She also founded Government Women in Technology (GWIT), a platform to support women in their technology careers. In this Q&A, she shares her thoughts and experiences on creating an inclusive culture where women can thrive.
There are so few of us in this field, so I wanted us to have a safe space where we could find each other — a place that gives us identity, a community and a common purpose to help each other be successful. I wanted a platform where we can get inspired by each other’s successes and also learn from each other’s mistakes. I wanted a thriving, supportive and uplifting environment where women feel enabled, empowered and elevated.
Last but not least, I’m a big fan of Seth Godin, who wrote Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable. Seth says the key to success is to find a way to stand out — to be the purple cow in a field of monochrome Holsteins. Women have served in technology roles in state government for years, sometimes decades, but no one thought of starting a group like this. I was absolutely new to state government, but I thought creating our own platform would be a great way for us to stand out.
Q: Over the past two years, what have you learned from women in the group about the power of networking?
I realized early on that government employees have very limited representation at industry events, so I wanted to bring networking to the women right here at the state.
We’ve brought in several highprofile local speakers, a few national speakers and even one international speaker. We’ve created forums for meaningful conversations around microaggressions, how to deal with imposter syndrome, the different paths to STEM that we have taken, tokenism, male allies, work-life balance since COVID and many other topics. These topics and the speakers have also created opportunities for professional networking, because just as we’ve had external speakers, we’ve had our own women employees serve on panels and talk about their experiences. All of this has created many opportunities to learn from each other. It’s also a very positive forum. That’s how networking works. If it’s only a place where you talk about problems and nothing else, then it doesn’t sustain. It has been two years since I founded GWIT, and I think it has grown because there’s always a positivity around it.
Q: What has surprised you about the group?
One thing that has surprised me is a lot of women still like to remain in the background. They’ll show up at every meeting, but they’re not in the habit of turning on their cameras or taking active roles. Clearly, we have more work to do, but we have seen a few breakthroughs. One very young engineer used to stay in the background.
In her own words, she was very shy. Now she’s leading a committee called STEM Empowerment. She’s working with high school students, advising on STEM and giving presentations. Her work life has changed, and she is much more confident. Another surprise is I haven’t seen a lot of women being receptive to formal mentoring programs. We started a few different things that didn’t take hold as well as I had expected. It’s part of the process. You think of going in one direction and you have some ideas, but not everything becomes successful. On a larger scale, Meredith Ward, director of policy and research at NASCIO, has been very gracious about giving us credit for inspiring her to start a group at the NASCIO level. But I’d really like to see women in technology groups start in other states — that would complete my vision with GWIT.
Q: What should governments and individuals be doing to motivate more women to enter technical fields?
First, we have to help build STEM capital when girls are young. The mental conditioning starts early. We need to show young women and also non-binary people a broader view of what STEM employees can look like.
Second, we need to remove bias from job listings and hiring. Many job descriptions have masculine-coded words like “fearless” or “aggressive.” Women see those words and think those jobs aren’t for them. Regarding hiring, people often do a mental calculation with a woman candidate. They might wonder if she can prioritize her work when a child is sick, for example. But does that thought cross their mind when hiring a man with a young family?
Third, after you’ve hired a woman, give her adequate support [for relationship building]. I know of a minority woman who was hired as an application development manager and all six direct reports were white males. They like to meet after work for a beer and discuss NFL, but she doesn’t drink beer or watch football, so how would she bond with them? We have to support women in getting access to like-minded people they can synergize with. Perhaps that means connecting them to women at the top levels, even if they’re not in her direct line of command.
Fourth, we need to give women employees the same permission to fail that we give men. There’s such a stigma about the notion of a woman crying at work. But I’ve seen men use expletives, leave meetings in a huff, slam their hands on the table, even throw papers on the floor — and I’ve been told they just need a moment to cool down. Give the same level of permission to fail to a woman who may have cried at the meeting. Everyone has a bad day at work. Give all your colleagues a moment to pull themselves together.
Last, we need more visible and vocal support from people who say they’re allies. An ally can’t necessarily promote all the women working for them, but they can take other steps to support and uplift, such as enabling an environment where more women apply and get hired. They can publicly congratulate them if they’ve done something wonderful, nominate them for things like industry awards and bring up their name when there’s a leadership opportunity.
Q: Who has been a source of inspiration as you’ve worked toward all you’ve achieved?
The first is my father. I call him Baba. He’s going to be 87 years old soon. He has a PhD in physics and he grew up in poverty. If my father didn’t have his PhD and become a college professor, I would have had a very different life. I’ve learned to be gritty, to value education and to understand the power of hard work from my dad.
Another influence is Indra Nooyi. She’s former chair and CEO of PepsiCo. She doesn’t know me, but I’m a huge fan girl. She’s a fellow immigrant from India and also a woman of color. She has inspired me to be both a very kind person and a tough leader. Women are said to not be tough leaders. I think I can play both roles because I am inspired to be that way,
I have the courage of conviction and I come prepared. Not every judgment call I’ve made was right, but I have put thought into it. I like to be a good listener and put myself in the shoes of other people before making a decision. I’ve mostly learned from Indra Nooyi to be authentic. I’m not afraid to show my real self. Also, a mantra that I try to live by: Speak in such a way that others love to listen to you. And listen in a way that others love to speak to you.
