Stories about women in tech often center on the industry’s staggering gender gap and the programs and initiatives companies are launching to try and close it. Why? Because tech’s gender diversity and equality issues are important and need to be discussed at length and in-depth.
While we don’t plan to shy away from these sorts of stories, we also want to leave room to celebrate professionals who have found their passion for tech and have built impressive careers in the field — and that’s exactly what the following four Los Angeles women shared with us.
Tech is full of stories of people who dropped out of college to pursue a career in coding, like WITHIN Director of Engineering Jane Mitchell. However, Mitchell’s story is different in that her father was the one who suggested she drop out of school. After publishing her first website, Mitchell was hooked.
Tell us a bit about your career journey. Why did you decide to pursue a career in tech?
After five years in college misspending my youth pursuing aeronautical studies and acrobatic flight, I found myself wanting. I had taken a few courses in computer programming, learning Ada and C++, but didn’t see the career potential quite yet.
I reached out to my dad — who gratefully was unconcerned with my lack of a college degree — and he suggested I drop out, much to my mother’s dismay. He had just started a fledgling web company at the start of the dot-com era and proposed I give web development a try. Within a month I had learned Photoshop and ColdFusion and published my first website. I never looked back.
I don’t know that I could have found a more suitable career that feeds both my need for a creative outlet and desire to problem-solve.”
What do you love most about your tech career? Any specific aspects of your job that really make you light up?
I don’t know that I could have found a more suitable career that feeds both my need for a creative outlet and desire to problem-solve. For me it is wholly satisfying to write elegant code that gives life to beautiful visuals. I absolutely love those moments where I get an opportunity to work collaboratively with my team on the solution to a compelling problem. It’s very fulfilling to work with such a talented and passionate group of developers and designers to bring amazing projects to life.
The tech industry isn’t just a place where new grads get their first professional experience. It’s also where seasoned professionals have the opportunity to leverage their skills in new ways and use their expertise to help companies reach new heights. CREXi CMO Courtney Ettus spent 10 years working in the fashion industry, and during that time she kept a close eye on the tech industry. Eventually Ettus’ fascination with tech became her professional passion.
Tell us a bit about your career journey. Why did you decide to pursue a career in tech?
I began my career in fashion marketing in the late 1990s, before digital was a “thing.” I watched the transformation of advertising and commerce as print and television advertising transitioned to digital and brick and mortar became e-com and eventually m-com [mobile commerce]. I am fascinated by the shifting mindset of consumers and connections with brands and have followed the tech industry’s trajectory throughout my career.
I have been fortunate enough to champion the impact of digital payments, wireless technology and social media enablement for brands like Nike, Visa, Bank of America and Beats by Dre. I wanted to get even closer to the source of impact, so I began working with startups around 2014.
I am fascinated by the shifting mindset of consumers and connections with brands and have followed the tech industry’s trajectory throughout my career.”
What do you love most about your tech career? Any specific aspects of your job that really make you light up?
I love being able to work closely with the sales and product teams to really dig into our customers, their needs and how we can alleviate friction in their day to day. In tech, we learn quickly what is working and what isn’t and can make adjustments accordingly. I can put marketing programs together, watch them go live and measure the impact and ROI fast. Being strategic and getting to be in the trenches with my teams keeps me motivated. It is running both a marathon and a sprint, which makes every day exciting.
Going with the flow isn’t always a good thing, especially when it comes to your career. Instead of following in the footsteps of her classmates and taking a more traditional career path, Gimbal’s Senior Director of Client Strategy Kourtney King took a chance and joined a small startup after graduating college. While we can’t speak for her classmates, King clearly made the right call.
Tell us a bit about your career journey. Why did you decide to pursue a career in tech?
After graduating with a degree in marketing, I knew I wanted to start my career in tech. A lot of my classmates were going into traditional forms of advertising, but a small startup specializing in mobile messaging marketing caught my eye. There I learned the importance of mobile and location targeting to get your brand’s message literally into the hands of consumers.
Three years and two acquisitions later, I decided to leave and pursue an opportunity that was more focused on the actual tech that powered this type of digital marketing. Gimbal has allowed me to hone in on what’s so fascinating about tech and marketing in the first place — the data that makes it all relevant.
A lot of my classmates were going into traditional forms of advertising, but a small startup specializing in mobile messaging marketing caught my eye.”
What do you love most about your tech career? Any specific aspects of your job that really make you light up?
The industry is innovative and constantly changing. There hasn’t been a dull moment in the six years I have been in this field. The data we are able to capture and bring to a brand’s marketing efforts is far beyond what I thought possible, and it’s exciting to be a part of such a fast-growing company with a vision.
Outside of that, I find tech companies typically promote a great work-life balance, and Gimbal promotes the, “work hard, play hard” mantra. The people you meet in this field are also some of the smartest individuals around. Being able to work so closely with engineers and product gurus is always a plus. I am constantly learning and growing, and I love it!
