Humanizing Tech

We discuss how to build confidence, competence, and influence within any organization. A powerhouse footballer AND philosopher, Tia drops golden nuggets all throughout the episode relatable to young job seekers and seasoned pros, alike. As Tia says, in order to be great at something you’ve first got to “learn the game, play the game, and then change the game”. 

Connect with Tia on LinkedIn or at www.tiahopkins.com.

On this episode of Humanizing Tech, we’re join by Paloma Medina for a discussion on how her love of all things systems and her own personal upbringing have shaped her resiliency throughout her career and in Tech. By way of anarchism, healthcare, and the Tech communities Paloma proves the road you choose  may not always be a straight path, but the journey will shape you.  Tune in to learn about the 6 core needs we all have and go to www.palomamedina.com/biceps.

In this episode, we discuss why being adaptable can literally save lives. Founder and CEO of Milkrun, Julia Niiro, is bridging the gap between small farms and local communities with tech. 

Growing up, Julia moved around a lot. We discuss how this informed her outlook on life and business, a tolerance for discomfort, a love of change, and how to let go of old ideas when they're not working. 

A writer by passion, Julia’s career path blossomed alongside the emergence of E-commerce; when social media was picking up as a platform and when businesses began truly listening to their consumers. In 2013, she pivoted into the food industry, where she became immersed in our local food systems. Her relationships with small farms and local chefs unearthed the need for a local distribution service that would both support farmers and keep workers safe and healthy through covid. 

Learn more about Julia's innovative food technology, ways to engage with Milkrun, and for a special offer to the PDXWIT community. Let’s get passionate about our food systems!

On this episode of Humanizing Tech, we’re joined by CEO and Founder at Edify, Kristen Buchanan (she/her). A longtime fan of PDXWIT, Kristen noticed many of the people she was meeting had to “manage up” during their onboarding experience. She kept hearing stories about how difficult that is, especially for people with marginalized identities. Kristen believes the new hires aren’t responsible for shaping an onboarding experience; that it’s the people managers who need to own this part of the process in a systematic way -- beyond gut feelings. This led to her building a solution that offers a ​​functional, holistic onboarding experience tailored for teams to attract, keep, and grow great employees. We learn all about Kristen’s philosophy toward equitable onboarding, team building, and her entrepreneurial journey -- specifically the importance of your mentors challenging you, how she took that leap of faith into business ownership, and her best advice both for others seeking the motivation to get their own business ideas out there and for those interviewing for new employment opportunities.

On this episode of Humanizing Tech, we’re joined by Jackie Wirz. Jackie helps develop creative, confident, and curious critical thinkers by engaging them in socially conscious and equitable STEM experiences as the Executive Director of Saturday Academy. We discussed how she nurtures her mental health, how she defines making an impact, and what being an advocate means to her. Jackie was also this year’s winner for Speaker of the Year with PDXWIT! Tune in to hear about the work Jackie’s putting in toward our collective future.

On this episode of Humanizing Tech, we’re joined by Anna Madill. Anna is the Founder and CEO of Avenue, a digital marketing agency that amplifies the impact of growth-minded and purpose-driven companies through results-led digital marketing. Anna shares how she boosts her confidence with public speaking, the challenges of running a company as a woman of color, and what goes into becoming a Certified B Corporation.

We also took some time to reflect how we’re each acknowledging Asian American Heritage month. Tune in to learn about cultivating workplace culture in the startup phases and building an environment of safety and trust. From how she balances her passion for business and for being a mom, her self-care favorites, and where she focuses her volunteering efforts, Anna is a business owner we can all learn a lot from.

In this Innovator segment we welcome our first guest, Kistein Monkhouse the CEO and Founder of Patient Orater -- a platform that uses storytelling to improve patient experience and population health. Also a filmmaker, Kistein discusses her documentary “Humanizing Healthcare.”

Trailer for Kistein’s movie: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/humanizinghealthcare

On this episode of Humanizing Tech, we were joined by Jelani Memory, CEO and Founder of A Kids Book About. Jelani’s company publishes books to help kids and their grownups have honest conversations about things that matter. He authored the first book in the series, A Kids Book About Racism. We discussed that magic time before age 9 where kids and parents are reading together, how parents can become co-learners alongside their kids, and how reading these challenging, empowering and important books to our kids can ultimately enable them to lead better lives. Listen in to hear why our kids are more ready for these conversations than we realize. Learn more about Jelani’s work and find his books at A Kids Book About.

Joy Buolamwini is a Ghanian-American computer scientist at MIT who researches algorithmic bias in computer vision systems and is focused on identifying bias in artificial intelligence and practices for accountability. She’s also the founder of the Algorithmic Justice League. Wildly accomplished, Joy’s research on this subject has been covered in over 40 countries. 

In this episode, we discuss how the tech industry has a tendency to center the potential of technology, while often overlooking existing gaps and outcomes that perpetuate harm. In Joy’s case, she identified racially biased facial recognition software that couldn’t detect her skin color due to outdated code. By re-writing the practices that perpetuate harmful bias, Joy calls herself a “poet of code.” Listen to learn about how Joy’s discoveries are evidence for why developing ethical software matters. 

Have a guest in mind for a future episode? We’d love to hear from you. Email [email protected].

Our very own April Leonard (she/her) joins us on the PDXWIT podcast! April is an Engineering Manager at GitHub and also leads our Podcast Volunteer Team. With a passion for playing music, ballet, and growing people, April pivoted from the arts, to math, to eventually tech, and ultimately managing teams. We asked April where she gets the inspiration to “stay up” even in the dark days, how she approaches management, and how she creates and facilitates joy. She regales us with what happens from networking and being a little scrappy, why moms make good managers, and why staying curious and seeking common ground with others matter. Thanks for listening! Find some joy out there.