Her Work Experience

• started as a software programmer, degree in Computer Science from Cal Poly Pomona
• After graduating, got a job writing code
• Started as a software programmer for credit unions, similar to banks
• Within a year, she was sitting in a cubicle programming
• Not a good fit, so she transitioned over to customer service
• debugging/ helping people with their code.
• The company merged with another company (roughly 200 people)
• She then met with one of the executives and shared an idea
• This led her to doing operations
• Volunteered to be in a new leadership development program

when you learn a lot of different things, you have all these tools/experience in your toolkit

Even though you're not working for a fortune 500 company, it doesn't mean that you're not learning as much or as good as the next person who could apply for the same job in a different company

• She had done everything she could do in that organization without relocating, so she moved
  
• Digital Insight did internet banking (not too different from her previous job)
• Moved into an executive role where she managed the different groups in that company that she had managed individually in the other company (customer service, software development, project management, consulting, etc)
• About 170 employees reporting up through that organization and four different locations that she had to travel to
• Company was purchased by Intuit
• Though unknown at the time, her job was to make the company look really good and run really well, so it could be sold
• Companies being bought and sold all the time is the norm

It's really important to understand that company changes are a possibility

She was laid off at Digital Insight (company sold) 

Then joined the board of Women in Business Los Angeles, and met other women who own their own businesses

One woman offered her a consulting job at Frederick's of Hollywood

With her previous work experience, she came in as project manager

The company's economy started to go down, and she took a full-time job offer

• One year later, the Federal Trade Commission sent a letter notifying them of a security breach (all employees' social security numbers were on the dark web)
• She didn't know too much about cyber security, so she had to learn things very quickly
• Learned how to deal with technology at all 138 remote locations, credit card processing and its security, e-commerce, retail, and cyber security
• She got a security credential and went to Washington DC to do a deposition in front of the Federal Trade Commission to explain the security breach

• Now works with cemeteries, mortuaries and crematories
• They have computer systems to keep track of records (deeds, credit card transactions, services) in over six parks, 13 locations
• Experimenting with virtual reality and augmented reality (streaming services, family portals on Facebook to share music and pictures)
• Her challenge is getting long-time employees to change because they're not used to technology
• So, part of her job is figuring out how to get everybody comfortable with a new project
• You can always pair a young digital native with an older person, but sometimes the older one leaves the task to the younger
• Adult learners need things to be explained a different way, visual learners

• Career jumpers: people who only stay at a company for a few years and move
• Before it meant: no loyalty, they're just looking for money
• However, you have no control over companies that are bought and sold
• Some people do not know what the company's financials are, so it is a surprise
• So, networking is really critical to keeping your career going
• Networking and doing other things also builds your confidence
• When she interviews somebody who has been at the same company for a really long time and has not changed positions, she asks:
• What did you learn each year; how did you challenge yourself (because technology changes all the time); how are they keeping themselves up to date?
• So, constantly changing job is not a bad thing

• Traditional path: computer science degree with a lot of programming
• Having a college degree to start with is a really important baseline
• Software engineering: definitely a degree in computer science or management information systems
• Take programming classes and look into different platforms
• iD Tech Camps: learn to program
• Find internships, job shadow, talk to people in your parent's network, use LinkedIn
• Learning how to write and communicate are also very important in a technology job