2 Ways to Win

1. Attend the NYC Webgrrls The Art of Less Doing & Networking event on November 7.  We will randomly choose a winner at the event. Note: you must be present to win.
    
2. Enter to win online.  You must be a member to participate…so, if you are not a Webgrrls member or your membership is not current, please Join or Renew your membership now.  We will randomly determine who receives the ticket for the event and will email you if you are the winner. 

All Webgrrls receive 30% Discount to Attend!

All Webgrrls are eligible to receive a 30% discount to attend the event. Be sure to enter discount code: WEBGRRLS-30 when registering.

See you there!

Related posts:

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3. Enter to Win Full Pass to Interop Las Vegas 2009 Conference

Last week during a conversation with a potential client, I was asked what aspect of my business I enjoyed the most – I didn’t hesitate a second and answered – COLLABORATION! Working together, as a team with the best people, who are subject matter experts in their fields can make for amazing, and sometimes unexpected results – and I find that fascinating and exhilarating. No doubt this has been an important part of my life, even during my EMBA program at Thunderbird, one of our mantras was “collaborate so you can graduate”.

DIFFERENCES BETWEEN TRADITIONAL HIERARCHY AND COLLABORATIVE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENTS

In my business, ideas evolve and grow in COLLABORATION with our peers and subordinates – I have often worked with teams spread all over the globe, and the dynamic of collaboration can be real “magic” when everyone takes pride of ownership and responsibility. Being open to all ideas, and understanding that the next great one could come from a customer or a subordinate is really empowering. Unlike popular belief, however, working collaboratively doesn’t mean always playing nice and signing the same tune, it isn’t like group therapy – yeah, sometimes thing get messy when egos get in the way – this is when a strong and nurturing leader needs to step in and wrangle the cats errr… I mean team …

When I work with teams, our communication is open – unhindered by formality and “structure”. The point of this is to create an environment of mutual respect, where the interaction of diverse perspectives leads to an exchange of ideas leading to an an effective solution. This doesn’t mean that it is a “free for all”, there is always a clear leader, but the input of each member is valued equally. The leadership skills needed in a collaborative business environments are very different, somewhere between a kindergarten teacher and Margaret Thatcher, the goal is to guide the flow, and get the BEST out of each team member.

The distinct difference between collaborative groups and formal groups, is that collaborative groups function on the basis of shared power and management among peers, rather than an absolute directive from the top – think of it as managing horizontally rather than vertically.      

And thanks to the world of online communication COLLABORATION has grown even more in certain industries – writers often work in a team with an Art Director, Animators with Producers, business strategist with writers, Engineers with art directors, Directors with Producers and clients…. not all located in the same place but technology makes it possible to do work smoothly in COLLABORATION. 

To me, working COLLABORATIVELY is the only way to get the best ideas and results – collaborate to innovate – but this is NOT the way most business work today, and I wonder WHY? 

The practice of COLLABORATION, which is so common for some businesses hasn’t gone mainstream, most traditional businesses never get “it”, and still allow their executives to engage in more territorial and competitive practices – these often lead to what I call sandbox “turf wars”…… unlike COLLABORATIVE leaders who share control and give credit for ideas, and who facilitate the process of problem solving through diplomacy – refer to my previous comment about Thatcher. COLLABORATION is not common, but what if it where?

Some companies like Mozilla, Linux, eBay, Google, Wikipedia, Facebook, Amazon, are structured around collaboration and team leadership that really works, so what makes for this difference in leadership?

TOP QUALITIES OF A COLLABORATIVE LEADER

Here are some of the top qualities of a collaborative leader:

• Drive – Recognizes the right opportunities to increase collaboration
• Clarity – About context and purpose, the kind that enables trust and loyalty
• Vision – Imagining the possibilities/outcomes that do not yet exist and aligning teams towards that.
• Fairness - Attributes and credits success to those who merit it.
• Inclusiveness – Inviting participation rather than demanding participation.
• Collaborative Mindset – A team approach and belief that collaboration is the best approach while working with a group to resolve an issue.

BEYOND BUSINESS – A NEW WAY FOR HUMANITY?

Although author Howard Rheingold’s “Smart Mobs, the next social revolution” published this book over 10 years ago, his discussions about the “new era” for human development through collaborative interconnectivity is very relevant today – as we have recently witnessed grand changes such as the “Arab Spring” and the “Occupy Movement and the 2011 collaboration between scientist and gamers to solve a decade-long protein structure mystery that could help in developing a cure for AIDS. 

Check out his Ted speech 

Click here to view the embedded video.

I believe that with increasing global connectivity technology-enabled collaboration will continue to increase, and allow for the ability to work collaboratively across disciplines to resolve business and world wide problems.  It’s time for traditional business cultures to catch on and move from a hierarchal leadership to more collaborative leadership.

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In that weird time between Christmas and the start of the next year, I love reviewing the year. My 2011 has been quite remarkable, I accomplished many goals and ticked off a few things on my bucket list, including graduating from Thunderbird in Europe, attending Sundance, visiting India and Germany – and overall, just had a wonderful time of travel, friends, and family throughout. 

Now it’s time to read the Top and Best of lists for the year, and as 2011 winds to an end, and we start to get a peek at 2012, it’s time to review what 2011 brought us…. and some of the lists it has spawned.

Here is a list of some of the Best Of lists of 2011 that I have found… I would LOVE to hear some of yours!

1. 50 Economic Numbers From 2011 That Are Almost Too Crazy To Believe
2. 19 Biggest Social Media Moments of 2011
3. 2011 Top Ten Global Topics
4. Top Selling DVD’s
5. 2011 Best Companies to work for
6. The Best Movies of 2011
7. The Best Artists of 2011
8. Top 10 Songs of 2011
9. The Best Games Of 2011- Awards
10. The Best of Ted Digital
11. The Best Cocktails of 2011 and where to drink them
12. Top Cars of 2011
13. The Top 10 Marketing Infographics
14. Best Photos Of The Year 2011
15. The Best of 2011 by Discovery
16. 10 Best Commercials of 2011
17. 2011 Year in Review: Best in art
18. 50 Best iPhone Apps 2011
19. 2011 Top Ten TV Shows
20. The 50 Best Websites of 2011
21. Best Books Of 2011
22. 2011 Best Dressed Celebrity Women
23. Forbes Most Powerful People
24. Best Of 2011 Pop Culture’s Tastiest bits
25. Best of 2011 – The Superficial
26. Forbes Most Powerful Women
27. The World’s Best Hotels 2011
28. Best Young Tech Entrepreneurs
29. The Best Mixtapes of 2011
30. The Best of 2011: Job Search and Recruiting
31. The Best of 2011 – AOL
32. Best of 2011 Brands and Films
33. Most Admired list of 2011
34. Top 10 Wines of 2011
35. 2011 Best Places to live
36. The Most Viral Fortune 500 Brands

So the Myan calendar ends in 2012. So what? My calendar ends in December. I just buy a new one. ~ Mr. Youngblood Geography teacher

And in 2012, pending that the world won’t end, here are some interesting lists of things to look forward to.

1. Color of the year 2012 – Tangerine Tango
2. The Top 10 Franchises for 2012
3. Where to Invest 2012
4. 2012: Beginning of the End or Why the World Won’t End?
5. The List: 2012

Now as I am thinking ahead to 2012, making my resolutions, planning, strategizing and imagining what the year ahead may bring… I wish you all an amazing 2012.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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The 2011 Holiday Season is fast approaching and to kick it off we are organizing a dual-city Webgrrls International Holiday Celebration December 6th with the San Francisco Webgrrls and December 7th with the New York City Webgrrls, and when the Webgrrls Community gets together, it becomes an industry event, not only about revelry but also about the celebration of the achievements of women in technology and business.

December 6 – San Francisco

The San Francisco Webgrrls Holiday Celebration will be Tuesday, December 6th at the Techsoup space. 

We will toast to success and ring in the Holidays with a wine and cheese affair with some great wine, great raffle prizes, and a great San Francisco crowd. Get more information and RSVP!

December 7 – New York City

The NYC Webgrrls Holiday celebration will be Wednesday, December 7th at Wix Lounge, a co-working and event space for creative professionals (located steps from Union Square).

We will have a great menu and can share a toast with some great wine & beer,  and some amazing people. Get more information and RSVP!

Webgrrls International has a lot celebrate this year! A new site, new technology, our workshop line-up has grown offering new information and new skills to our members and community, our regular and small business membership continues to grow. San Francisco Webgrrls has a new chapter leader, Anne Ward, and is growing exponentially and the NYC Webgrrls is having its best year. The Webgrrls Blog, Webgrrls Wisdom, continues to influence as our subscriber base continues to grow. We have created some great momentum for 2012. It has been a very rewarding year for many of us.

Come and celebrate with us!

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Entrepreneurs are arguably the most important actors in our economy—the creators of new wealth and new jobs, the inventors of new products and services, and the revolutionizers of society and the economy
~ Lesa Mitchell, VP of advancing innovation at the Kauffman Foundation.

I have been reading a great deal recently on how small business and entrepreneurship is the potential savior of our US economy. Economist will agree that older established companies DO NOT hold the promise of job creation or a renewed and revived economy, but instead the next bright new companies.

Venture capitalist will tell you that EVERYONE is on the lookout for the next “Gazelle” or fast growing start-up with the potential of becoming the next Google or Apple. But in between the “Giants” and the “Gazelles”, lies a whole territory of smaller companies that also help to fuel the economy not only by job creation but by private wealth creation, smaller companies from yoga studios to e-commerce web portals.

How important is entrepreneurship to the US economy?

This is where the jobs are, not at General Motors. It is about creating new companies, new industries, not propping up behemoths
~ John Harthorne, a co-founder of MassChallenge

The US Government has identified entrepreneurs as an important key to turning the economy around, and in January of this year The White House helped launch the Startup America Partnership. This is an independent, private-sector entity partnership between the US Government and private equity. The US Government is committed to matching funds in this venture to encourage the creation of new startups, with a principal focus on supporting existing firms who could become “Gazelles”.

How do Women entrepreneurs stack up?

As the chart above from the Kaufman Foundation indicates, not so great. In fact, American Express OPEN report for 2011 found that just 1.8 percent of women-owned firms had revenues of more than $1 million, while men-owned firms was 6.3 percent. 

In the new study by the Kaufman Foundation, OVERCOMING THE GENDER GAP: WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS AS ECONOMIC DRIVERS, has shown that although nearly half of the workforce and more than half of our college students are women, their lag in building high-growth firms has become a major economic deficit.

Facts about women startups:

• Average revenue of men’s firms was $120,000 versus about $60,000 for women. 
• Women owned firms account for 29% of all enterprises.
• Women-owned firms only employ 6% of the country’s workforce and contribute just under 4% of business revenues . 
• WOMEN ONLY account for 35 % of the people who start a businesses.

Estimated that there are over 8.1million women-owned businesses in the US, generating nearly $1 .3 trillion in revenues and employing nearly 7 .7 million people – IMAGINE THE UNTAPPED ECONOMIC POTENTIAL OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS!!! 

We must consider fostering women’s entrepreneurship as an economic issue, not a gender-equity based issue. Simply put – we are missing a BIG chunk of this country’s educated brainpower. 

OK great, but what kind of support is there out there?

Business incubators are service programs, not buildings,” “No building can grow companies, provide mentoring and handholding, and assist an emerging company in meeting the benchmarks necessary for growth.
~ Dinah Adkins, president and CEO of the National Business Incubation Association (NBIA). 

Besides the SBA and the Startup America Partnership, consider joining an incubator or accelerator program in your area, according to Bloomberg Businessweek there are about 50 accelerators altogether seeking more than 500 startups for their programs this year, and surprisingly not all of these are for the tech sector.  Studies show that start-up ventures that graduate from an incubation or accelerator program have a success rate of 87%, compared to 44% for all other firms. 

Here are 20 incubators and accelerator programs in the US. This list is in no particular order or ranking. In order to figure out the best fit, do your research and talk to to people about their experiences during the program and ask for success, funding figures for the overall program and finally what will their stake be in your company and how will they help you with management.

1. Astia, Astia offers programs for women run high-growth start-ups.
2. Women 2.0 – Pitch, not a traditional incubator.
3. West Enterprise Center, Albuquerque, N.M.
4. Mi Kitchen es su Kitchen,  New York, N.Y. focused on food businesses.
5. DreamIt Ventures, Philadelphia, PA
6. Georgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center, Atlanta, GA
7. Launch Pad Ignition, New Orleans, LA
8. SENO – Social entrepreneurship, New Orleans, LA
9. TechStars, accelerators (Boston, Boulder, New York City, and Seattle )
10. MassChallenge, Boston, MA
11.  Y Combinator, Silicon Valley, CA
12. NYC SeedStart, New York, NY
13. Santa Fe Business Incubator, Santa Fe, NM
14. Accelerator Corp., Seattle, WA – biotech startups
15. Long Island High Technology Incubator, Stony Brook, NY
16. The Shoals Entrepreneurial Center - Florence, AL
17. Innovation Depot, Birmingham, AL
18. LaunchBox Digital, Washington, DC
19. Metro Tech, Oklahoma City, OK For Latino entrepreneurs.
20. Plug and Play Tech Center, Sunnyvale, CA 

These incubator and accelerators are the promise of growing new businesses, as traditional Venture Capital is becoming scarcer. Consider that there were fewer initial public offerings of firms backed by venture capitalists than in any year since 1985, and that the proportion of IPOs worth less than $50m has plunged to 20% in the past decade. This matters, because according to the National Venture Capital Association over 90% of job creation by venture-backed firms occurs after they go public. 

With few answers on how to turn this economic mess around, we must consider how to foster the entrepreneurial sector, specifically the untapped economics of women entrepreneurs. 

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The business landscape has changed fundamentally; tomorrow’s environment will be different, but no less rich in possibilities for those who are prepared. McKinsey & Company, worldwide (former) Managing Director, Ian Davis

A lesson from the (original) Great Depression – opportunities always exist!

Many years ago, I heard a story of a man who became a millionaire during the (original) Great Depression. This banker had lost his fortune and had watched many of his friends capitulate to the circumstances. Faced with unemployment he learned a trade and became a tile layer, he eventually worked his way back up, and was hired to work on the the construction of the Holland Tunnel in New York and got the contract to supply the tiles for the inside of the tunnel….. in the process regaining his wealth.

The Great Depression was a terrible time for many, some would compare today’s economy and the Nation’s battered spirit to that time. I have thought about this story many times lately, and the lesson. In the US, there are always opportunities to make money in ANY economy, you just have to have a little vision and be prepared to grab them.

Your own “Reinvention plan”

The lesson of this story was one of the influences that propelled me to make one of the boldest moves in my life – going back to school to get my MBA in Global Management at Thunderbird. This was part of my “personal reinvention plan” which was spurned by the reality that the industry I had worked in had changed dramatically due to advances in technology, and a bad economy, and that the skills I had carefully honed and the network I had cultivated for over 20 years of my career had (almost) been rendered irrelevant. This was a scary and expensive move, but I am confident that it will pay off over time….

It’s wise to devise your own “personal reinvention plan”, even if you are currently employed and happily doing your job. In this era of the “new economy” you must NOT be complacent or tied to old thinking, and processes. This trap can become the “concrete shoes” that will weigh you down and may eventually sink your career.

As a job seeker, what I am finding more and more, are that the larger companies are:

• Full of “Scared Managers” – terrified that they may loose their jobs. This fear leads to ineffective second guessing every move, and sticking to old tried and true ways.
• “Confused” because they don’t know how to define themselves in this new economy – lot’s of “analysis paralysis” happening.
• Companies are giving lots of “lip service” to “entrepreneurial spirit” and innovation” within their organizations – but not fostering this behavior or hiring the right kinds of people to develop this kind of culture. 

These are MAJOR ISSUES in today’s business environment, that will deeply affect organizations ability to survive and thrive in the long run. Be careful if you are currently employed in one of these organizations. Ask yourself, is my company really poised to thrive in this “New Normal”?

Where are the opportunities?

Now Apple is like the rest of the US – they have no Jobs

With an alarming ZERO NEW JOBS in August and with 14 million people (reported) currently unemployed, and the President’s announcement of the $447b Job Plan…. Where are the good jobs???? The fact is that most lost jobs are being replaced with lower paying jobs.  Still there are some industry sectors that are making gains in good paying jobs. 

• Green collar Jobs: According to, “Sizing the Green Economy” – “The clean economy, which employs some 2.7 million workers, encompasses a significant number of jobs in establishments spread across a diverse group of industries.”

• Consulting - Management and technical consulting services reached a record high in August.
• Health Care – Elderly Services, Therapy, Home Health Care, Mental Health Services, Outpatient Care, Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories, Physician’s Offices and Administration, Optometric and Dental Services, Chiropractors.
• Internet Hosting and Publishing.
• IT - Hardware and software.
• Retail - Brick and mortar retail stores and e-commerce.
• Administrative and Customer Services.
• Software Publishing.
• Education Support Services.
• Passenger Transportation (air and land).
• Daycare (juvenile and adult).
• Writers and Artists. 

Everyone here knows that small businesses are where most new jobs begin. And you know that while corporate profits have come roaring back, smaller companies haven’t. So for everyone who speaks so passionately about making life easier for “job creators”, this plan is for you.  ~ President Barack Obama, 9/8/11

The news today about jobs and employment picture is no doubt scary and daunting but there are some good stories to tell. Consider this - 28 million small businesses employ 57% of the country’s private workforce, and 60 to 80% of all new jobs come from small businesses. It is expected that job growth will continue to come from this healthy sector.

It’s a Brave New World

Business in the US and much of the world isn’t as “usual”, we will probably never go back to the pre-recession time and the reality is, we must adapt to the “new normal”. Today, we need more than ever to hone that good old fashioned American ingenuity, create new opportunities, because we can no longer rely on the comfort of the corporate giants.

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Researchers at the University of Buffalo (NY) have published a study finding that:

When women are “pursuing romantic goals” they tend to shy away from academic work in [STEM]. In two experiments, subjects were exposed to images and conversations that primed them to think about dating, and then completed questionnaires regarding their interest in pursuing STEM versus other majors. Women who thought about dating and not intelligence or friendship reported less interest in STEM fields. A third component of the study asked women to keep track of their feelings of romance and their interest in math, and found that the two were at odds.

But why is this the case?

• Maybe this is less about women trying to be desirable, and more about the men they think they will meet.

   

• Perhaps it’s because of women’s acceptance or acknowledgment of gender-based stereotypes (although I really hope that isn’t the case! I want to give us women more credit than that.) As the reasoning goes, some women may believe that men don’t find brainiac scientists appealing, and choose academic pursuits they believe will be more “accepted” and less off-putting.

   

• Or maybe it’s because going after more intellectually-based professional goals in typically masculine fields (such as STEM) is seen as being at odds with more traditional romantic goals that are usually associated with gender norms.

But what this also speaks to is the influences of the surrounding environment that women grow up in and become so accustomed to. How many messages are sent every day that being sexy and attractive is important?

But there has to be something else going on here? Right?

According to a recent article, which highlighted this study, the author brings up a very valid point:

“Why would any woman who wanted to maximize her dating opportunities avoid science, math, and technology? Her odds are obviously better in the fields where she is underrepresented.  But women don’t merely want to maximize their opportunities, they also want to increase the quality of their opportunities. Maybe it is not that women are trying to make themselves more desirable, but that they aren’t that into the men they meet in their STEM classes.”

Clearly, there are lots and lots of possibilities as to why this is happening.  I think whatever is actual reason is behind this effect, this study can be heaped onto the stack of other studies that also seek to explain the continual gender gap – especially in tech-based fields.  Only one explanation can only go so far, when there are so many variables to consider.  Or maybe the issue is just with the men!

What do you think?

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We’ve come a long way. Power dressing now is designed to let the woman inside us come through.
Donna Karan

Recently I was at a business meeting with professional women, all at the top of their respective fields. We where working on some reinvention ideas, everyone was excited to be there. Many of us did not know each other, but we where all equally committed to accomplish our goal for the meeting. I always enjoy these situations and hope to learn from my peers. At the very beginning of the meeting, however, there was one woman, who was really throwing me off…. so I stepped back in order to figure it out, WHY was I tuning her out ????

I’m sorry but the old adage doesn’t work – people still “judge a book by it’s cover”

Then….. I had THE AHA moment….. The woman in question looked liked she had been rolling around in dirt and her clothes where ill fitting (so we got a good view of her undergarments (if you are gonna show them – make sure they look good… and by all means CLEAN!). She was a mess! The reality was, I couldn’t get past her appearance to hear what she had to contribute – shame on me, I know.

The way you see people is the way you treat them.
Zig Ziglar

I know we are not supposed to judge people based on looks, upon further analysis I noted; her messiness to me meant she didn’t bring her “A” game, if she couldn’t bother to brush her hair and put on a decent outfit – she didn’t care to be there – and BTW, all the other ladies looked fabulous (with varying degrees of style from polished designer to funky vintage, etc… you get the idea)……..I am by no means suggesting that anyone should go and spend their monthly mortgage money to dress in couture like a Kardashian. It would be nice, but not necessary. During Grad School I learned the fine art of budget shopping and have acquired a very stylish wardrobe, for a very modest price.

Your personal image is part of your personal brand – do you reflect your brand?

This got me thinking….YOUR Personal public image is critical, because it is a part of your Personal Branding. This is so important, but yet we underestimated the impact it has on how WE/OUR BRAND is perceived.

I asked Dan Schawbel, Author of Me 2.0: Build a Powerful Brand to Achieve Career Success and “Personal Branding Guru” to answer a few questions regarding Personal Branding.

• How important is having a polished Personal public image to your personal brand? It’s mandatory in an age where your Google search results are your new resume. If you don’t have an online brand that communicate who you are, what you do, and who you do it for, then you will get lost in a sea of clutter.

• You always say that “Consistency is key”, is this also true on how we dress and present ourselves in professional settings? You should be consistent in everything you do from selecting a single headshot of yourself for all of your online channels to your clothing and even the colors you use on your business card and website. The more consistent you are, the more you will be remembered and be able to create a brand promise to your audience.

• What do you think about the old saying “always leave the house dressed for success”, and how does what you wear matter to your brand? We are all judged based on the perception of what we wear, how we behave, and who we associate ourselves with. If you don’t take care of yourself, people will notice, and it will create a negative brand perception that wont go away.

I don’t know about you, when I look good, I am confident

People tend to respond in a more positive way, to someone who is dressed well, one would think that the idea of making a positive impression is common sense, but I see disheveled looking people everywhere. The airport is my favorite place to spot these….you should always look good because you never know when you might make an important connection – for business or personally. Last year I got an upgrade because the ticket agent really liked my dress – true story!!!!

Erin Kennedy, CPRW, CERW, has put together some solid guidelines in “If you want to be successful, dress the part”

I do differ with Ms Kennedy and many other recruiters on the suit issue – in a creative businesses, you would run the risk of being judged as stodgy or a “suit” if you wore a “suit”. Wear what is appropriate in your field.  In the creative field there is rarely a taboo on tattoos or piercing, but you would be immediately discarded as a serious candidate if you showed either of these during an interview in a financial or legal field. Again, assess what is appropriate, ask others if you have doubts.

Making sure you look professional online too

Make sure that the photos that are associated with your professional and public profiles are consistent with your image and branding. Your LinkedIn profile should not be accompanied by an embarrassing photo of you at your bacholorete party.

Make a choice and Decide HOW you want to be viewed

This has been very important to me during my own reinvention. It’s something that is an ongoing process. How can I show intelligence, leadership and confidence while being feminine.

During my years of working as a Producer I had the advantage of working with top fashion stylists and designers who taught me a thing or two – one of the most important is to create your unique “look” by cluing in to current fashion trends AND your personal style ICONS, and always make sure that the look suits you. And if you can’t manage to do it yourself enroll the help of people who know you well or finally get an image consultant – it is well worth the money!

There is a lesson here, no matter where you are, if you are in a professional setting or even meeting someone for coffee, and you want to be taken seriously, try to have some put together style, (men and women) – and this can mean many things – from great t-shirt and jeans to stylish high end designer clothing -  it doesn’t mean everyone should wear a suit.  Whatever your style “own it and make it part of your personal brand!”

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2. Brainstorming Worksheet to Help You Name Your Brand
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Meet Nina Walia. Nina is a Creative Strategist and Producer of Engaging Cross-Platform Experiences.  She has overseen interaction design and content development of websites and games for the Webby-award winning pbskids.org since 2004.

Never let someone else tell you that you don’t belong at the table – most of all yourself. Remember how crucial your unique perspective is to how we use and design technology and in shaping the freedoms of systems of the future.
~Nina Walia

1. What is your background and how did you get into the interaction design field?

As a daughter of an Electrical Engineer father, I was always the tinkering with technology. I studied Computer Science at Georgia Tech but the lack of diversity in the CS student population lead to a lack of diversity in teaching approaches so I left to pursue more creative uses of technology. I transferred to University of Georgia and received a degree in Journalism, focusing on film, audio and new media production – but I couldn’t shake the knowledge I had gained from Computer Science. I had learned how to make systems and interactive components work so I applied interaction to all my media projects. For example, I helped build a webcasting studio and produce events for it, I built and operated an interactive component to a theater production and built websites for orgs on a freelance basis.

Without skipping a beat, I knew I wanted to pursue interactive design further and went straight to grad school. I returned to Georgia Tech, where they had begun a Masters program called Information Design and Technology. IDT was a new multidisciplinary program crossing computer science with art, design, & communication. It was a fantastic program where, amongst many things, I sound designed tangible environments, learned usability and human computer interaction concepts, created educational technology applications, and experimented with designing new kinds of interfaces for experiences of the future.

2. What is it about interaction design that you most enjoy, or find most rewarding?

Finding new ways for people to connect with content and each other.

Companies must set aside time and budget to conduct user testing, even if it’s just informal user testing. It shouldn’t be one of the first items on the budget chopping block when it’s so fundamental to a company’s success.

3. What’s your favorite milestone in your career or business?

There’s still so much to accomplish! But one of the achievements I’m most proud of is becoming the “go to” for creating concepts for cross-platform experiences at PBS KIDS. I’ve produced successful games kids participate with on TV, online, and soon on mobile devices.

4. What major obstacle/barrier/conflict have you faced and how did you overcome it?

Working at a nonprofit you are often asked to produce big things with small resources, so I’ve found many ways to overcome budget and resource barriers in order to produce successful gigs. Some tricks include reusing art or audio assets from TV programs for the web and having an arsenal of external developers you are familiar with who are extremely flexible. By delivering products that shine and get the attention of company decision makers, our interactive team has been allocated more resources in subsequent projects. We’ve proven ourselves time and time again, taking us from being a second thought to innovation leaders all departments of the company turn to.

Always think about how you can extend an experience across devices and platforms from the beginning to gain efficiencies and a unified user experience. At the concept or kick-off phase, have representatives from every platform team at the table to brainstorm the big picture and how it all ties together.

5. What are the common mistakes made by companies when it comes to interaction design?

A common mistake is using company employees as the only source of user testing. All too often I’ve seen the approval of senior executives be the only point in the development process where someone outside the project interacts with the interface. Companies must set aside time and budget to conduct user testing, even if it’s just informal user testing. It shouldn’t be one of the first items on the budget chopping block when it’s so fundamental to a company’s success.

Another mistake is not having a diverse pool of interaction designers. Different backgrounds bring different perspectives and approaches to a project. Without diversity you are operating with a blind side.

6. Which websites do you admire from an interaction design perspective?

I’ve been working on quite a bit of augmented reality lately so I’ve come across some interesting new kinds of interaction models. It’s exciting because these models allow children to bypass the challenge of using a mouse. Enhanced interaction can be placed on tangible objects children are used to, like blocks. For example, using wIzQubes™, kids can manipulate familiar fairy tales by arranging blocks next to each other in different combinations.

7. You specialize in building Engaging Cross-Platform Experiences.  Can you give advice to other companies who are trying to design their applications for different platforms?

Two key points of advice:

• Plan the experience as a cross platform experience from day one! Always think about how you can extend an experience across devices and platforms from the beginning to gain efficiencies and a unified user experience. At the concept or kick-off phase, have representatives from every platform team at the table to brainstorm the big picture and how it all ties together.
• Take advantage of each medium’s affordances. The experience should not be exactly the same across platforms. For example, there are ways you can engage with characters or content on mobile devices that TV or desktop computer don’t allow you to.

The greatest “technology” I’ve adopted is this new personal time prioritization system.

8. You have designed very successful curriculum-based games for kids. What are some challenges that you’ve faced in designing things for kids?  Any advice to someone who is trying to build an application for this demographic?

What you think you know about this age is probably wrong J. User testing is key. Testing with your own children or neighbor’s children is probably not enough of a sample to reflect the general population (interaction designers’ children are generally more savvy than most).

Another thing that has helped is taking days where we’ll volunteer at a school for that age group. Immersing ourselves in what its like to be a kid that age is a great reality check on the abilities of that age group.

I highly recommend consulting the PBS Parents Child Development Tracker: http://www.pbs.org/parents/childdevelopmenttracker/. We worked with child development experts to gain insight into learning and development milestones for children ages 1-9 years. The guide covers: approaches to learning, creative arts, language, literacy, math, science, physical health, and social & emotional growth.

9. What is the latest, greatest technology that helped you make a quantum leap in your work?

Outside of my day job I am involved in many organizations and side projects that are demanding of my time. I’ve finally learned that although I want to be involved in everything, I only end up feeling guilty about how I don’t have enough time or energy to give my best to each and every project. I now focus only on a couple of projects that elicit the most personal happiness when I’m engaging with them, and I allow myself the flexibility of being involved only for certain time frames. I’m spread much less thin and am much more productive. So the greatest “technology” I’ve adopted is this new personal time prioritization system.

10. What are the qualities & characteristics that a professional woman needs to succeed in today’s fast paced world of technology? What sage words of advice (words of wisdom) can you offer to other professional women to help them achieve their own success?

I agree wholeheartedly with Cheryl Platz’s answer to this question: “Never let someone else tell you that you don’t belong at the table – most of all yourself.” Remember how crucial your unique perspective is to how we use and design technology and in shaping the freedoms of systems of the future.

Related posts:

1. Mentors & Motivators – Meet Cheryl Platz
2. Mentors & Motivators – Meet Lindsay Moore
3. Mentors & Motivators – Meet Brenda Laurel

Then join the 2011 Global Marathon…an event for, by and about Women in Engineering and Technology (March 7-12).

The Marathon is a global “town square” for connecting girls and women in engineering and technology who ‘meet’ via live Internet chats, telephone conversations, webcasts and on location events over the course of six days.

Parts information and inspiration, the Global Marathon is out to change the conversation about girls and how they view engineering as a career. Among many things, this involves influencing thought leaders about the role of women in engineering and technology and helping to insure that girls and women take their place among the next generation of engineering leaders.

Pre-college, university, and professional women are all welcome to participate.

• Monday, March 7 – Kick-off and North America
• Tuesday, March 8 – China
• Wednesday, March 9 – India
• Thursday, March 10 – Africa/Middle East
• Friday, March 11 – Brazil/Mexico
• Saturday, March 12 – UK/Europe, ‘Student Outreach Day’ and event close in North America

For more information or to be part of the Global Marathon please visit www.globalmarathon.net

Related posts:

1. Inspiring Women of the Web & Technology
2. Thoughts On India’s Technology Renaissance
3. Women Leaving Science and Engineering – Tips for balancing work & home life