Here’s Why You Should Attend Next Year’s Grace Hopper Celebration
“Who ignited the genius in you?” That was the first question asked by Ana Roca Castro, the founder and CEO of Genius Plaza and the opening keynote speaker at Grace Hopper.
While sitting in a room surrounded by thousands of other women, I thought about all the people who have influenced and helped me to get where I am today. The question Ana posed had me grateful for the opportunities and people who pushed me to pursue a career in technology.
AnitaB.org’s CEO and President, Brenda Darden Wilkerson, welcomed the attendees at the keynote with their mission to achieve 50/50 intersectional by 2025. I asked myself: “How can I do my part to increase the visibility and eliminate the erasure of women in tech”?
What is the Grace Hopper Celebration?
The Grace Hopper Celebration, produced by AnitaB.org, is the world’s largest gathering of women technologists. Each year, thousands of attendees from all over the world converge in various US cities (this year it was in Orlando, Florida) to celebrate the legacy of Rear Admiral Grace Hopper.
Computer pioneer Howard Bromberg wrote that Hopper was a “mathematician, computer scientist, social scientist, corporate politician, marketing whiz, systems designer and programmer — and visionary.” She was a programming pioneer who developed the first computer compiler and the first programming language to use word commands. She left an incredible legacy for other young technologists to follow and through the Grace Hopper Celebration, women’s achievements in computing are celebrated over the course of 3 days with inspiring keynotes, sessions, and networking.
This year’s conference was a massive four day event at the Orange County Convention Center and most attendees were fully engaged for three days. Some sessions were also held at the Hyatt Regency, which might help paint the scale as to how big the conference was.
What did we talk about?
The sessions covered a multitude of tracks in different technologies and career advancements. I consider myself someone in the early-mid career bracket, so I focused going to sessions in those categories.
Creativity Through Diversity
One of the most memorable sessions I was able to attend was called Creativity Through Diversity, held by Sarah Yang, the talent brand and diversity lead at Getaround. Sarah is widely considered one of the most magnetic and animated speakers on the importance of diversity. And it’s easy to see why, especially when hearing her say, “Great minds don’t think alike.”
Diverse teams bring different perspectives and experiences to the table, allowing for maximum creativity and performance. Creativity isn’t achieved simply by having diversity; we allow the best ideas to flow when we are in a S.A.F.E. space, where we can Share, Accept, be Fair, and Empathize with others.
Your Personal Brand
Another session that stood out to me focused on one’s personal brand: You Can Do Anything — Thinking Beyond Your Background to Create a Career You Love, hosted by Carol Carpenter, the VP of Product Marketing at Google Cloud. She urged each of us to live outside of our comfort zones — to learn more, fail more, and find our passions. We should find the intersection of our capabilities and motivations (intrinsic and extrinsic) to determine our true competencies. Don’t be afraid to ask for advice or ask questions, especially in a new role or industry.
It’s also helpful to have a kitchen cabinet — a psychologically safe group of people outside of your job who still have domain knowledge of what you do. These people should push you to achieve your goals and go out of your comfort zone. Furthermore, try to find your personal brand, which encompasses how you “show up” or appear to others. How are you embodying your values and what do you want to be known for? A lot of these questions and musings aren’t something I really thought about before, so it was interesting honing in on what I believe my personal brand is.
What I loved about this session in particular is that she encouraged us to seek help — it’s okay to not know everything, and oftentimes having people to bounce ideas off will help take us in the right direction.
Getting Ahead as a Woman of Color in Tech Leadership
Another session in which attendees received great insights from was a panel discussion called Getting Ahead as a Woman of Color in Tech Leadership. The talk featured Aneesha Kai Raines, Ushashi Chakraborty, Jovana Florus, Miya McClain, and Tia Caldwell, who all hold managerial or director positions across companies in the US. They discussed their respective careers and how they each navigated being a woman in a male-dominated industry. They spoke about issues that I could possibly face in the future- topics such as the importance of bringing your full self to the table and the necessity of having a true original voice.
Sponsorship has also been a big topic throughout the conference and the speakers stressed that as well. It’s more important than ever for women in tech to have allies that will invest in your professional growth and success. Note the difference between mentors and sponsors. Mentors take the initiative to advise you. Sponsors are advocators and senior-level people who take direct roles to advance their protégés’ careers. They use their network and influence to connect their protégés to others, often putting their own reputation on the line.
Navigating Through Your Career
Other sessions I attended addressed how to navigate hurdles and overcome difficulties in one’s career. Lindsey Colvin, Offering Manager at IBM, covered the notorious Imposter Syndrome. Her words, “Own the process, not the outcome,” resonated strongly; the message is to stop discounting yourself as many women do in this field.
“Eat the Feedback” was a session led by Rachel Fenn, who is a Senior Director of Engineering at Looker Sciences. She covered how to effectively receive feedback from coworkers to become a better teammate. She broke down the process in steps, which included how to actively listen, find the kernel of truth, make a plan and commitment to change, and show appreciation for critiques.
Finally, another notable session was called the Power of Ask, held by Kathryn Rose, the CEO and Founder of wiseHer, Inc. She urged all of us to ask for what we want (most women do not), and gave ways in how to become empowered, rather than anxious, through our asks.
What You Can Do to Help Ensure The Future of Tech Is Female
To say that the event was inspirational would be an understatement. My first time attending this conference had me wide-eyed and feeling invigorated. I had never seen so many female technologists in the same place! As I walked around the career fair looking at different companies’ booths, I loved seeing inspirational quotes encouraging women and never felt so empowered being a woman in technology. I think other women engineers can identify with being the only woman on a team or being one of the few in the whole engineering organization. For once, it was the complete opposite. To come to this conference and to get to hear from all these amazing women in prestigious roles helped elicit a sense of belonging and motivation to one day see myself in their positions.
Which brings me back to my original question — how can I do my part to help make sure that the future of technology IS female? Grace Hopper’s theme this year was “We Will/I Will”, encouraging attendees to share their plans and visions for the future. Here are a few that I align myself with:
#IWill be an example of possibility and inspire young women to pursue careers in technology.
#IWill foster more connections with and among women in technology.
#WeWill change the face of technology.
If you’re a woman working in tech, I highly recommend attending the Grace Hopper Celebration. The sense of empowerment, strength, and community I have felt in those three days was really something I will cherish for years to come. I hope to have another opportunity to attend in the future. And of course, special thanks to WorkMarket and ADP for sponsoring the trip!
Interested in working with us at WorkMarket? We’re hiring!
