In corporate America, studies have shown women start to fall behind on day 1 and keep losing ground with every step. There continues to be a need for us to do more - as individuals and as organizations. We need commitments to more than just programs on gender and diversity. We need an awareness of the underlying causes and as importantly what steps can be taken to get us to the place where all women are equally represented.
At WITI our mission is to empower women to achieve unimagined possibilities and transformations through technology, leadership and economic prosperity. As part of an ongoing partnership, WITI, IDC and Randstad Technologies have joined together to conduct a survey on how gender viewpoints differ in the workplace. The survey touches on a variety of topics to better understand what factors have helped shape employees' careers and what challenges they face in the workplace. To better understand where gender might result in different points of view, the survey was fielded to both women and men.
Come join WITI and Randstad Technologies as we present a panel of insightful, influential women to discuss the challenges and opportunities that exist in STEM fields. Some of the topics our panelists will cover: job security, influence of mentors, career advancement and Inhibitors, building your personal brand, navigating different points of view and lessons learned.
Featured Speaker(s)
Katherine Trontell, Former CIO of AXON
Kathy is a veteran of several rapid-growth tech companies in Silicon Valley, including Tesla, Salesforce, Symantec, NetApp, and Sun Microsystems. She has held senior leadership roles in IT, Finance, Sales Strategy & Operations, Manufacturing, M&A, and more. Most recently, Kathy was the CIO of Axon, responsible for leading the company's Information Technology & Services organization. Kathy holds a combined degree in Architecture and Mechanical Engineering from Princeton University.
Kim Stuckey, Director, IT Infrastructure Services of BCBS
As the director of IT infrastructure services, Kimberly provides day-to-day strategic, technology leadership for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona (BCBSAZ), one of the largest insurers in the state serving more than 1.4 million customers.
She oversees several, high-performing teams in place to support the IT needs of the company’s 1,700 employees, contractors, and business partners.
She oversees several, high-performing teams in place to support the IT needs of the company's 1,700 employees, contractors, and business partners.
She joined BCBSAZ in 2013, and in addition to her daily IT leadership role, she participates on several IT leadership committees for the organization.
When she's not focusing on the technology needs of the company, she volunteers her free time to support community causes that encourage young women to explore careers in the IT industry.
She earned a bachelor of science in management information systems from the University of Arizona, and a master's of business administration from DeVry University, Keller Graduate School of Management. Kimberly also served eight years in the United States Air Force reserves.
Brenda Schmidt, CEO of Solera Health
Brenda Schmidt is the Founder and CEO of Solera Health and a social entrepreneur focused on improving quality and lowering healthcare costs through community-integrated healthcare. Solera's technology platform supports an integrated benefits network that connects patients, payers, and providers with a curated network of lifestyle, emotional well-being and health-related support services providers paid through medical claims. Brenda serves as the President of the Council for Diabetes Prevention, is a member of the AZ Chapter of the American Diabetes Association Community Board, and a member of the Board of Directors for the Arizona Bio-industry Association.
Tenley Kronquist, Director of Incident Response Engineering at PayPal
Tenley Kronquist is Director of Incident Response Engineering within SRE at PayPal, where she leads Command Center Operations, Critical Incident Management, and SRE Incident Automation Engineering with the responsibility of ensuring overall availability of PayPal.com.
Throughout her 20+ year career, Tenley has worked across multiple industries including Logistics, Retail, Finance, Healthcare, and Internet. Additionally, she has held many roles within technology including software development, database and systems administration, solution engineering, and architecture and strategy. For the past ten years, Tenley has been leading teams and organizations within infrastructure operations and engineering as well as software development, focusing on building high performing teams and work transformation to agile and devops methodologies.
Outside of work, Tenley enjoys spending time with her husband, Robert, watching their two boys, 8 and 11, play in countless baseball tournaments, and her other passions include photography, cooking, and continuous learning. Tenley is currently attending Thunderbird School of Global Management where she is working towards her MBA, and she recently completed her Bachelor's in Business and Psychology at ASU after a long hiatus from college.
Lisa Carrington, Director, IT Governance & Planning at Arizona Public Service (APS)
Ms. Carrington has been in the utility industry for over 15 years. She is passionate about the role of technology in mee1ng the demands of a rapidly evolving and poli1cally challenging energy landscape.
Since 2013 she has been at Arizona Public Service in a variety of roles. From 2014-2016 she led the company's transition to new Critical Infrastructure Protection Regulations. She provided operational and security enhancements while preparing the company to face strict new regula1ons. In 2017 she moved to the Office of the CTO to build a new organization focusing on strategy, governance and metrics. With the goal of strategically positioning the IT organiza1on to support the utility of the future.
She has a bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Organizational Leadership from Eastern Oregon University.
