Tech in the Right Direction

Enjoy this Replay:

Meet Breno Araujo from BOTO as he discusses with Jennifer Didier how the hiring practices of BOTO pursues qualified women for Technology jobs. Breno shares his unique ideas on how to maintain the candidates they hire.

A little more about Breno Araujo:

Breno Araujo is the Founder and CEO of BOTO, a no-code platform that allows anyone to build and share automation. Before BOTO, Breno was head of Revenue Intelligence for Ripple and has been in the blockchain space since 2016.

Breno has been coding since he was 12 years old, and has an MBA from INSEAD and a BSC in Mechatronics Engineering from PUC-Rio (Brazil).

Join Jennifer as she speaks to Katy Rose about entering the age old business of insurance and developing new ways to process and service customers.

A little information about Katy Rose: PINS CEO

The youngest on her block and in her family, a very competitive Katy Rose bemoaned to her father, Marshall, that the big kids didn’t want to play with her. His response, “Build something that they’d want to be part of, and they’ll come to you…” One treehouse later, Katy and all the older kids were now playing together.

That same philosophy and action applies today, with the company that Marshall founded, and the one which Katy is now CEO. PINS Advantage is a San Diego-based SaaS company that helps businesses track certificates of insurance. And like the treehouse, the big kids are coming to PINS, with clients like Enterprise Car Rental, LAX and the City of Glendora. Katy recalls making 30 cold calls, into 10 different offices to close Enterprise. She’s tenacious and passionate about the business her father created and leads with a visionary mindset.

A graduate of University of Boulder, Katy also received her coding boot camp certificate from UCSD. She’s an avid long-distance runner and is not afraid to put in the miles, as proven by her outstanding and unwavering efforts to close Enterprise.

This week's podcast is a replay of guest Jennifer O'Brien, the Founder of Accounting Business Solutions by JCS - a solution provider that focuses on the implementation, training, and technical assistance for accounting software.

Today we talk about Jennifer's career journey and how she dove headfirst into tech during the early part of her career journey. Jennifer's headfirst attitude developed because she knew she would see a return on the investment in herself. This investment in herself became a realization after Jennifer figured out that she could help small businesses with the accounting side of their organization, which led her to create Business Solutions by JCS.

Learn more about Accounting Business Solutions by JCS here: https://www.jcscomputer.com/

Thank you for listening; we hope Jennifer's story helps inspire others to seek or grow their tech career.

JCS Merged with SWK Technologies in November 2023.  Follow Jennifer O'Brien as she continues to lead the way for Women in Tech.  https://www.linkedin.com/in/sage-50-sage-100-quickbooks/

This week's guest is Jennifer Buchholz, the Founder of Excel and Flourish - a corporate technical training company. Jennifer helps organizations, teams, and individuals leverage their technology to save time, increase productivity, and reduce frustrations.

Today we talk about Jennifer's early experiences with technology and how her childhood helped shape her career path in tech training. We also talk about the importance of taking ownership as a woman in technology to accomplish the tasks at hand.

You can learn more about Excel & Flourish here: https://www.excelandflourish.com/

Thank you for listening; we hope Jennifer's story helps inspire others to seek or grow their tech career.

Follow Jennifer Buchholz on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenniferbuchholz/

Join Jennifer Didier as she has a lively conversation with Shelley Copsey.  They discuss Shelley career path and her goals to have a diversified workforce. Jennifer also adds a new place to travel on her bucket list.

More about Shelley Copsey: 

As the co-founder and CEO of FYLD, I lead a venture that empowers utilities field teams and managers to make data-driven decisions in real-time, leading to greater safety, productivity and quality assurance. I have over 20 years of experience in the intersection of physical infrastructure and digital technologies, as well as the human transformation required to deliver on the promise of emerging technologies.

Connect with Shelley Copsey on LinedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelleycopsey/

Seth Earley is an expert with 20+ years of experience in Knowledge Strategy, Data and Information Architecture, Search-based Applications, and Information Findability solutions. Seth has worked with a diverse roster of Fortune 1000 companies helping them to achieve higher levels of operating performance by making information more findable, usable, and valuable through integrated enterprise architectures supporting analytics, e-commerce, and customer experience applications. 

Seth Earley is a sought-after speaker, writer, and influencer. He is the author of "The AI-Powered Enterprise" from LifeTree Media which was released in April 2020. In 2021, the book received the Axiom Business Book Silver Medal in the Artificial Intelligence / Robotics / Algorithms category. 

His writing has appeared in IT Professional Magazine from the IEEE where, as a former editor, he wrote a regular column on data analytics and information access issues and trends. He has also contributed to the Harvard Business Review, CMS Wire, CEO World, TechTarget, eCommerce Times, and Analytics Magazine. Journal of Applied Marketing Analytics, and he co-authored “Practical Knowledge Management” from IBM Press. 

Reach Seth Earley on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethearley/

This week's guest is Lisa Heite, a Partner Development Manager at Microsoft with a passion for helping others. Lisa's story revolves around living, studying, and working around the world. She gained a wide range of experience throughout her international travel and has used that to bring a unique perspective to the tech industry. Her ideas and approach give her an edge when it comes to solving problems and bringing people together.

While volunteering at an NGO, Lisa developed a digital strategy and saw how digital transformation could further women's rights and give them a voice throughout the world. This passion for women's rights led Lisa to the WIT Network, and she is now lending her skills to their cause.

Thank you for listening; we hope Lisa's story helps inspire others to grow their tech career. To learn more about the WIT Network, visit their site here: https://thewitnetwork.com/

To Reach Lisa Heite on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-heite/

Suruchi is the Founder & CEO of GIANT, a blockchain protocol that turns a phone number into a bank account and bandwidth into currency via; seamless and secure access to the internet globally; rewards on usage and yield on airtime balances. 

Suruchi has extensive telecom, consumer software and blockchain experience and serves as a speaker/panelist at industry events in the US and abroad. She advises and mentors blockchain start-ups at Founders Space (ranked #1 incubator for overseas startups by Forbes) as well as mentoring young girls to cultivate her passion for technology.

Suruchi Likes to identify herself as a passionate, result-oriented, and fun-loving individual. Has an unbeatable self-confidence, undying willingness, and unbreakable perseverance.

Today we talk about Suruchi’s dream for technology and her passion for influencing young girls to start looking into technology, as early as 8 years old. 

Click HERE to learn more about Suruchi on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/guptasuruchi/

Thank you for listening to Suruchi’s story as she encourages young girls to get into tech. 

Join Jennifer Didier as she speaks with Amber Ivey.  Amber has a unique career path that eventually lead her from the private sector to the government sector.  Listen as she shares her journey and educates us on the positive work that is going on. 

More about Amber Ivey:

Amber Ivey “AI” is currently a Vice President at a non-profit where she leads a team that helps governments drive impact. In her prior role, as the Senior Director for the Bloomberg Philanthropies Center for Government Excellence at Johns Hopkins University, she led a team that assisted governments in utilizing data and performance management for decision-making. Furthermore, she played a key role in the design and launch of the Bloomberg Philanthropies City Data Alliance. The program aims to train 100 mayors and their senior leaders throughout the Americas on utilizing data to achieve better outcomes. Formerly, she worked at The Pew Charitable Trust—a nonprofit focused on solving today's challenges by using data-driven, nonpartisan analysis. Here, Amber led the data collection and organization efforts of a first-of-its-kind research study on how all 50 states and the District of Columbia use data to solve complex problems, improve the delivery of government services, manage resources, and evaluate effectiveness. Most recently, Amber led a team that provided technical as well as strategic assistance to states and counties, who were working towards streamlining their business processes and launching technology, like legal assistance websites and online courts, to modernize and improve access to the legal system.

Before joining Pew, Amber served at Maryland StateStat, a performance-measurement and management office established by former Governor Martin O'Malley (D). Following the change in administration, she helped facilitate the transition by demonstrating the effectiveness of data-driven decision-making through StateStat. Additionally, she played a key role in the establishment of the Governor's Office of Performance Improvement under Governor Larry Hogan (R).

Before joining the State of Maryland, Amber was a logistics manager for a Fortune 50 company where she used data to drive efficiency, productivity, and profits. She switched from private to the public sector to use her skills in service of government efficiency. She has her MPA and J.D. and is excited to serve at the intersection of data, technology, public policy, and law.

She is also the creator and host of the AI for Kids podcast–a series of podcast interviews with industry experts and everyday people who help explain topics related to AI for kids and their parents and the creator of AiDigiTales—an edutainment platform that focuses on AI for kids.

LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amberivey/

Our next guest on MENtors that Make a Difference is Allen Middleton, Partner Development Manager of North America for Amazon Web Services (AWS). Allen has spent over 20 years in the IT learning and development space, where he has a proven track record of creating positive organizational change. He is a driven leader focused on creating team success and the growth and advancement of his customers.

Today we discuss Allen's professional career and how his past 20 years in the learning development space have led him to Amazon Web Services (AWS). We also cover women's presence in tech and the challenges women face in today's IT landscape. Then, digging in further - we talk about how organizations can advocate for positive change for women to help overcome these modern-day challenges and how the data is trending in the right direction.

Thank you for listening; we hope Allen's story helps inspire others to seek or grow their tech career.

You can reach Allen Middleton at:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/allenrmiddleton/