Celebrating Ada Lovelace Day through Mom

For Ada Lovelace Day, I pledged to blog about a woman in technology whom I admire. I don't just admire one woman, but one has stood out as someone who has influenced my interest in technology for many, many years - my mother.

My mom has worked in the technology field since 1985, first as a tech writer for Turning Point, moving through the world of engineering at Digital, Sun Microsystems, and now at a leading computer networking company. I remember being about 10 years old and feeling proud of my mom's accomplishments working in robotics. The company was working on a robotic arm that could pick up a glass without breaking it. I can't say whether they were successful but I know that mom worked incredibly hard to support her team and they respected the work she did.

As technology evolved, mom evolved with it, always taking classes, learning from her peers, and demonstrating that it is possible to transition from a writing role to software engineering and management. Her employees admire her, her managers respect her, and she has confidence and motivation to always turn out the best product possible. Her road hasn't always been easy. While women in technology find more opportunities now than were available 20 years ago, she still believes many challenges still exist. Women often struggle to be heard and she finds it rare that she doesn't have to work to have her opinion count. My mother continues to work her way through the tech world as a leader and as inspiration to all women considering a career in software development.