Linda Peterson CEO InSync Peterson has provided leadership in identifying emerging market opportunities, creating effective marketing strategies, establishing market intelligence programs, developing customer-centric requirement frameworks, and selling vertical solutions. Her skills include strategic planning, business process design, competitive analysis, solution selling,product management, product launches, channel development, pricing, packaging, positioning, market analysis, marketing communications. Her firm builds strategic alliances for clients to provide them acces to new markets, expand target customer market awareness, and extend their product functionality and service offerings. InSync partners include The Alliance Group International, The Brenner Group, and Matai. Peterson has held management positions with such industry leaders as Hewlett-Packard, Sybase, Digital Equipment Corporation, Pacific Bell, Logic Works and Bechtel Corporation. She has a masters in business administration-marketing and a B.S. in finance from Golden Gate University. InSync clients include both established industry leaders such as Informix, Business Engine Software and Logic Works and E-Commerce start-ups such as The Fantastic Corporation, Zoser Systems, Bakers Street Technologies and Service Track Enterprises. 1. What was your first job in technology? Database administrator 2. Who has been your most significant mentor? Why? Noel Lecca, Lindon Crow & Rick Itzkowitch 3. What has been your greatest challenge and what strategies did you use to overcome obstacles? Motivating people to change their thinking to embrace new ideas through creativity and out of the box thinking. 4. Who has been the most influential person in your life? Why? My parents. 5. What lessons have you learned that would be valuable to women beginning their careers in technology? Don't accept the status quo or work within the constraints of "what people expect you to do." Think big and take risks to attain your potential. 6. What new technology do you believe will have the most positive impact on the world in the next 20 years? The most negative impact? Knowledge management and collaboration tools can help people expand their understanding of the morass of information that we have. The Internet could also foster a society that is not collaborative or interactive by encouraging so much isolation and computer ­ human interaction vs. human ­ human interaction. On a lighter note: 1. If you could have dinner with any 2 people (living or not), who would they be? Ameilia Earhart, Georgia O'Keefe, Carly Fiorina from HP, Julia Child 2. What was the last book you read? What books do you love to recommend? The Secret Book of Grazia dei Rossi by Jaqueline Park Crossing to Safety and Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner Portrait of an Artist: A biography of Georgia O'Keefe by Laurie Lisle Three Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden 3. If you couldn't do what you are doing now, what profession would you choose? Marine Biologist 4. What is your definition of success? Good friends and family relationships combined with the resources to enable you to live life to the fullest in whatever manner that means to you. For more 'WITI Women' articles, go to: http://www.witi.com/wire/witiwomen/ For all the latest news and information on women in technology, visit http://www.witi.com Copyright© 1989 - 2001 WITI All rights reserved.