EWX Real Conversation: "RVA Women Leading the Way in IT"

                                               
"RVA Women Leading the Way in IT"

Women make up only 26% of the computing workforce according to the National Center for Women & Information Technology.  And 56% of women in technology leave their employers mid-career.  Why?

Yet, women are the lead adopters of technology.  They use the internet 17% more than their male counterparts according to research by Intel’s Genevieve Bell.  They are also the majority of owners of tech devices.

So why are women the leaders in adopting and owning technology, but lagging in the computing workforce?  Hear from local women IT leaders about their career trajectories and how they have achieved success.

• What have been keys to their career triumphs?
• How have they navigated important pivot points in their careers?
• What changes are they seeing for the future of women in tech?

This Real Conversation will feature:


 

Rebecca Dovi - Director of Education
CodeVA
Rebecca Dovi is the Director of Education for CodeVA, a Virginia non-profit focused on making computer science available to all Virginia students. With 20 years experience as a high school computer science teacher she is an NCWIT Aspirations in Computing awardee, and was the instructor and content developer for the first national MOOC for high school students. From her experience helping write and implement the mandatory Virginia Computer Science Standards, to acting as the Computer Science Coordinator in Virginia for the NMSI project, her expertise in is designing and implementing teacher professional development in computer science.

Tammy Hornsby-Fink - Vice President
Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond 
Tammy Hornsby-Fink is a Vice President at the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond currently focused on Payment Security.  She works closely with the Secure Payments Task Force and is responsible for key elements of the Federal Reserve’s payment security strategy to reduce fraud risk and advance the safety, security and resiliency of the U.S. payment system.
Tammy joined the Federal Reserve in 2003 and has served in several leadership roles including Vice President of Information Security Planning/Portfolio Management and Assistant Vice President for Enterprise Network Services.
In addition to her experience at the Federal Reserve, Tammy was the founding partner of an information technology consulting company, provided consulting services to several segments of business as well as federal, state and local governments, and served nine years on active duty in the United States Air Force.



Sonali Shetty - Founder & CEO
Kova Digital
As a serial entrepreneur, Sonali has been an early innovator in most of the emerging technologies in the past decade. Taking an ultra-collaborative approach, Sonali has been instrumental in delivering innovative and impactful digital solutions for clients for 20 years, in the areas of mobile, web, iOT and Chatbots. As founder and CEO of Kova Digital, she has led projects that have won several awards and accolades.
Sonali is extremely active in the IT community and is passionate about encouraging women and young girls to embrace careers in STEM fields. She is a key catalyst for innovative programs like the annual Woman in Technology conference and Techsters – a hands-on program for middle school girls.
Sonali has a Master’s in Engineering (Bio-Medical) from Texas A&M University and an executive MBA from the College of William and Mary.

• 4:00-4:30 pm  Check-in / Connecting / Table-tops
• 4:30-5:30 pm  The "Real" Conversation
• 5:30-6:15 pm  Wine Time / More Connecting

If you're interested in displaying your products/services via a tabletop please reach out to Stephanie directly at stephanie.phillips for more information.