"Kin Stories: Jamie & Julia"
Below is an article originally written by PowerToFly Partner Kin + Carta, and published on October 31, 2019. Go to Kin + Carta's page on PowerToFly to see their open positions and learn more.
At Kin + Carta, we place a strong emphasis on supporting one another. It's written in our values of Embrace Servant Leadership and Catch Excellence — our Kin strive to put forth the best work and to expand those around them along the way. For Jamie Auza and Julia Geraghty, Technical Analysts, this isn't just an environment around them; it's a culture they have contributed to, grown within, and learned from.
After Jamie and Julia were put on a team together, they quickly became a developer duo, running to and from meetings together and supporting one of Kin + Carta's clients within the AgTech space.
It's no secret that women are underrepresented within engineering so it is increasingly important that women support other women in this field. As developers, Jamie and Julia have both really valued the opportunity to work side by side with one another and were excited to sit down with us to share their experiences.
What pronouns do you use?
Jamie: she/her/hers
Julia: she/her/hers
How did you get into engineering?
Jamie: When I was in high school I had been scrambling to try and find an AP class to fill up my schedule when someone suggested that I try out Computer Science. I had no idea what it was but went ahead and took it anyway. That's how it all began!
Julia: I've always enjoyed math and when I told a friend at college this, he suggested that I try out Computer Science. It ended up working out pretty well. 🙂
How did you find out about Kin + Carta and why did you join?
Jamie: I came across a posting for an iOS Developer position at Kin + Carta online. I had always wanted to get into consulting so it felt like a no-brainer. When reading the reviews online, I was skeptical that so many of them were positive, but when I had my in-person interview I saw first-hand how great the culture was. Everyone was so kind and genuinely eager to help you succeed. That's when I knew I wanted to work here.
Julia: After learning so much from the people here and making great friends during my internship with Kin + Carta, I couldn't wait to come back full-time after graduation.
Can you explain what your role entails and how you exactly you two work together? We see you running to meetings together all of the time!
Jamie: Hahaha, we do run to meetings together a lot. It's mostly because we never have any idea what room our meetings are in so we follow the Product Consultant on our team, Taylor, everywhere like little sheep. Other than running around the office, Julia and I help each other on issues that we're coming across and tackle the problem together by talking through the best way to implement a solution. It's been a lot of really great open communication and Julia's helped me with my transition into Kin + Carta. Thanks, Julia!
For the most part in my role, I get to develop all day! Before a sprint starts, the developers and I get to choose the chunks of work that we want to work on and we split it amongst one another. These chunks are called user stories and are essentially detailed assignments. Other than the development work, I get to help groom those user stories for details that might be missing or aspects that are overlooked.
Julia: I am usually developing for most of the day! However, bringing these features to life is definitely a team effort. I feel like I am constantly asking our technical lead, designer, product consultant, and QAs for their input along the way.
Jamie and I get to work together on a lot of this! Whether it's planning out how we're going to split up our work for an upcoming sprint or going through the code together to solve a problem, we have a lot of fun working together. And we consistently get lost on the way to meetings together.
What's the most surprising thing about your job?
Jamie: How fun it is! We're having a pizza party soon and we recently finished a game of post-it ball. Post-it ball is a game that we play at the end of each sprint where we bundle up the post-it notes that have the title of each story we were working on and attempt to throw it through a hoop. We win when we collectively get to a certain number of points. It's a lot harder than it looks!
Julia: How much I've learned about AgTech. For example, just today our entire program learned that corn is grown on every continent except Antarctica!
What have you learned from your project team members (or from one another!)?
Jamie: How to be a servant leader. I've really grown to emulate my team's willingness to help and set one another up for success. My team has done that every step of the way for me and I want to give back whenever I can.
Julia: How to catch excellence and have fun along the way. Our entire team has been working hard all summer to ensure we release a quality app, while still finding time to create a team playlist, break out of an escape room together, and constantly discuss our horoscopes.
What are you most proud of during your time at Kin + Carta?
Jamie: My first release! It was exhilarating to see the number of users come in and realize that people are actually using the app that I had a part in.
Julia: I am most proud when I look back and see how much I've grown since starting at Kin + Carta as an intern. It was extremely rewarding to be able to help the interns this summer and answer some of the same questions that I asked 2 years ago.
What advice would you share with a woman beginning a career in technology?
Jamie: Don't be so hard on yourself! This stuff isn't easy even if there may be people who seem naturally gifted in it. The best skill you can learn is to know when to ask for help.
Julia: This is pretty cheesy, but don't give up! Starting something new is never easy, but if you speak up and ask for help when you need it, you'll be able to look back at how much you've learned in no time.
Curious about our culture? Read more stories about what it's like to work at Kin + Carta here.
Lead Together: Behind the Scenes of Facebook's Women@ Leadership Day
Tatiana L. is a global client partner based in Miami.
Tatiana is part of the Women@ Facebook Resource Group and helped plan Women's Leadership Day, an annual global community summit. While the highly-anticipated event takes place over just one day, its massive impact is felt over the course of the entire year.
Amy W. is an operations lead based in London.
"Women's Leadership Day is more than an event. It's energy, and it's a movement," Amy W., an operations lead in London, says. "Moments like this can completely change the perception of women in technology."
From choosing the content and programming for the event to making it accessible for women around the globe, we went behind the scenes with seven members of the Women@ Facebook Resource Group to learn more about how women are empowered—and are empowering one another— in their career journeys at the Facebook company.
Behind the scenes with Women@
Amanda M., an internal recruiting manager based in Singapore, speaking onstage at 2019 Women@ Leadership Day in APAC.
"I've always been passionate about empowering women, but I didn't know how I could do it at work. My first Women@ experience changed how I felt at Facebook," Amanda M., an internal recruiting manager in Singapore, remembers. "From then on, I wanted to help other women feel heard, valued, and confident."
Planning the global event, which brings together women from more than 20 countries, calls for close collaboration across multiple teams, regions, and timezones. Members of Women@ also partner with other Facebook Resource Groups, such as the Pride@ Resource Group, Latin@ Facebook Resource Group, Desis@ Facebook Resource Group and Black@ Resource Group, to ensure all women at Facebook are represented and feel included.
Vivian V. is a program manager based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
"Across regions and communities, we each bring unique differences and powerful stories. When one of us moves forward, we have the opportunity to bring all of us forward," Vivian V., a program manager in the San Francisco Bay Area explains. "While planning the summit, we meet weekly to talk about what women in different regions are experiencing. From the event theme and content to planning speaker sessions and fine-tuning details, we each have items to own. Two months before the summit, we meet daily to share updates and make sure nothing slips through the cracks."
"Just like me, women in APAC look forward to Women's Leadership Day all year long," Amanda says. Planning something that's deeply meaningful to so many people can feel like a lot of pressure, but at the same time, it's uplifting. I appreciate that we have the opportunity to talk about our individual and shared challenges, and we map out ways we can build community while empowering leadership for women across the globe."
Empowering confidence, equality, and leadership through storytelling
Paris Z., a vertical strategy lead in Singapore, and Amanda M. collaborate with women across the globe to plan Women@ programming and events.
Women's Leadership Day encourages women to talk about challenges like experiencing imposter syndrome, breaking through barriers, and how to manage work/life flexibility. "Storytelling is a huge part of the event," Paris Z., a vertical strategy lead in Singapore, explains.
Vivian says, "I've been at Facebook for nearly two years and help plan these events, and honestly, I never really understood imposter syndrome before I got here. Working with the Women@ community and hearing from our speakers—who are talented, brilliant superstars—I've seen firsthand how it affects them too."
Michelle C. is a client partner based in London.
Michelle C., a client partner in London, says that the summit's speaker sessions, which feature people from inside and outside of Facebook, are a highlight of every event. "We had a speaker from Tel Aviv who talked about the importance of balance in her personal life and how she co-parents with her husband. She shared specific things she's done, like adding her husband to the WhatsApp chat groups for mothers she's in and reminding her daughter's school that her husband is also available when their child feels sick. Her message was that we'll never be equal in the workplace until we're equal at home, and it really struck a chord."
Paris says that in APAC, Eva Chen's talk about facing challenges amidst the coronavirus pandemic and how she's raising her daughter was a top-rated session because it was so relatable. "From talking about her daughter's love for dinosaurs—a "boy" thing—and raising kids to fully be themselves to opening up about what it was like to grow up with immigrant parents from China and Vietnam, Eva inspired us with her authenticity and openness. Her struggle to feel supported while working in fashion and tech, rather than medicine, is something a lot of people in APAC understand."
"Every woman has a unique story," Michelle says. "Hearing from others is inspiring, validating, and truly eye-opening. It reminds us that we're not alone."
A memorable and lasting impact
It's no surprise that with the tremendous amount of planning and careful consideration that goes into the summit, its full impact is impossible to measure.
"It meant so much to me when people shared such positive feedback about Women's Leadership Day," Paris says. "We heard that some attendees felt inspired for days and weeks."
Kira G. is an agency partner based in Berlin.
Kira G., an agency partner in Berlin, has witnessed how the summit's programming can inspire action, even helping people push past a career plateau. "We might reach a point in our careers when we think, "I can't do this anymore, I'm not moving forward'," she says. "Women's Leadership Day gives us fresh perspectives, shows us new approaches, and starts important conversations. This can unlock new paths for growth and help us move forward."
Impact is felt in other Facebook groups, communities, and across teams too, inspiring interest and allyship. Amanda explains, "I felt so proud when a male VP from the Sales team came to us after hearing about what people talked about at Women's Leadership Day. He told us he wanted to learn more because it's everyone's responsibility to be an ally."
Empowering the community throughout the year
While Amanda describes Women's Leadership Day as a "bump in energy and inspiration" and "an injection of adrenaline", Vivian says that the real magic is what happens afterwards—and takes place all year long.
"When we think about Women's Leadership Day, our focus is on making sure that the powerful messages we hear and experience serve us throughout the entire year. We ask ourselves questions like, "How can we sprinkle these themes into our programming throughout the month or quarter? How do these ideas fit with our Women@ initiatives?" Going through something awesome together is just the beginning. Our work takes place year-round and we're constantly building on it to do more."
Paris agrees: "There's no shortage of amazing stories from our Women@ community throughout the year. Women's Leadership Day is just one channel for those stories, and I love how it stays top of mind with people and empowers them to do more good. When we come together, we can do anything we dream of."
"We're building a sisterhood and a community," Tatiana beams. "It feels so good to know there's always someone there to support you."
Learn more about Facebook's Employee Resource Groups, including Women@ here.
