Three dynamic female technologists, Katy Battiest, Ashley Coffey and Brandy Semore share their insights on technology trends, business opportunities being brought on by technological advances, their "go-to" technology tool recommendations. and the history and future of women in technology. They talk about their career journeys in tech and why young girls and women shouldn't shy away from pursuing STEM subjects. Listen in to learn the importance of supporting and advocating for other women, especially in a field like tech where we aren't many. You will also learn about major tech trends and tools you should look out for in your business for success.
Key Takeaways:
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- How to gear young girls towards STEM classes by conducting campaigns as women to keep them interested
- The importance of mentorship, support, and advocacy as a woman at any stage of your career
- How to use your technical and soft skills to market your skills to clients or a potential employer
- How to be conscious about protecting your individual data as technology continue to grow
- How to inspire girls by volunteering to teach and encourage them to pursue STEM
In this episode you'll discover:
Ashley describes her childhood creativity in technology and her experience working at Apple [3:06]
Katy describes her interest in technology since a young age and how she joined OKWIT [5:52]
Brandy describes how her writing and communications capabilities led her to tech and OKWIT [8:20]
How trends like virtual reality, augmented reality, artificial intelligence, etc. have changed tech [11:29]
The benefits of 5G in improving rural network accessibility, emergency detection, robotics, etc. [17:01]
The reasons why women leave or don't join the tech industry and how to change that [20:52]
Ashley explains some of her go-to tools that small businesses can utilize for success [26:36]
How women can use soft skills and diverse teams to market themselves [30:35]
The challenges of lack of support, mentorship, and advocacy in the tech industry [34:08]
The importance of data privacy protection to bring change as technology continues to grow [38:42]
How to teach and encourage boys and girls the importance of girls pursuing STEM [42:18]
Answering questions from the audience [44:13]
They advise women to advocate for other women and to encourage diverse conversations [48:12]
WHO ARE THEY?
Katy Battiest is the IT manager of commercial applications at ONE Gas, the outgoing President of the Oklahoma Women in Technology organization, and also ionOKLAHOMA 30 under 30 Nextgen award winner.
Brandy Semore serves as senior director of tech services and PMO for Pinnacle Business Systems and is the 2018 recipient of the Journal Record award. She's dedicated to coaching others on project management and is also known as an advocate for women in tech.
Ashley Coffey is a professional technologist, STEM-advocate, and podcast host of Coffey & Code. She currently serves as the President of Oklahoma Women in Technology & Director of Technology and Integration at XALTER. Ashley has over 10 years of experience working in the technology industry, including roles in both the public and private sectors. Ashley's passion for
technology came to her during her years working at Apple. She provides industry expertise to the community on using technology as a means of empowerment and innovation. Her mission is to help bridge the gap between technology and users. Ashley is a TEDx speaker and has presented professionally on emerging technologies at nation-wide conferences. She is a 2016 STEM award recipient for the NextGen 'Under 30' program, which recognizes young individuals impacting their community. Ashley is also actively involved in the XR Association, which focuses on responsible development and adoption of virtual, augmented, and mixed reality.
Donna Miller is the founder and CEO of Purse Power, Let's Share the Journey. Purse Power promotes women led, women owned businesses by providing a Google extension which allows everyone who visits your website to locate nearby businesses. Let's Share the Journey holds calls at 10 AM Central every Friday to learn from national leaders to share expertise, ideas and support. One week a month features Zoom Room networking. We support Donna's endeavor and have provided the speaker calls in a podcast format. Please join her on Friday mornings! You can register for the calls here.