0400

Gabriel explains how basic design principles carry over in different modes of human computer interaction, even in the new field of VR design, and how thinking in 3D is important for VR.

Gabriel talks growing up in Cuba and Costa Rica, and how his persistence led him through different roles in his career, bringing him to VR design now. Gabriel organized the design-focused Vectors Conference earlier this year, where the attendees learned about how your identity and personal experiences affects your work.

twitter.com/gabrielvaldivia

linkedin.com/in/gabrielvaldivia/

gabrielvaldivia.com/

Immersive technology

Oculus

VR Resources | Facebook Design

Blocks (3D modeling tool)

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

9: Bringing Nonprofits to the Digital World - Interview with Billimarie Lubiano Robinson, Front End Developer at Message Agency and Board Member at Coded by Kids

stemdivpod — Wed, 18 Oct 2017 00:43:04 -0400

Billimarie talks about being a front end developer at Message Agency, a B Corp based in Philadelphia, serving nonprofits locally and nationally.

She talks about how her early passion in art (she majored in creative writing and film in college) allowed her to explore digital tools, eventually becoming a professional web developer, and how that background still gives her a unique perspective in tech today.

Billimarie is a teacher and board member at Coded by Kids, serving inner-city kids.

twitter.com/typewritepoetry

work@billimarie.com

Message Agency

B Lab

Front end web development

California State University, Northridge

Earthly Body

Multicultural Music and Art Foundation of Northridge

Coded by Kids

Girl Develop It

LadyHacks

Traveled the country for five years typing free poetry for strangers

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter @STEMDiversityFM

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

8: Digitizing Grubhub Restaurants for Takeout and Delivery - Interview with Marie Sarmiento, recently Senior Product Manager at Grubhub

stemdivpod — Sat, 07 Oct 2017 10:09:58 -0400

Marie talks about working on many of the pioneering technologies in the digital food ordering and delivery business, especially interfacing with restaurants before they were equipped with modern technologies.

Marie talks about bringing her product skills to Willow Chicago, and how to motivate and mobilize volunteers in nonprofit organizations.

linkedin.com/in/mariesarmiento/

Grubhub

Willow Chicago

Chicago Product Management Association Meetup

WomenHack

WiSTEM

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

7: Improving Reproductive Health in Sub-Saharan Africa - Interview with Dr. Amy Tsui, Professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

stemdivpod — Sat, 30 Sep 2017 14:13:50 -0400

Amy provides a broad overview of the field of population science and reproductive health. She talks about her role and work as professor at Johns Hopkins, as former Director of the Bill and Melinda Gates Institute, and as President of the Population Association of America.

She talks about projects impacting families all over the world, including places like Sub-Saharan Africa where there is still a great need for reproductive education and resources.

She says that STEM by itself is not adequate. There is space around for people too that are going to be important to the whole enterprise.

linkedin.com/in/amy-tsui-4492bb9/

atsui@jhsph.edu

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Bill and Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health

Family Planning 2020

The Challenge Initiative

Population Association of America

Errata from Amy

1) The Johns in Johns Hopkins is indeed a surname but it's from his great grandmother (Margaret Johns). She apparently married a Gerald Hopkins who named one of his sons, Johns. That son (Johns Hopkins) named one of his sons, Samuel. It was Samuel who chose to name his own son Johns Hopkins after his father. The latter Johns Hopkins became our university's founder. So the part that's correct is that the Johns is from a family surname!

2) Nigeria's projected growth by the end of this century is 800,000. I think I may have said 350,000, which is the projection for 2050.

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

6: Powering Payments for Airbnb and Uber - Interview with Brittany Canty, Senior Product Manager at Braintree Payments

stemdivpod — Sat, 23 Sep 2017 16:06:26 -0400

Brittany tells us about the complexities of consumer payment processing, and how her product management work at Braintree helps companies simplify that.

Braintree is improving hiring by using Textio to create more inclusive job reqs (postings) and calling out the Imposter Syndrome.

Brittany shares the difficulties she's faced in the past, and tells us that the fight is hard. She says self-care is important. Don't get burnt out.

linkedin.com/in/brittanycanty/

Braintree Payments

Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

Textio

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome - Braintree Blog Post

Black Tech Mecca

Chicago Black Women in Tech

Chicago Women in Product Management Meetup

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

5: Researching Autism in Academia - Interview with Dr. Debra Karhson, Postdoctoral Fellow at Stanford University School of Medicine

stemdivpod — Sat, 16 Sep 2017 19:10:22 -0400

Debra shares her life as a grant-writing postdoc and her current path toward a research-focused faculty position. She explains how her cognitive neuroscience and bioengineering backgrounds prepared her for the autism research she does now at Stanford University.

She tells us it's important to be visible as a black female neuroscientist, why diversity is not enough, and that we need inclusion as well. She seamlessly blends her professional work with her life as a social justice advocate.

twitter.com/drdebah

linkedin.com/in/deb-karhson-93a67754/

Stanford University School of Medicine

California Academy of Sciences NightLife

Taste of Science

Autism

Society for Neuroscience

National Institutes of Health

Dr. Dafina-Lazarus Stewart

Stanford Black Postdoc Association

National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE)

Society for Advancement of Chicanos/Hispanics and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS)

National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE)

Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE)

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

4: Tackling Diversity in Nanotech - Interview with Dr. Matthew Chan, Assoc Director for Diversity Initiatives at Virginia Tech Natl Center for Earth and Environ Nanotech Infrastructure (NanoEarth)

stemdivpod — Sat, 09 Sep 2017 16:49:23 -0400

Matthew cuts through the confusion, explaining what nanotech really is. He talks about NNCI, an NSF-funded nanotech research infrastructure, with Virginia Tech being one of the 16 sites. He shares a 2017 NSF report, saying that we're doing poorly in science and engineering with regard to diversity. And he tells us what he's doing to tackle that problem with diversity initiatives at Virginia Tech NanoEarth.

twitter.com/thewchan

linkedin.com/in/matthew-chan-ph-d-53b1041a

Virginia Tech Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering

Virginia Tech Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology (VTSuN)

Virginia Tech National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology Infrastructure (NanoEarth)

National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure

2017 NSF Report: Women, Minorities, and Persons with Disabilities in Science and Engineering

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

3: Building an Enterprise Product Management Process - Interview with Heidi Williams, Head of Product at Enova

stemdivpod — Wed, 06 Sep 2017 15:31:49 -0400

Heidi talks building enterprise software for Enova, shaping roadmaps and strategic planning, product management practice, mentorship, Chicago Women in Technology Conference, and not being taken seriously when she was the youngest and only female at the table early in her tech career.

linkedin.com/in/heidi-williams-9a67331

Enova

Chicago Women in Technology Conference

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

2: Researching Microelectronics at IBM - Interview with Joy Chao, Process Engineer at IBM

stemdivpod — Sun, 03 Sep 2017 09:10:49 -0400

Joy talks about working in the Microelectronics Research Lab at IBM, how IBM Watson is disrupting healthcare, growing up Taiwanese American, how she got into materials engineering, and how Disney is never going to tell young girls that they can be engineers.

linkedin.com/in/joy-chao-33a1b23b

IBM Reserch

Society of Women Engineers

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel

1: Designing for Software Developers - Interview with Sarrah Vesselov, UX Lead at GitLab

stemdivpod — Wed, 23 Aug 2017 14:58:58 -0400

Sarrah Vesselov is UX Lead at GitLab, an online git repository manager that allows people and businesses to manage projects as they change over time. GitLab is a way for developers, managers, developers, and designers to manage work together.

Sarrah explains that UI (user interface) is the tangible thing you see. It is about the structure, such as wireframes. Her focus within that UI is the UX (user experience). It is her job to evaluate that and ensure that it is the best experience possible. A wireframe is very base level blocking out, such as the structure of a house. A poor user experience is walking into a house and running into a couch, or not being able to reach a window.

As UX Lead, Sarrah's main focus is keeping an overview view of everything. What are most important initiatives and the research being done to back up the decision making. She works with product managers to understand what users need. She does get into the design, and also even jumps into the code, since she has a background in development too. But overall, she is steering the ship, and not getting stuck in the minutiae.

Sarrah says design is a science. You make an assumption about the user and your job is to prove yourself wrong and identify things you didn't think about. The use of color, typography, and spacing. Those things are very scientific. Where you put them relate to people and affect what they will do. It is much less about emotion and feeling.

Sarrah grew up in Boston. She grew up in a time when women were not supposed to have careers. Early on she got into art and drawing. She had a math learning disability called dyscalculia. (She didn't realize it until second year of college.) She has a hard time holding numbers in her head. She does math with pen and paper. Numbers are not concrete for her. So before she knew she had this issue, she thought she was just dumb. People around her said it was okay because she was a girl, and that girls were bad at math.

She did computer animation in college (International Academy of Design). She liked art and drawing. But she wanted to push herself despite her math learning disability. She didn't want to be defined by the disability and succumb to the stereotype of girls not being good a math. And she also realized that it would be a better career choice. After that, as she was creating her design portfolio, she came across web development, and focused in that for her career. Sarrah also has an MBA from American InterContinental University.

Sarrah is Director for Women Who Code in Tampa and the Chapter Leader for Girl Develop It in Tampa. Women Who Code caters for folks who are in mid-level career. Helping people to push into that mid to senior level, and staying there. Girl Develop It helps folks changing careers and recent graduates. They put together low-cost or free classes (scholarships) in software development. She was also a facilitator for Girls Who Code. While Girl Develop It is for adults, Girls Who Code is for younger girls, who are at risk of losing interest in STEM fields.

linkedin.com/in/sarrahvesselov

twitter.com/SVesselov

GitLab

International Academy of Design

American InterContinental University

Girl Develop It, Tampa Bay

Women Who Code, Tampa

Girls Who Code

Black Girls Code

STEM Diversity Podcast

Listen in email

Listen on Web at stemdiversitypodcast.com

Listen on Twitter | LinkedIn | Facebook

Send feedback

Music by @BrkmstrCylinder

Artwork by @forgottentowel