Registration Opens
Welcome to Women in Tech Boston 2023!
Here you will have the opportunity to elevate your career through impactful sessions delivered by our expert speakers and expand your scope of influence by networking with other like-minded women in tech.
Meet Up: Networking Breakfast
Are you attending Women in Tech Boston on your own? Or do you just want to make some extra new connections to kick off your experience? Join our dedicated Meet Up to kick-start your morning feeling energized and ready to be engaged in two inspirational days! You’ll be joined by our Networking Host to help you meet other attendees without the awkwardness and make a plan to share your experience and learnings!
Opening Remarks
Welcome to Women in Tech Boston 2023! Join us for the official opening and welcome remarks to kick-start your day with inspiration and empowerment!
Our two-day agenda is filled with expert-led sessions designed to help you learn how to start putting in the building blocks toward the future and securing your position as a futurist leader in tech and strategy.
Thrifty Innovation: How To Innovate More With Less
Despite shrinking IT spending, organizations will remain focused on driving teams to develop new products and generate higher revenue without increasing costs, risk and headcount. This strain on resources will require leaders everywhere to lean on creativity and a greater sense of scrutiny to minimize churn and increase software optimization in areas that will drive the greatest value to the business. Join this session to hear how leaders are adapting to the challenges arising from economic instability and how to become a highly focused optimized organization with limited resources.
Key Takeaways:
- Understanding the technical needs of the business, prioritizing, and creating solutions.
- Utilizing creative solutions to overcome tech challenges despite limited resources.
- Minimizing churn and increasing software optimization in the areas that drive value.
What The Future of AI Means For You
It should go without saying that AI technology is not new, but the race and fast pace of acceleration of recent months is coming from how businesses can now easily apply and scale AI, yet we find ourselves having the same conversation. In this session, we’ll explore the recent innovative applications of Generative AI and further demystify that age-old question – will AI replace my job?
Key Takeaways:
- Learn how Generative AI is changing your role and organization.
- Understand the morals and ethics in AI and Natural Language Processing.
- How to stay ahead of the curve and develop your skills along with the pace of AI adoption to broaden your skillset.
Knowing The Pulse Of Your Business Is Key To Your Future Tech Strategy
Technology is an enabler, but you can’t build good technical solutions without understanding and knowing your business. The future of technical skills includes business literacy and to remain ahead in your career, it’s critical to understand business processes, pain points, and areas of opportunities to capture the most value from what you’re developing or adopting. As IT budgets go under greater scrutiny, the ability to talk and map out the business will enable you to build a strategy to adopt new technology in a way that is reliable, secure, and scalable with a clear ROI to your leadership team.
Key Takeaways:
- Learning the business behind tech applications.
- Identifying the value streams of tech in business.
- How to communicate ROI and the value of technology to non-technical leaders.
Fireside Chat: Redefining The Modern Structures of Business With Inclusion
As organizations persist through a challenging economy and periods of layoffs, it is being widely reported how DEI initiatives are the first to be cut and reduced despite an emboldened dedication to improving diversity following events and global movements in 2020. In this session, join two leaders who are spearheading inclusion within their organization for an in-depth discussion on the positive impact of DEI in today’s challenging climate and how as the industry looks to rebuild itself, putting DEI at the center of it all, can provide the solution to revitalize your workforce and unlock new opportunities for innovation.
Key Takeaways:
- Create a strong pipeline of talent to pave the way forward for business and technology.
- How individuals can create safe spaces in and outside of work.
- Learn why DEI is more critical to strategy and business during periods of large layoffs and a recession.
Effective Software Test Automation by Design
Software test automation is a part of every development process nowadays. Many companies invest in the development of their own proprietary automation frameworks or buy existing ones. It is a foundation to an effective CI/CD pipeline. But how to prove that it is effective and reliable? How to measure and monitor its stability and relevance? With the growing intelligence of high-tech products, the continuous delivery process is becoming more challenging as well.
The complexity of the automation tools is a function of the complexity of the system they are attempting to test. Thus, the automation processes and technics evolve and adapt constantly. In this workshop, we will talk about test automation tools as a part of a software development process. What does a successful test automation framework consist of? How to maintain and keep it coordinated with the product development life cycle? The data analysis is based on almost a decade of experience in building test automation for smart devices with embedded software including IoT.
The Why: According to the statistics of “MarketsandMarkets Research”, the global test automation market size is expected to grow from $24.7 billion in 2022 to $52.7 billion by 2027. Building mature test automation is key for releasing software quality at speed, and as a result, being first on the market.
Key Takeaways:
- Importance of synergy between Software Development and Test Automation
- Best practices for automation tools development
Useful features and metrics for Software Test Automation Tools/Frameworks - An example of an Automation Health Dashboard
This session is for… Software Automation Engineers, Quality Engineers, Project Managers, Software Engineers, Tech Leaders.
How Robots will Change our World
There can be a collective misconception of robots’ potential effect on the world. Specifically, we tend to have a negative outlook on the impact they will have throughout the adoption phase. During this session, we will discuss how the adoption of robots will create jobs that are more fulfilling and less physically strenuous. By embracing automation, companies will grow faster and provide more to the world; a necessity with our ever-growing population. Robots are equipment, full of software that we write, made to enrich our lives. Robots that move through, and interact with our world will take many forms; humanoid robots, built in our image, are a perfect fit for a world designed around humans. Can we coexist with a humanoid robot without humanizing our robots?
The Why: As robots go from industrial sites and factories into our everyday lives, we need to have conversations about how they make us feel. Rather than focusing on feeling uncomfortable and intimidated, let’s use robots to fuel our imaginations and passions and enrich the world around us.
Key Takeaways:
- How to educate yourself and your team on issues that arise outside of the research world.
- Understand which technological issues require you to be proactive in addressing.
- How robots can improve and enrich human lives, starting today.
This session is for… you if you want to be a leader in the community, working to reverse the negative perception and misunderstandings of your disruptive technology.
Building Scalable Cloud Applications with a Frugality Lens
When creating applications in a cloud environment with flexible pricing models, it’s crucial to be mindful of expenses. This is especially true for applications that need to adjust their capacity dynamically and scale to accommodate varying levels of demand. In this session, I’ll be sharing several strategies for achieving scalability without incurring excessive costs.
The Why: Building applications in the cloud has become commonplace in today’s world, and with it comes challenges related to scalability and cost-effectiveness. While cloud-based applications offer benefits such as flexibility, scalability, and accessibility, they can lead to unforeseen expenses if not managed properly. As cloud-based applications grow and become more complex, costs can quickly spiral out of control.
Moreover, if these applications are not designed with scalability in mind, they may become inefficient and incapable of handling increased usage or demand. As a result, it is crucial to building applications that are scalable and cost-effective. To address these challenges, this session aims to provide developers, DevOps engineers, managers, and architects with techniques that they can apply on a day-to-day basis to effectively balance scalability and cost-effectiveness.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn the architecture, design, and coding considerations for scalability.
- Techniques on using serverless computing options for scalability with tight control on cost.
- Role of Observability around scalability and cost management.
This session is for… you if you are a developer, DevOps Engineer, Manager, or an Architect building or managing applications in the Cloud.
Workshop Delivered by Powerspeaking
More details coming soon...
Shaping The Future Of Healthcare: Digital Transformation In A Highly Regulated Industry
Technology in healthcare is essential for improving outcomes and patient experiences. With the increasing adoption of digital technologies, it’s critical to stay informed about the latest advancements and understand the challenges of implementing these technologies such as surgical robotics, connected devices, and medical wearables in a highly regulated industry. Delve into the world of health and learn how digital technology is revolutionizing care and transforming the healthcare landscape.
Key Takeaways:
- Gain a comprehensive understanding of the future of digital technology in health
- Hear real-world examples of connected health implementations, and how they are addressing modern healthcare challenges including chronic diseases
- Discover strategies for implementing technology and overcoming potential challenges
This session is for… you if you are a healthcare professional, medical device designer, or digital health enthusiast looking to stay informed about the latest advancements in health or work within technology, is a highly-regulated industry.
Afternoon Networking Break
Grab a bite to eat and connect with attendees on the day so far!
Leading Technical Transformation & The Value of Becoming A Tech-Change Agent
Technical transformation is happening all around us, from emerging technologies like generative AI, to the rush to ramp cloud migrations; from replacing aging tech stacks to the growth of harnessing and utilizing big data. This session will discuss the critical role tech leaders play in leading transformational change, how to harness the power of your engineering and data teams, and how becoming a change agent can set you apart from other tech leaders.
The Why: Data shows that technology transformations are 80% more likely to capture identified benefits and sustain over time IF they have engaged leadership who are focused on the hard and soft skills required to lead an organization through change. Technical leaders are not often allocated time and/or resources to focus on “soft skills” such as team dynamics, communication, and learning methods to help teams navigate change. As a technical leader with transformation happening around you, you can exponentially grow your career, while also developing young tech change agents by studying the art of leading transformational change.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn the key drivers of successful transformation programs.
- Discover proven tools, methods, and approaches that can help you lead change and develop your technical teams and leaders.
- Understand more about your role as a technical leader in driving change and how your leadership style can set you apart from the pack.
This session is for…
- You if your organization is going through a tech transformation.
- You if you are a tech people leader.
- You if you are interested in continuing the development of your leadership style, and/or you are interested in growing young tech leaders.
AI For Good: Harnessing Technology To Reduce Societal Challenges
There have been a wide array of studies identifying different methods to address many of today’s societal issues and inequalities. Many of the suggested solutions tend to involve education, government legislation, and activism, but recently, more recent studies have been focused on technology as a solution with AI highlighted due to its power and popularity. AI is typically not used in isolation but in conjunction with other technologies. Although these societal issues impact many, if an individual is identified as being a member of a marginalized group, studies demonstrate that this individual may be impacted at a disproportionate rate. In this session, we’ll look at a case study highlighting how AI could be used to reduce Black maternal mortality.
During this 60-minute deep dive session with a combination of lectures and interactive activities, different perspectives on this topic will be identified. The interactivities during this session will be through guided conversations at our tables, dedicated reflection time, and the creation of action plans with the next steps. This session will provide an opportunity to explore what are ways that AI in conjunction with other resources could be used to address societal issues such as the increase in Black maternal mortality.
The Why: Specifically, by joining this session we can explore if AI and other technologies could be used to address one plus possibly other societal issues. The focus of the session case study is a health crisis that is occurring now and through this session, we can gain an understanding of where the technology may be able to assist to address the case study or other societal issues.
Key Takeaways:
- Explain what are the key concerns related to AI being used to address societal issues such as Black maternal mortality.
- Illustrate how you as an audience member can understand how AI could be helpful or harmful with respect to societal issues.
- Devise a plan to understand how AI in conjunction with other technologies could be used to reduce Black maternal mortality but also recognize potential challenges with this approach.
This session is for… you if you want to learn how technology could be used to address a current societal issue which is an existing health crisis and how you can understand the usage of technology in this potential solution to this health crisis.
Supermind Design: Helping People and Technology Work Smarter Together
Our world is filled with complex systems of people and machines that we humans have designed: from companies and governments to economies and societies and as technologies and human desires change, the configurations of these systems often need to change, too. Supermind Design is an approach that emphasizes generating innovative new possibilities for how to configure these systems.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn about the concept of Supermind Design.
- Get tips on how to build an intelligent organization.
- Be inspired by case studies from MIT.
This session is for…
- Leaders looking to make their organization more intelligent.
- Anyone looking for a system to generate creative ideas to solve problems.
- Entrepreneurs building new companies.
Presentation Delivered by Progress
Session details coming soon…
Networking Reception
Join us at the Networking Reception where you’ll be joined by our speakers to quiz them further on their session and connect with your peers to share your key learnings from the event so far!
Registration Opens
Welcome to Day Two of Women in Tech Boston 2023!
We have another day filled with inspirational content and networking aimed at providing you with the tools you need to increase your technical know-how and elevate in your career!
Meet Up: Coffee & Mingle
Welcome back to day two of Women in Tech Boston! Grab some breakfast and start your morning feeling refreshed ready for another inspirational day filled with insight and technical expertise!
Welcome Remarks
Join us for the day two welcome remarks to kick-start your day with inspiration and empowerment!
Our two-day agenda is filled with expert-led sessions designed to help you learn how to start putting in the building blocks toward the future and securing your position as a futurist leader in tech and strategy.
Technology as Critical Infrastructure: Preparing For The National Cybersecurity Strategy
Innovation has always outpaced policy, leaving opportunities for a lack of standardization and requirements providing huge security risks. With the release of the National Cybersecurity Strategy, it has been designed with the aim to create a safe and secure digital ecosystem. Join this session to unpack what the Strategy will mean for you and your organization, and identify lessons learned internationally from the implementation of similar policies to ensure that you’re prepared for what’s to come.
Key Takeaways:
- Unpacking the key pillars of the National Cybersecurity Strategy on technology and our critical infrastructure.
- Learn the new requirements and legal implications required.
- Understanding the lessons learned from international policy frameworks such as GDPR and DORA.
Becoming a Futurist Against The Challenges of Today
When working in technology you always want to be focused on designing for the future and implementing technology that will make long-lasting change; but as recent years have proven, the future is near impossible to predict, and the challenges we now face go beyond a bug in the system. Plans will inevitably evolve, and business priorities will endlessly pivot so how can you innovate against constant uncertainty? Join this session to learn how to position yourself as a futurist in your organization and build a culture of innovation within the remits of what you can control.
Key Takeaways:
- How to create a plan for the future that leaves room for the unexpected.
- Learn the attributes of becoming a futurist leader.
- Building a culture of innovation within the remits of what you can control.
Who Will Lead Us Now? Building The Next Generation of Women C-Suite in Tech
Over the past year, we’ve seen the resignation of a number of key influential senior women in technology who have been role models for many. Tech has long been lagging behind other industries in the representation of women in leadership and for the most part, the positions left open in these key roles are being filled by men. In this session, we’ll explore the journey and skills required to make it to the C-suite and the importance of not just getting women into tech but retaining and building them into senior roles to create the next generation of women C-suite in tech.
Key Takeaways:
- Building the next generation of influential women leaders in technology.
- Investing in initiatives to not only increase the representation of diversity but retention and promotion.
- Learn what it takes to make it to the C-suite.
Networking Brunch
Grab a coffee and connect with attendees, share your thoughts on the first sessions of the day!
The Only Constant Is Change: Embracing An Era of Change and Adaptability
In this session, Aparna will share personal stories of how she has navigated the male-dominated industry of cybersecurity and the key leadership principles she attributes to her success.
The Why: According to the Aspen Digital Tech Policy hub’s latest report, women comprise only 24% of the cybersecurity workforce, with only a small fraction making up executive roles. This is a first-hand testimonial from a woman who has successfully beat the odds to become Chief Product Officer of a $2B cybersecurity company.
Key Takeaways:
- How to identify your breakthrough opportunities and take the right risks.
- The importance of embracing a change mindset.
- Overcoming the challenges of being a minority within a minority of a male-dominated field.
This session is for you if…
- You aspire to lead a large engineering organization.
- You have a technical background.
- You work in the hi-tech industry.
Presentation Delivered by WHOOP
Session details coming soon…
How to Unleash Your True Leadership Potential
Shannon Gath has a simple mission…to help as many women as possible break through the barriers they face in order to level the playing field at the top of corporations. We know companies perform better with a diverse workforce and leadership team, but still, so few women hold executive leadership positions. In this session, Shannon shares the biggest lessons learned over her career and how she used those lessons to advance to a top leadership position in a multi-billion dollar company.
Shannon will share her personal stories of how she unlocked her full leadership potential and how you can apply those lessons in your own career development, whatever your aspirations may be.
Key Takeaways:
- How to navigate your career by looking backward and forward to see the full picture
- Building trust by being transparent and accountable
- Aligning your passion to an organizational need
This session is for… you if you’re working to get to the next level – Shannon will give you insights based on her own career journey on how you can truly unleash your leadership potential!
Uncharted Territory; Owning Your Seat at the Table
All too often we’re given signals to remain silent or to not show who we really are. Today, women of color are no longer willing to just take up space. We’re ready to show up in every room and own our seat at the table. For many of us, this is uncharted territory or a new frontier. Dictionary.com, defines frontier as uncharted territory, it may include a remote piece of land, a new or underdeveloped field of study. But if someone calls it a “frontier” then we are challenged to explore it and to conquer it.
Key Takeaways:
- Own your story
- Invest in yourself
- Share your journey
This session is for… you if you’ve found yourself not occupying space, not really showing up when you know you belong in the room and at the table.
The 5R Principles of Automation
Join this session to learn how to plan a test automation strategy for the long term using the 5R principles of risk, reliability, reusability, repeatability, and representation. The focus is on providing a framework for automation that will deliver time-saving to business, and value to systems with the goal of better and faster releases to production.
The Why: Test automation is moving from a nice to have to an expected part of code delivery. Leadership across systems, development, testing, and business teams will make the difference between long-lasting scripting that grows and provides time-saving value or throwing away scripts that simply took time and resources.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn the 5R principles to work with teams in guiding effective long-lasting automation.
- Details in the automation that allows for reporting that is tailored to various audiences from senior management to business leaders to peer-level consumers of greater detailed expectations.
- Creating a scalable framework for automation.
This session is for…
- Senior IT leaders that want faster test efforts, shorter regression times, and fewer issues in production.
- QA Directors, managers, leaders, and automation engineers.
- Test leaders who want to relieve the time spent on user testing.
- Anyone wanting to understand what automation can deliver and a simplified approach to development and delivery.
Fireside Chat: Creating The Future Landscape of Technology
Despite tough economic challenges, the startup scene in Massachusetts is thriving and startups are spearheading the charge in developing the latest technology products backed by the latest research. In this session, join two leading startup entrepreneurs in an intimate discussion to learn how startups are driving the latest technology innovations that are drastically changing our daily lives and adapting to the challenges they face to keep innovating in a tough investment environment.
Key Takeaways:
- Learn about the latest technology that is being developed from the startup scene and how this innovation is impacting our daily lives.
- Overcoming the challenges that startups face in a tough economic climate to keep innovating.
- Learn about the new opportunities for startups as BigTech continues to drawback.
Embracing the Power of Authentic You
As professionals, we often compartmentalize our lives. However, in doing so we lose the ability to contribute diverse thoughts. The focus of this presentation is to provide a toolset for women in technology and their allies with an understanding of bringing their authentic selves to the workplace, and the importance of embracing its power! By being authentic, we have a greater sense of well-being and realize that sharing perspectives, ideas, and beliefs adds to a fulfilling and productive experience.
Key Takeaways:
- By embracing authenticity leaders can:
- Value unique perspectives and experiences that can develop sustainable behaviors helping us grow personally and professionally.
- Practice being vulnerable and talk openly about struggles and challenges – which helps develop deep connections with colleagues.
- Foster a culture of inclusivity and belonging and pave the path for future thought leaders.
This session is for… women professionals who aspire to grow their careers as a leader while bringing all aspects of what makes you “you” to the workplace!
Making The Move From IC to Manager
How often in my career have I heard a female engineer referred to as “he” or “him” and had to raise my hand as the only woman in the room to say something? As a female Engineering Team Lead (TL), it has become increasingly common to be the odd (wo)man out in the room. While societal stereotypes have made it difficult for women to elevate and promote themselves, I have successfully carved a path for myself from individual contributor (IC) to TL in just five short years.
During this talk, I will share how I navigated my career and the lessons I learned from my experiences as a woman of color and a female team lead in a male-dominated industry. Being only a few years out of school and part of an underrepresented group in tech, I have learned to be my own best sponsor to get to an equitable place as it relates to career progression and success. While I proudly identify as a female leader in tech, I have worked hard to not let that define me, and I will share stories about how I have been able to build my personal and professional brands.
I will discuss some of the questions and conclusions I learned during my journey, including:
- How do you advocate for yourself without “bragging”?
- When did I know I was ready for this new role?
- How did I reshape my team’s perspective of me as I shifted from peer to manager?
- As an aspiring leader, what steps must I take to achieve my career goals?
The Why: The tech industry has historically been a male-dominated space and we need more female representation in leadership. Women bring diverse perspectives and skill sets that can help drive innovation for technical and business solutions. It is our responsibility to lead by example to inspire young girls and women to pursue their dreams in the tech field.
Key Takeaways:
- Politics and networking as a force multiplier
- How to find sponsors by managing up, down, and sideways
- How to advocate for yourself without “bragging”
Closing Coffee Reception
Connect with your Women in Tech Boston peers for one final time over a coffee before the conference ends for 2023 and share your biggest key learnings from the past two days with one another. Make sure to swap contact details to stay connected and unite together once again in 2024!
