Abstract submitted and accepted for a GHC16 career panel discussion

1.
Career Transformation for the Everywoman
Getting in, and Staying in, Technology
Rosario Robinson
Moderator
Director, ABI Communities
Simone Battiste­Alleyne
Panelist
Jr. Software Engineer
Tax Management Associates, Inc.
Joey Capolongo
Panelist
Jr. Quality Assurance Analyst
Lending Tree, LLC
Hannah Lehman
Panelist
Web Developer
General Assembly
Paula Paul
Panelist
Architect
AmWINS Group, Inc.
ABSTRACT
This panel explores career changes and challenges for women of all ages who have entered the technology
workforce through traditional and non­traditional paths. The discussion celebrates the struggles, success and
strategies of everyday women who have reinvented themselves in order to embark on, or stay in, a technical career.
Panelists from diverse backgrounds will share thoughts and strategies for navigating career transformations.
AUDIENCE
This panel discussion will appeal to a wide spectrum of mid­career and senior professionals who may be looking for
a change. In addition, the discussion will be of interest to academic and industry professionals who can mentor
women through career transformations. The panelists hope to inspire and encourage women of all ages and
backgrounds who may be considering, or re­considering, a career in technology.
INTRODUCTION
The portrayal of technology in media can make it seem unapproachable as a career path, leaving women from
non­traditional backgrounds with difficult questions such as:
● Is a career in technology just a “young man’s” (or “young woman’s”) game? How can I know it it’s right for me?
● For professionals without a computer science degree, is there any hope of landing a job in technology?
● Is a career change to technology worth it for experienced professionals in other fields, since many mid­career or
senior women in technology leave the field or ‘flip the table’?
● Can you reinvent a technical career once you’ve flipped the table?
This panel brings together a diverse group of everyday professional women who have faced these questions,
PLAN OF ACTION
The panel consists of women who have created successful careers in technology through traditional and
non­traditional paths. Among them, the panelsts and moderator have worked as a call center agent, Starbucks
barista, technical recruiter, IBM product developer, Microsoft application consultant, ‘table flipper’, and Peace Corps
volunteer. They are ‘Everywomen’ who have reinvented themselves professionally and created their own paths to
success. The panel will share different perspectives and advice on navigating career transformation, and finding
success and happiness in a technical career.
Topic questions:
1. Did you have doubts about changing to, or staying with, a career in technology? If so how did you overcome
them?
1a. What steps did you take before committing to this change? Where did you start?
We connect, inspire and guide women in computing and organizations
that view technology innovation as a strategic imperative.

2.
1b. Are you concerned about staying in technology as a long term career, when so many women leave the field
mid­career or encounter barriers to advancement?
2. You all have experience with coding ‘bootcamps’ as instructors, students, or both. Would you recommend going
back to school for a computer science degree in order to get a job in technology? (Panelists will have different
views on this).
3. Have you had challenges working with technical recruiters, either as an entry level or senior professional? What
are some strategies for working with technical recruiters? (Simone is a former technical recruiter; Paula is an
experienced woman who is recruited for project/program management roles over technical/executive roles).
4. Now that you’ve all transformed your careers, what are some of the challenges? Was it all ‘smooth sailing’ once
you made the change? How did you find support? (This segment will focus on the importance of finding
connections and mentors, and how to survive in largely male corporate IT organizations).
Session timeline & participant/audience interaction:
● 6 minutes​: Moderator welcomes the audience and panelists, and introduces the session.
● 36 minutes​: Four 9 minute discussion rounds focused on the topic questions above.
● 18 minutes​: Open Q&A from the audience.
OUTCOMES/CONCLUSION
● This session will help women overcome the idea that they need to be a ‘rock star computer scientist’ in order to
have a successful career in technology.
● The panelists are all ‘everyday women’ who have navigated career transformation and who have reinvented
themselves to enjoy successful careers in technology. They hope to inspire others who may feel limited by a
dead­end job but who are hesitant or intimidated by potential opportunities in technology.
● For mid­career and senior women, or women who have ‘flipped the table’ at some point in their career, this
session offers a perspective on re­connecting with a technical career.
PARTICIPATION STATEMENT
The moderator and all panelists for this session have made a commitment to attend the conference and to
participate in this session. The panel moderator, Rosario Robinson, is the Director of ABI Communities, and the
panelists include members of the ABI Systers community. The panel moderator and panelists have all successfully
navigated one or more career transformations. Joey and Paula were recently featured in a Wall Street Journal
article celebrating Joey’s career transformation (Shellenbarger, 2016), and all panelists are involved in the
community through teaching, mentoring and supporting women in their career goals.
BIOGRAPHIES
Moderator​:​ Rosario (Rose) Robinson, MSc
Director, ABI Communities, Washington, D.C.
Rose manages ABI ​communities ​including Systers, ABI.Locals, GHC and open
source community. She’s been in Tech for more than 20 years working in
software implementations for web, mobile and infrastructure. Rose has
been a Syster, an Anita Borg Institute Community, for 16 years and ​a ​long
time ABI family member. Her path in tech has been with great
opportunities, but none more than helping women and underrepresented
minorities in computing and technology.
LinkedIn​: ​https://www.linkedin.com/in/rosariorobinson
We connect, inspire and guide women in computing and organizations
that view technology innovation as a strategic imperative.

3.
Panelist​:​ Simone Battiste­Alleyne
Jr. Software Engineer,Tax Management Associates, Inc., North Carolina
Simone is from Rochester, NY and works as a Jr. Software Engineer at Tax Management
Associates Inc. She earned a degree in Communication with a minor in Sociology from University
at Buffalo. Simone got her start in technology via Girl Develop IT and continued her journey by
attending a web development bootcamp where she fell in love with Ruby on Rails. In the span of
a year, Simone drove halfway across the country to be a Ruby on Rails Instructor, turned her
passion into a profession, and started her own consultancy. Simone’s other true love is cooking
thanks to her wonderful Jamaican mother’s sage advice, “If you like to eat, you better learn how
to cook”. ​LinkedIn​: ​http://bit.ly/1TXcoyv
Panelist​: ​Joey Capolongo
Jr. Quality Assurance Analyst, Lending Tree, LLC, North Carolina
Joey grew up in Rockaway Park, NY. Her career transformation story was featured in the Wall
Street Journal (Shellenbarger, 2016). After working Customer Service/Call Centers for over 15
years, she hit a wall, wanting more of a challenge. Her dedication to workshops, self study, online
courses, code bootcamp, plus seven years of experience in her company’s Contact Center
landed Joey a Jr. Quality Assurance Analyst position at LendingTree, LLC, and a new career
path. ​LinkedIn​: ​http://bit.ly/1UHKQfq
Panelist​: ​Hannah Lehman
Web Developer, General Assembly, New York
Hannah is an entrepreneur and foodie with a degree in Architecture. She knew that she had more
to offer than being a barista or food service worker, and began a journey of learning and teaching
web development. Hannah’s determination brought an opportunity for a life changing move from
her home town to the bright lights of New York City where she is now a web developer with
General Assembly. ​LinkedIn​: ​http://bit.ly/1Zej6Qb
Panelist​: ​Paula Paul
Architect, AmWINS Group, Inc., North Carolina
Paula entered the workforce as a software engineer after an internship with IBM in the early 80’s.
Since then she has shipped commercial software, evangelized .NET for Microsoft, and held
executive positions in corporate IT. After ‘flipping the table’ mid­career (Rogers, 2015), she came
back to technology through a passion for teaching people to code. Paula is currently an architect
with AmWINS Group, Inc. and enjoys work in the community as an ABI Syster, diversity speaker,
and mentor. She was featured in a Wall Street Journal article as one of Joey’s mentors during
career transformation (Shellenbarger, 2016), and enjoys speaking engagements on her essay
‘Before Brogramming’ ​(Paul, 2015)​. ​LinkedIn​: ​https://www.linkedin.com/in/paulapaul
REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY
Paul, P. (2015, May 4). ​Before brogramming, table flipping, and beyond​. Retrieved from Medium.com:
http://bit.ly/1ZeeRUW
Rogers, K. (2015, April 14). ​Why Women in Tech Need to Start Flipping Tables​. Retrieved from
Motherboard: ​http://bit.ly/1PjeW1W
Shellenbarger, S. (2016, February 16). ​How Learning to Code Rebooted a Carrer​. Retrieved from The Wall
Street Journal: ​http://on.wsj.com/1QjsxNX
Stewart, J. (2015, April 27). ​From janitor to web developer in 8 weeks​. Retrieved from CharlotteFive:
http://bit.ly/1Fxz8NI
We connect, inspire and guide women in computing and organizations
that view technology innovation as a strategic imperative.