Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, your background, and where you grew up?
EM : I remember being the only girl in my high school electricity class with 18 guys. One day one of her classmates asked why I was taking the class and even said “You’re not good at this.” That turned me off STEM so fast, and even though I was really strong in math and science, I swore off engineering because of that comment. Obviously, that didn’t work out because I’m an engineer now, but that is why it is so important to connect with and empower women. I was born in Dallas, Texas, and grew up in Minneapolis, Minnesota. FIRST Robotics is why I decided to try engineering – I was on a FIRST team throughout high school, though I originally joined to do the business and outreach aspects of the program.
When and how did you get into technology?
EM:I tend to do things because people tell me I can’t: I had enough people tell me I couldn’t be an engineer for one reason or another so I decided I was going to prove them wrong. I’ve always loved problem-solving and figuring out how something works, whether that’s a pen or a large group of people making decisions. I also participated in FIRST in high school and I loved the whole engineering process of brainstorm-try-prototype-fail-retry-fail-retry-success! It was a really hard lesson to learn for me that everything I do is probably not going to work on the first try – I’m a little bit of a perfectionist so learning how to fail was really hard but I am SO glad I’ve become comfortable with it.
Can you share an example or two of the things you have done in or with tech that you are particularly proud of? What some of the solutions that you are working on now?
EM : I spoke at Girl Day on the Hill in February 2020 in support of engaging more young women in STEM on behalf of DiscoverE. Never ever ever did I expect to be able to speak to those who lead our nation about my passions and my dedication to educating and inspiring the next generation. Now that I’ve done that, I’ve been spurred on to keep going – continuing my efforts in STEM education and promotion. Every day is different for me. As an industrial engineer, my focus is on improving processes and helping people. This could be anything from crawling around the floor installing a vacuum system so my people don’t have to worry about debris and dust getting into the product they’re building, to working on the design and manufacturing of the next commercial synthetic vision system, helping pilots combine what their visible eye can see, what cameras can see, and what sensors and other applications can see to help pilots navigate safely and successfully. Really, my job is asking “what if”. Finding a problem and coming up with new ways to solve it or make something faster or better.
What do you like best about your job/technology? Share in 3 words.
EM : Inspiration, Teamwork, Learning
Have you encountered any challenges along the way – and, if so, how did you overcome them?
EM :Being wrong/making mistakes. I’m a perfectionist so I want things done right on the first try. There are some things I try to implement on the floor that my people don’t think are good ideas or that they aren’t on board with, and so it doesn’t happen. or there was that one time I deleted all of the information out of our material tracking system on accident. I’ve had to learn to own up to my mistakes a lot more – being wrong is okay, it’s what you do after it that matters. I’m always disappointed if something doesn’t go my way or isn’t implemented the way I think it should be, but I’m learning really quickly it’s better to own up to it and move on than to sulk about it or hide the error. My team is AWESOME in that we all support each other so failing or mistakes or anything else that happens and we figure out what went wrong and fix it for next time.
What’s a lesson that you learned along the way that you’d like to share?
EM : Getting everyone on board to make a change! Everything I’ve implemented has been something my people are on board with. I get their input and their feedback before I put anything out on the floor so I know that there’s a higher chance of it being adopted readily vs. being shoved off into a corner and never used. I did a floor relayout in Richardson and because I got so much initial input from my people on what they would want the floor to look like or what improvements they could see, I was able to go to them with a drafted design and the only things they asked for were an additional table and a couple more panels. Keeping everyone in the loop and making their lives easier is so rewarding to me.
Share your advice for young girls who want to change the world with computer science (in 3-5 words)?
EM : Show your passion.