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1 - 2 Invent it. Build it. 3 - 8 Session Notes 9 Career Fair 10 Celebrate SWE! 11 Fun in LA

Invent It. Build It.

Stephanie Cortes

On Saturday of the conference, a SWE Girls’

Program took place from 9 AM to 3:30 PM.

The event was called “Invent It. Build It.” and

it gave middle school aged girls the

opportunity to gain exposure to the STEM

fields. The morning began with an expo for

the girls to explore and to learn about clubs,

camps, competitions, and

much more.

During the time that the girls

were arriving and registering

for the event, about fifteen

engineering professionals

and students, called Roving

Role Models went around

the convention to interact

with the girls and to talk with

them about their

engineering field. I was one

of these Roving Role Models. I was fortunate

enough to borrow an Arduino kit from Dr.

Sanchez of the Civil & Environmental

Engineering Department at Pitt. Following

the kit instructions manual, I was able to

build a simple circuit which used an LCD.

Code was provided to accompany the circuit,

allowing the user to program the LCD to print

whatever they wanted. Armed with the

Arduino and my laptop which contained the

code, I went up to several groups of girls

waiting to register for the event. It was

extremely rewarding talking with the girls,

telling them about electrical engineering,

why I love engineering in general, and

showing them the Arduino. I let them type

whatever they wanted into the code and see

what happened when the code was loaded

onto the Arduino. It was fun watching their

eyes light up as they saw their names flash

onto the screen.

Following this and the expo, all the girls went

into the Concourse Ballroom of the LA

Convention Center. There they got to hear

from different keynote

speakers, who were

engineers, of course.

Additionally, the girls got to

complete two different

activities. I was only able to

stay for the first activity

which was called

“Touchdown”; the goal:

design and build a shock-

absorbing system that will

protect two “astronauts”

(a.k.a. marshmallows) when their spacecraft

(a paper cup taped to a piece of cardboard)

lands. I found it extremely rewarding to

watch the intent and determined look on the

girls eyes as they designed, built, tested, and

fixed their spacecrafts. And, one of the girls

even taught me how to draw Goofy! I won’t

say I was the best student, but I would say

that I am definitely well on my way!

I learned a lot of key skills relating to

outreach during this event and the “Role

Models Matter” workshop which was held

the day before that I will be able to use

during any future outreach that I do. The

Newsletter

What is this

really long,

weird-looking

newsletter?

The four EBoard

members and 5

additional PittSWE

members attended the

Societal Conference in

Los Angeles, CA from

October 22 until

October 25. This special

edition conference

newsletter is meant to

bring our experiences

back so that all of our

members can benefit

from the things that we

learned! So read

through and email

pittswe@gmail.com if

you have any questions

or would like more

information on any of

the sessions. Enjoy!

“It was fun

watching their

eyes light up as

they saw their

names flash onto

the screen.”

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workshop I attended the day before was a great

preparation for me.

One of the key elements that I learned during the

workshop were that it is important share information

about yourself and relate to the children you are

reaching out to. In other words, you, as the “role

model” should be perceived as

an equal. When you introduce

yourself, make it personal. Use

kid-friendly language as you

share your academic and career

path. An important thing to keep

in mind when working with girls is

that girls are motivated by helping the world so it is

essential to show them how engineers can change the

world.

When helping girls on a particular challenge, you should

give them useful and skill-specific feedback. Use

questions to guide and challenge the girls; giving them

the answer discourages from trying further. An

interesting consideration when using questions to guide

girls in a challenge is to avoid using the word “why.”

Asking “why” something happened or

did not happen is too open-ended

and not at all helpful in them

proceeding with their challenge.

Instead, consider using different

question words (e.g. “how,” “what,”

etc.) which are more specific and

provide better direction on

advancing a particular challenge.

Another tip I learned was to use

hands-off facilitation. Getting hands-

on to help with a challenge results in

their disengagement from the

activity. If you are interested in

learning more strategies on

engaging girls during outreach

events or for more resources, visit

techbridgegirls.org/rolemodelsmatter.

Overall, the last two days, from the workshop to the

Invent It.

Build It.

event were

very fulfilling

for me.

Seeing

hundreds of

girls being

introduced

to STEM

fields and

directly working with them and sharing my experiences

and my passions for engineering was an experience that

will not be forgetten anytime soon. When 93% of girls

have stated that role models and field trips where they

got to interact with people in the STEM fields made

them more interested in STEM, it is clear that it is

important for us to reach out to more and more girls. By

relating to them and getting them interested in STEM,

we are able to make engineering a possibility and a

reality to so many more girls.

“[I]t is essential to

show them how

engineers can change

the world.”

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The Unwritten Rules: Navigating Your Corporate Culture

Becky Glucksman

This presentation by Michelle

Tibke, a Naval Sea Systems

Command, spoke of the

intricacies of social norms. It is

true that each organization,

group, and company has a

different way of doing things. It is

important to know how to act:

whether or not to call your boss Mr. or Mrs. or by their

first name, or where to sit at a meeting.

Sometimes these rules are pretty explicit, but other

times they are implicit. How should one act when one

doesn’t know the rules and how can one figure them

out? Although learning these rules often comes with

time, there can be consequences from making a wrong

move. It can result in punishment or exclusion from the

group. While you must maintain true to yourself, you

must also be aware of how others act around you.

Attire: While you should still express your own style,

you must be careful not to wear things too revealing in

the workplace. Women shouldn’t lose their femininity

and be forced to dress like men. We can still sport cute

dresses and skirts, just make sure that they still

resemble the professional looking attire worn by the

successful men and women around you.

Position: Since Michelle worked for the Navy Civilian

Corp., much of her experience in the workplace is

based on the army’s structured hierarchy. However,

some companies are a lot more flat and relaxed about

who is the boss of who. As a result, it may be okay to

use your boss’ first name. Always err on the side of

caution and be more formal if you aren’t sure. Another

topic brought up during the session was the idea of

going around your supervisor. Is this ever okay? The

general consensus was that if it is a matter of ethics,

security, or safety, it is okay to go to the next level of

supervisors to ensure that these issues are not at risk.

Even in a structured hierarchal workplace, where going

around your supervisor isn’t acceptable, it would be

acceptable for these reasons.

Your Boss: The best advocate for you is your boss. So

try to impress him or her. However, it is helpful to

know what your boss likes. If they are presenting to

their boss, would they like to be corrected if they make

a mistake? Or would they rather wait until they are in

private? Although you should be willing to take on

minor tasks every once and a while, make sure that

these don’t consume most of your time. If you are

finding that this is the case, mention it to your boss

nicely. They may not even realize that they are giving

all of the menial tasks to you. However, don’t do

everything and anything your boss says. Remember

you can provide feedback and discuss if you strongly

disagree with his/her decision.

Meetings: Meetings can be tricky situations because

sometimes people like to sit in the same seat every

time. Sometimes the boss always sits at the head of the

table, other times there is no head of the table. It is

helpful to ask if you aren’t aware. If you are filling in for

someone, maybe ask, “where does so and so usually

sit?”

Social Interaction and Networking: Remember that

even at after hour events, you still have to act

somewhat professional. It can impact how you are

perceived in the workplace. Be aware that your

relationships outside of the workplace shouldn’t

negatively impact your work or how you act at work.

Some companies don’t allow relationships in the

workplace, others do. Know your company’s policy. If

they do allow it, still be cautious.

Communication: Make sure you are aware of how you

react to things. If someone says something in a

meeting that you disagree with, make sure you don’t

wince or roll your eyes. Sometimes it is involuntary and

you need to have someone looking out for you. Often

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times the best way to communicate with people is

face-to-face. Sometimes email can be overused.

Remember, in the workplace, you should always be

respectful, however, sometimes if you are working out

in the field or elsewhere, it is okay to mirror the

language you hear. It may help you to fit in and bond

with the other workers. They can see that you are more

of a person. Other tips to remember are to stand when

you are introduced and know the basics on how to

shake hands (make sure that you grip hands firmly,

rather than shaking with a limp hand).

Selling Yourself: Hold yourself to high standards and

maintain credibility. This can be accomplished if you

know how to follow the unwritten rules of your

workplace because then if you fumble, you will have

some credibility to fall back on (the credibility

developed by acting appropriately with those around

you). Make sure to never use your “female” power

(crying or your sexuality) and be accountable for your

mistakes.

Conclusion: Sometimes figuring out the intricacies of

how people interact is tricky. Make sure to pay

attention to any abnormal reactions that may provide

hints on things that you should not do. Some people

are more strictly attached to these rules than others.

Don’t make assumptions and ask questions, as that will

help you to learn the ways of the company faster.

Don’t lose who you are as a person in trying to fit in

with everyone else. But most importantly, listen,

watch, and learn.

45 Girls, 45 Minutes… What Do I Do?

Lisa Cross

This session on Thursday afternoon was absolutely

fantastic. It was fun and informational. The main topic in

this session was age appropriate activities. The speakers,

Allison and Barb, provided specific details and sources

for a multitude of engineering activities. They specifically

talked about three different age levels: elementary

school, middle school, and high school. Some tips they

provided included that it’s best to give elementary girls

more instruction on how to complete the activity,

whereas giving high schoolers less instruction allows

them to be more creative and to really think like an

engineer.

My favorite part of the session was the hands on

activities. They demonstrated an activity for each age

level. First, they did a demonstration in which another

attendee was able to bounce bubbles off her hand. The

cool part about this was that they were not any kind of

special bubbles. The attendee simply wore gloves. The

“science” behind this was that the gloves prevented the

bubbles from touching any dirt on the hand. They tied

this back to engineering by saying how surface

contamination is something that needs to be worried

about and eliminated. The middle school activity was

building “brush bots,” made from the head of a

toothbrush and a pager motor. The “bot” would vibrate

and cause it to move like a little bug. I definitely giggled

like a little kid when I got mine to work. The high school

project was a pneumatic actuator made from craft sticks,

gum bands, a tube, and syringes. I had tons of fun playing

with these and even got to take them with me as

souvenirs!

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Maximizing the Strengths of Your Team

Kylie Zeis

This session was all about realizing the strengths of the people who you are working with. Everyone is different, so it

is not okay to assume that everyone functions and works best under the same environment and structure. Before

distributing tasks or placing limitations on an assignment, make sure to recognize the strengths of your team and use

that to your benefit when assigning tasks to individuals. People who use their strengths everyday have 6 times more

engagement than those who don’t. These people also have 12.5% more productivity. If your team uses Strengths

Finders 34, everyone will be able to see what strengths they should play off of. Overall, it is very important to see

what types of people are on your team and recognize the importance of playing to their strengths!

Starting from the Bottom: A Guide to Your First 90

Days at Work

Michelle Banas

This session was presented to help young professionals

move from an academic to an industry environment. It is

suggested that before the first day you get in touch with

your direct supervisor to introduce yourself while also

taking time to learn as much about the company as you

can. You should also be sure not to let paperwork get in

the way of a successful start by being prepared to fill out

your new hire paperwork.

During your first week on the job be sure to introduce

yourself to your team and get to know them. You should

make sure to do your first day set up and familiarize

yourself with the technology used by the company. You

should also sit down with your manger in the first few

days and figure out how you will communicate, set goals

and objectives, and make sure you know exactly what

your project entails. You should use this information to

create a project plan, then review it often to make sure

you stay on the right track.

During your fist month you should keep a log of all your

tasks and deliverables so you have specific answers when

people ask what you’ve been

doing. You should be comfortable

modifying your project plan as

needed. This is the prime time for networking, so be sure

to take time for social lunches and for finding mentors

who have been in your position in the past.

In the next 30-90 days be sure to communicate the status

of your project, along with any risks, regularly. Find

opportunities to exceed expectation and continue to

network. If you feel comfortable, you should also begin

to take on leadership tasks.

There are some every day tips as well. Never lose sight of

the big picture and stay on top of any project risks that

may arise. Take care to follow the company standard for

email and communication etiquette. These are all useful

tips for anyone starting a new job in an entry level

position, whether as an intern or as a new full time hire.

Keep them in mind as you move into industry.

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Building Yourself as a Leader Dhanu Thiyagarajan

The session Building Yourself as a Leader talked about how managing your career

requires you to view your professional development as a journey with direction, rather

than a point, a job or an end destination. It is emphasized that your career is not a one-

time decision made after graduation, but rather an iterative process that you redefine as

you grow. There are three goal points to build yourself as a leader: start with the end in

sight, consider the career lattice, and maintain your competitive edge.

Start with the end in sight:

Think about the goal – you want to be employable. You need to be able to say yes when

asking the question, would you hire you? You need to be confident in yourself, be

prepared for interviews and do the research necessary. The interviewee should see

direction in the interview and have questions ready to pose during the interview. The

speaker goes on to explain how she gets bored and uninterested in candidates where they

wait for the interviewer to lead the interview. You should always be looking out into the

future and having the experiences you need to become a leader. You should always be

working with mentors to encourage you and provide you with great advice to help you get

where you need to go.

Consider the career lattice:

The world of work is changing – there is no linear path anymore. There are so many

different paths to get to the same place; you need to figure out what the right path is for

you and your expectations in life such as family. No matter the path, you can’t become a

leader without building new experiences. Some ways to do this are by giving new ideas

to a team down the hallway, or stepping in for your boss when they are sick, volunteering

for a project. This also allows you to explore the different aspects of a company and

improve your skills to go higher up the corporate ladder. In general, people are looking

for self-motivated individuals who want to make change. Therefore, be in a position to

stand out by being excellent in your current role, challenging yourself, showcasing your

strengths, taking lateral moves and developing new skills. At the end, it doesn’t matter

what your title is, it matters how challenging it was to get there and what you’ve gain out

of the position.

Maintain your competitive edge:

First, you need to OWN IT! No one cares more about your growth and success than you;

therefore, you need to own and drive your career. Partner with your boss and have them

engage in your success and development; you will need the support of others to be

successful. Use Coursera to watch various lectures and expand your knowledge (all for

free!). Second, you need to think WIN-WIN! You need to go for the triple play by driving

team progress, improving business results, and learning while doing these tasks. Third,

you need to SEEK FEEDBACK! Create a learning and feedback friendly environment

where you can learn and adapt quickly, so you can improve results and keep learning. It

is important to find a mentor who will be honest with your blind spots; you need to take

advantage of the situation by asking more questions and gaining more feedback. Always

appreciate advice whether you wanted it or not especially when it is from someone more

successful – they know what they are doing and saying.

Your career as a leader is in your hands, so use this advice (even if you didn’t ask for it)

and become a strong leader!

Session

Highlights:

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Giving and Receiving Feedback Module

Erica Stevens

The Giving and Receiving Feedback Module was presented by Jackie Fber from Alcoa. She began by saying that

engineers have a lot in their toolbox, but some things are missing. One of these things is how to give and receive

feedback. Many people avoid asking for and providing feedback, even though there are many benefits to feedback.

Giving feedback can lead to better working relationships, improved team performance, continual learning, improved

team culture, and learning that it’s okay to not be perfect. Receiving feedback allows for earlier course correction,

quicker skill acquisition, and skill set improvement. This module provided a system for giving and receiving feedback.

In this system, giving feedback follows four steps. The first step is observation. Provide concrete observation. Let

the listener know what you saw or heard the person do or not do. Do not use third party evidence or what someone

said someone saw. Before doing this, make sure the person is open to hearing the feedback. The second step is impact.

Provide a brief explanation of the effect that the observed had another person or yourself. This is so that the listener

knows exactly why their actions and words were incorrect. The third step is pause. This step seems the easiest, but is

actually the most difficult. Just stop talking. Stop talking so that the other person can absorb the information and ask

clarifying questions. The fourth and final step is to suggest. Offer a specific suggestion. This is necessary so that the

listener is aware of how to begin correcting their behavior.

Receiving feedback has four corresponding steps. The first step is to listen. Actively listen, to ensure understanding.

Do not argue, defend, or attempt to explain. The second step is to reflect. Remain open to others’ points of view.

Actively consider the truth of the comments. The third step is to ask. Ask questions in order to increase understanding

and clarify what has been said. Ask for examples if necessary. The final step is to thank. Show appreciation for the

other person’s help. When someone provides feedback it means that they care enough to help to fix what has gone

wrong, and they have put their time and effort into discussing it.

These steps provide a framework for effectively giving and receiving feedback. However, it must be remembered

that not everyone knows or followed these steps. Just focus on what is in your control. The other person may not

follow their side of the process.

Observation Impact Pause Suggest

Listen Reflect Ask Thank

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Finding and Using Your Power

Erica Stevens

The presenter for this session was Gail Golden, PhD

and MBA. She spoke about what power was and how to

find and use it. Power is the ability to influence others, so

that your ideas and vision become reality. There are

seven different types of power: legitimate, reward,

coercive, information, charisma, expert, and referent.

Legitimate power is a result of position. Reward power

stems from the ability to bestow awards, while coercive

power comes from the ability to punish. Information

power results from the ability to access and share

important information. Charisma power arises from

glamour or aura; the ability to make others feel special.

Expert power is a result of others’ belief that the leader

has special knowledge and expertise and knows what is

necessary. Referent power comes from the fact that

others admire the leader, want her approval, and desire

to be more like her. Expert and referent power tend to

work best for women, so Dr. Golden focused on how to

build these types of power.

Building expert power can be done by promoting an

image of expertise. Maintain credibility, so don’t talk

about what you don’t know. Act confidently and

decisively in a crisis. Keep informed so that your

knowledge does not become out of date. Also, recognize

people’s concerns so that you can directly address them.

Finally, avoid threatening people’s self-esteem. Don’t

show people how smart you are, but rather how useful

you are, which is why you need to know the concerns of

others.

Building referent power can be done by being

authentic and honest, earning trust, and celebrating

wins. These are the traits that people admire. Dr. Golden

told a story about when she used to work at a medical

center with a prominent physician. She gave

presentations to medical students during that times, and

the physician occasionally came in to these lectures and

stood quietly in the back. Sometimes, he hand-wrote a

note just to tell her that she did a good job. Though he

has now passed away, she still has those hand-written

notes and they still

mean a lot to her.

Finally, building referent

power as a leader means

sharing credit for wins and taking

responsibility for failure.

Traditionally, females have maintained power in ways

that do not build trust or loyalty. The traditional types of

female power include: guilt and shame power, sexual

power, crying power, and indirect or manipulative

power. Such power is not respectable and would do well

do be replaced with the expert and referent power

explained above.

Replacing the traditional power types include inside

and outside considerations. The inward part is thinking

and feeling. Believe in yourself and your expertise. Trust

in your own judgment. Expect others to listen and

respect you, and let them know that nothing less is

acceptable. The best way to do this is to begin seeing

yourself as an important

person. Know your strengths

and weaknesses, and

become comfortable with

conflict and risk. Most of all,

learn to forgive yourself. The

outer portion of power

development is presence. Exude an air of authority and

strength. Act mature and intelligent, keeping your

emotional compose. Developing presence has many

components such as appearance, voice, and emotional

balance.

So when is it appropriate to use power? It is

appropriate when there is an ethical issue or a critical

issue for business, when you are responding to

disrespect, or when you are defending someone else.

Exude power by not smiling, significantly changing your

volume level, being very direct, maintain eye contact and

good posture, and do not back down.

“[B]egin seeing

yourself as an

important person….

Most of all, learn to

forgive yourself.”

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Kylie Zeis

The career fair was a huge event. There were many

companies and graduate schools who were looking to

recruit people. Despite the overwhelming amount of

people at the conference, the companies were truly

willing to talk to every individual interested and give

them a fair chance. It was very beneficial to see what

types of individuals companies were looking for, and it

truly impressed them when you knew something about

their company. Even if you were not looking for anything,

this was a great opportunity to get some practice with

speaking to recruiters and having interviews. The career

fair began for on Thursday evening, for two hours, and

was basically running all day Friday. There were

interview booths, where the companies could give you

on-the-spot interviews. Some of our members had great

success with the career fair. Multiple interviews were

given out to Pitt SWE girls, and even an internship offer

was given! This career fair was very helpful, and was a

definite success!

WE14 Career Fair

PittSWE career fair successes!

Stephanie Cortes: Interviews with

Arizona Public Service (APS) and

San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)

Kylie Zeis: Offers from both

Colgate-Palmolive/Hill’s and

Kimberly-Clark

Erica Stevens: Interview with

Cummins Inc.

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Celebrate SWE!

Dhanu Thiyagarajan

Celebrate SWE! is a great closing for WE14 as it highlights SWE’s achievements in the past year of its multiple regions, various sections and numerous members. This event closes off WE14 by its attendees leaving with inspiration and motivation to go back to their own section to aspire, advance and achieve. The keynote speech was given by Carla Boragno who is Vice-President of Site Services at Genentech who highlighted the importance of mentorship. She started off by explaining three examples of how mentorship has impacted her life either as the mentee or mentor. She encouraged all of us in the room to have the guts to reach out to those above us and utilize their knowledge and expertise as our mentors. As well, we should take those below us and give them our advice to help them succeed. We can learn not only as a mentee, but also as a mentor. Either way, we must have the courage to reach out to people and expand our network.

Ms. Boragno provides some great advice, as follows: Give back, gain more Learn every day, better yourself Open yourself to the journey, who you meet and what you learn Believe in yourself, if you don’t then who will? Act on your dreams, they can come true but you have to act on them Love what you do, passion to inspire others

She ended her lovely keynote speech saying, “Reach out to women in your community. Be of service. You can make a difference not only in your community, but in the world. The next steps are yours; what will you do?”

“Reach out to women in your community. Be of service. You can

make a difference not only in your community, but in the world.

The next steps are yours; what will you do?”

PittSWE received the

Parent Educator Award

and Outstanding

Collegiate Section:

Silver at Celebrate

SWE!

11

Fun in LA!

Kim Daloise

Aside from the leadership and career development

knowledge that was gained at WE14 in the forms of

information sessions and the career fair, there was much

fun and adventure that awaited us as well! Although we

did not have a lot of free time, we certainly made the

best of it when we did. We explored Hollywood

Boulevard on Friday night where we shopped, ate

dinner with a University of Pittsburgh Engineering Alum,

saw the Hollywood stars and the Hollywood sign, and

took our pictures with the different impersonators

(most of which looked so much like the celebrities they

were impersonating it was scary!). The food was great,

the company was fun, and the impersonators were

interesting to say the least. On Saturday, we were lucky

enough to spend the morning and afternoon at

Universal Studios Hollywood riding all of the virtual 3D

rides and going on the Studio Tour. The rides were like

nothing else and the Studio Tour allowed us to see

where famous TV shows like “Mike and Molly” and “The

Voice” are filmed along with many movies. The different

TV/movie sets we saw ranged from an urban setting,

commercial setting, the wild west, etc. We also got to

see how some special effects are executed. Overall,

WE14 was an amazing experience. The conference

provided a lot of useful information when it comes to

the corporate world, how to improve our section, and

our futures whether it be in industry, attending grad

school, or any other option. In addition, Los Angeles

proved to be an extremely fun city to explore. Great

times were definitely had thanks to the great people

that attended!

See you next year, Nashville!