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Though the presence of women in technology fields is growing, only about 33% of tech workers are female. We asked two of our vice presidents — Marie Alexander, customer success and Erin Caldwell, marketing — about their journeys to the leadership role and what advice they had for others who are seeking corporate success.
Talk about the world of technology, and what you like about working at Drishti.
Marie: If you trace back the origins of the word “chaos,” you learn that directly from Latin the word means “Gaping void: empty, immeasurable space” or from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) languages, “To be wide open.” I think this is actually my draw to the world of technology and entrepreneurship. In early stage companies and markets, we are often creating something that was not there before. There is a clean slate — we are creating order out of the energy of chaos. The rules of our system are not yet defined. Drishti is an incredible opportunity on two levels: We are creating tools that can revolutionize the manufacturing space and we are creating the energy of our own organization. From my perspective, Drishti is in the most special phase of a company’s growth. Our customers have proven that our product indeed works and now is the time that we build the company around that market need. Everything is new, everything is now discovered and designed. As I have joined Drishti, I can sincerely say there is joy in doing this with a group of individuals who share our defined values — be honest, think long and create value.
Erin: I’ve worked for a number of companies over the last 20 years — engineering, nonprofit, cloud computing, AI — and several agencies that exclusively supported B2B technology companies. There’s always something exciting happening in the tech world; in addition to AI, you see cool emerging industries like crypto and virtual reality. Drishti is a company that pumps me up because it combines breakthrough technology with industry-changing application. This uniqueness is reflected back to me every time I have a conversation with someone outside the company: reporters, analysts, prospective customers, friends — they all see that the potential for Drishti is enormous, as is the potential for our customers who deploy Drishti. It keeps me energized.
What challenges do you see for the tech industry as it seeks to diversify its workforce?
Erin: The tech space would certainly benefit from more diversity, and that includes gender, ethnicity and race, age, sexual orientation and cultural background. Drishti makes a concerted effort to hire folks from around the world to avoid a homogeneous team, a situation that can lead to blind spots, groupthink and other unnecessary stumbling blocks. We currently have team members in 14 U.S. states and seven countries. That said, it can be incredibly challenging to find applicants from diverse backgrounds, particularly in today’s low unemployment, high competition hiring landscape.
Marie: I think the challenge for tech and diversity is that often companies seek to meet a statistical diversity — looking for a cross-section of the defined population. While this is good and important, that goal often becomes one that is tracked on a spreadsheet. The diversity any company needs is a diversity of thought. We review resumes looking for experience related to exactly what we are already doing, but change comes from original thought and that can often be found in someone who has little or no relative experience. That set of eyes and an open mind so often sees a new and inventive way to accomplish a task and so often asks that annoying question of “why?”
What advice would you give to women who are striving for a leadership position, particularly in a technology company?
Marie: Know your value and use it in your company. As I left a company at which I was the only female executive, a colleague expressed his concern that I was leaving and his desire to hire more women into leadership positions. He was older. He had a wonderful epiphany stating that I had brought femininity to the company and they had never realized how much they needed it. He said it occurred to him that the campaign of the women’s movement should not be “We can do anything you can do,” but rather “We can do things you cannot.” Find what you are good and passionate about and DO IT. Really do it and deliver.
Erin: Know your stuff, then be confident in making your opinion known and standing behind it. And seriously stop apologizing! Women have a tendency to say they’re sorry at work. You should not apologize for thinking, contributing, collaborating and doing your job. I say know your stuff, but you don’t have to know everything. It’s definitely okay to ask questions. Identify your allies early on (those who want you to succeed for yourself, or for the sake of the company, or both) and ask them questions often. (By the way, your male counterparts don’t know everything, either.) Finally, be yourself. It can be tempting to try to emulate someone else when you’re trying to find your place in a male-dominated industry (especially if, like me, you’re a bit of a dork). But it’s way more fun to let the inner dorkiness shine through, and who has the energy to spend playing a character?
What does International Women’s Day mean to you?
Erin: I am slightly uncomfortable with the notion of highlighting women simply because we are women, and lean toward the practice of recognizing people for their merits rather than characteristics beyond their control. But it would be disingenuous of me to not acknowledge that women do have the added burden of needing to overcome biases and preconceived notions, as well as crushing at their jobs, to gain respect and equity in the workplace. International Women’s Day gives us all an opportunity to recognize and reflect on our own personal biases and set goals to grow as individuals.
Marie: I agree with Erin’s comments here, which allows me the opportunity to expand the thought a bit. We often become myopic when thinking about women’s issues — thinking of how we are viewed differently and quite frankly have often had to work harder to accomplish our goals or that we are paid less — especially those of us who got our start decades ago. However, we cannot lose sight of the incredible struggles and issues facing women around the world: being sold as sex slaves, being sold as wives, being considered a burden as soon as their gender is determined, a lack of access to education, a higher rate of poverty, mortality from childbirth, healthcare inequities, control of our reproductive rights… the list goes on and on. On International Women’s Day, we should expand our view and find ways that we can love and lift women who literally struggle just to live each day.
