Grace Hopper Celebration India went virtual this year! — My Experience
The Grace Hopper Celebration India is Asia’s largest gathering of women technologists, where women from around the world learn, network, and celebrate their achievements. The year 2020 was a time when everything changed. It changed the way we work and live but I loved how our motto of celebrating women in technology didn’t suffer even in these unprecedented times. Getting this scholarship, meant so much more to me than just a ticket to free sessions and a career fair. It was actually a “celebration” for never giving up on my dreams and following my passion. I have been through a hell of a journey and it is just getting started!
My interest in technology developed in school when I learned how to create web pages and won several web designing competitions. However, later on, I was advised by my teachers to not pursue a career in STEM because they thought that I will not be able to handle the pressure and I should resort to something easy instead. But they couldn’t stop me from chasing my dreams and becoming a Software Engineer!
When I look back, these dreams were turned into reality by watching, hearing, and getting inspired by the stories of so many other amazing and talented women in technology who were making us believe that we DO belong here. I was thrilled when I received the email for my acceptance in the Student Scholarship program of the Grace Hopper Celebration India 2020. I could only imagine then about all the networking, mentoring sessions, and more that I was now going to have access to!
So, the program was scheduled over 4 consecutive Fridays to ensure we all are able to attend without hurting our regular schedule. We had speaker sessions, track meetups, tech workshops, and a career fair to explore during these four days. The career fair was scheduled for the last two days of the conference i.e. 5th and 12th March. Since this year it was all virtual, we had access to an online portal where we all could schedule and book slots with recruiters and discuss the hiring process. This year we had 35+ sponsors who were looking to hire women across all engineering backgrounds and age-groups including companies like Google, American Express, Cisco, Goldman Sachs, Salesforce, Adobe, Atlassian, Intuit, etc.
Out of all the sessions, the one that really left a mark on me was the Opening Keynote by Ruchika Panesar and Arundhati Bhattacharya. They discussed their careers, life lessons, and how they continued to be great at their leadership roles even during a pandemic. Women indeed are “natural crisis managers”! From being a literature graduate to becoming the first-ever woman Chair of State Bank of India and now the CEO of Salesforce India, Arundhati Bhattacharya’s inspiring story was all the motivation I needed! One of the key things in life for success is to never stop learning! Learning from the environment, and even the smallest people is what keeps one going. Ruchika Panesar, VP, Head of Technology, Asia Pacific at American Express, shared how she has taken on roles despite the learning curve and learned along the way. They also discussed how women feel the need of taking a break due to their family issues but also not completely ending their careers. The fact that company leaders and employees started to try and work on creating policies, and special programs by which women could restart their careers after some time is commendable!
There were Tech Workshops and it involved several discussions on various technical topics like — How Quantum can be used to create algorithms for business needs for fast processing, Autonomous Social Drones, and so much more! Attendees could also attend the paper presentations and connect with them during the Track Meetups. Some other things that I enjoyed at vGHCI were the iConnect sessions. Hearing stories from people about how they are contributing towards building a more inclusive work environment for their women employees and how some of their talented people are disrupting the tech world. Together we grow, together we build!
I had an amazing time during the virtual GHCI and I hope to continue contributing to the organization in various possible ways. I thoroughly enjoyed it during the sessions and I am taking away a bag full of learnings, life lessons, career tips and so much more.
Thank you to the entire team of AnitaB.org for making vGHCI a huge success!
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