WLI Newsletter | Designing The Difference | Volume 5

Here is the fifth edition of Designing The Difference, the Women’s Leadership Initiative newsletter.

The latest news & updates from GSA’s Women’s Leadership Initiative

We have so many things to tell you about in this newsletter – we’re bursting with excitement! THE BIGGEST NEWS is that our Women’s Technical Conference is on September 14 & 15, with education opportunities, insights and networking.

Thanks to our Technical Steering Committee, we have a conference name and theme: WISH | Women in Semiconductor Hardware. This is our first hybrid event since 2020 (WOW!) and it could not happen without the support of our host sponsor, Marvell!

The event website isn’t fully built yet, but registration is LIVE. For now, all registrations are for the livestream event and attendance is FREE for GSA members and university students. SIGN UP HERE.

Interested in speaking at WISH? Check out the call for papers section and submit by June 9. IWe are also celebrating women and diversity with new awards. Be sure to get all the details and submit your nomination by June 25!

A big thank you to the companies who supplied wonderful content for this newsletter: Applied Materials, Synopsys and Lonergan Partners. Happy reading!

CHOOSING TO CHALLENGE

Newsletter Sponsor | Applied Materials | Julie Lata

International Women’s Day is always a day celebrated in March. This year, the employees of Applied Materials celebrated all 31 days of the month by raising up women’s voices, celebrating male allyship and providing resources on supporting youth to become confident leaders and innovators, regardless of gender. They continue to #ChoosetoChallenge in hopes for gender parity in the future. READ MORE HERE.

STEPPING OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE — AND OWNING YOUR CAREER

Jumana Muwafi | Synopsys

It pays off to recognize and seize opportunities. It’s healthy to step out of your comfort zone. This article goes in depth on how you can grow in your career and personal advice for professional success. READ MORE HERE.

A LOOK AT THE SILICON VALLEY 150

Kirsten Settle | Lonergan Partners

The Lonergan SV150 is the definitive list of the top public companies in technology located in the Silicon Valley. It is the successor to the SV150 list published for over thirty years by The Mercury News. They analyze the percentage of women on board seats and more. READ MORE HERE.

Alex Wright-Gladstein | Co-Founder | Ayar Labs

In our latest feature, we had an amazing time talking to Alex Wright-Gladstein, Co-Founder, Board Member and Advisor of Ayar Labs, a company founded to drive the next phase of Moore’s Law through the use of its Optical I/0 technology. Alex’s journey didn’t start with engineering, but rather, political science and economics. Her interest in technology grew in college and continued while she earned her MBA at MIT. “You can create real change in the world, which is a powerful tool for creating the change you want to see in the world and improving lives.“

Read her story here.

WISH | Women in Semiconductor Hardware
September 14 – 15, 2021
10 a.m. – 2 p.m. Pacific US
Marvell & Livestream

WISH | Women in Semiconductor Hardware, is GSA WLI’s very first technical conference bringing together industry luminaries, entrepreneurs and university women in STEM. This event will showcase the changing face of technology and offer new awards celebrating the women who have helped to break the glass ceiling and those who are following in their footsteps. Join our industry in supporting and reaching gender parity.

WISH is free for members and university students. Non-member registration is $100 and includes both days of the conference. University students, please reach out to events@gsaglobal.org for your complimentary attendee code.

For more information: SAVE YOUR SPOT HERE

We’re so excited to introduce WLI Awards that will be presented at WISH, our Women’s Technical Conference on September 14-15. Nominate your colleague or company in the following categories:

Female Up & Comer Award – The Female Up and Comer Award recognizes and profiles the next generation of young women in the semiconductor industry. Companies are encouraged to identify women with a technical background and education within their organization who have been in the industry five years or less and have made exceptional contributions toward the development, innovation, growth and success in their short time in the industry.

Designing the Difference Award – The Designing the Difference Award recognizes companies who are making a significant and measurable impact on advancing the industry through diversity and inclusion.

WISH | Call for Papers | Now Open

In support of WISH, our Women’s Technical Conference, we are accepting abstracts from female engineers in the following categories:

Process Technology
System Technology
Design Technology
Validation/Test

A total of four papers per session track will be chosen. Speakers will have 15 minutes to present her paper. If you would like to be considered for a paper session, please submit a half-page (minimum) to two-page (maximum) on your chosen topic. Please include your preferred track in your application. Presenters will be determined by our Technical Steering Committee.

It is our hope that speakers will be in-person; however, conference attendance will not factor into the committee’s decision. Presenters unable to attend will be asked to pre-record her paper session.

Deadline: June 9 | Notification to Presenters: July 12 | Abstract submission or questions: wli@gsaglobal.org

WE WANT YOUR VOICE TO BE HEARD. WLI is committed to promoting female leadership through the GSA Women’s Speakers Bureau. We want your name to be added to the list of women who can speak on business trends, market drivers and technical issues. Interested in participating? Know someone who would like to contribute?