Lightning Talks Spotlight: Ali French & Lauren Wong from HG Insights

For those of you who don’t already know, Santa Barbara Women in STEM is hosting our first of many Lightning Talks event on March 3, 2021 at 6:00pm PST via Zoom. This event is sponsored by HG Insights, and will feature 10 speakers, from a variety of companies, who will share their software-related projects and passions in only three minutes! There will be prizes and giveaways for both the speakers and the attendees. We hope to see you there!

View the event and RSVP:

Lightning Talks Event - Software. March 3, 2021 at 6:00pm PST.

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This past week, we connected with Ali French and Lauren Wong, both from HG Insights, a technology intelligence software company located in Santa Barbara. Ali is a Sr. Manager of Global Revenue Operations, and Lauren is a Senior Data Services Engineer. They shared what they love about working at HG Insights, their perspective on what the recruiting process is like now, and what HG Insights is doing to maintain collaboration among teams. Check out their interviews below, and be sure to catch their Lightning Talks on March 3rd!

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Q: What do you love about HG Insights?

Ali: I love that we're growing quickly but are able to maintain the internal personal relationships of a small company.

Ali French, HG Insights

Lauren Wong, HG Insights

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Lauren: Definitely the culture! Working with colleagues who are just as passionate and motivated about what we do is a bonus that motivates me to do my best daily. Its rewarding being able to see my day-to-day work impact our customers directly as well.

Q: How are you able to share the sense of work culture, community, and collaboration to prospective employees via remote interviews? 

Ali: I like to talk about the "before times" and compare it to how those same things are now. For example - in the "before times" we could easily walk to the funk zone or somewhere close for happy hour and in the "now times" we do virtual happy hours (not as many as when WFH first started - the zoom fatigue is REAL but that's ok and people understand that virtual happy hours don't HAVE to happen, and they can be scheduled ad hoc).

Q: How has the office environment changed since going remote?

Lauren: Aside from the Zoom fatigue that I'm sure we're all experiencing, I would say HG has done a good job at keeping all of us connected. Whether it's through virtual happy hours, drive-thru lunches, or keeping our company town halls a good mix of business and fun. HG's company culture is a large part of our office environment as well, I think all of my colleagues genuinely like working with each other and connecting with each other, so it's really a natural thing.

HG Insights Group Fitness Class

Q: What are key things (skills, experience, interests) that you look for in potential interns or entry-level employees?

Ali: Problem Solving is number 1 for me. Not just from the standpoint of "can this person fix what's broken in the system/process" but from the standpoint of can this person be forward thinking enough to know that a solution is a bad idea because it solves a problem today but will lead to another one in 6-12 months. Even if those situations are unavoidable and you have to put a Band-Aid on something, having the ability to identify those situations is key. This is also a reason why I'm a big fan of giving late-stage candidates interview assignment/project - it weeds out people who aren't serious about the opportunity and gives them a real-life example of something they'd need to problem solve for on the job.

Lauren: I would say it's important for potential interns to have a natural desire and passion for working with data. Having that innate curiosity for asking the 'why' and challenging what is considered the standard quo is something HG looks for in its candidates.

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Q: How has the interview process (and/or recruiting process) changed since going remote?

Ali: Personally, I like zoom interviews. It keeps people on time because both the candidate and the interviewer can see when another person has entered the zoom room, signaling that it's time to wrap up. That was hard to do when conducting in person interviews without feeling rude to the candidate. And if one interview runs late, it throws off the entire schedule which can often lead to last minute shuffling of interview slots (and everyone hates last minute schedule changes!)

Q: Hobby/activity you have picked up in quarantine?

Ali: PiYo!! (Pilates-Yoga Hybrid). Pre-quarantine I was not a huge fan of group classes but now I'm a big fan. I love it even more because it's run by a co-worker’s wife. Her Facebook group has been a life saver for both my physical and mental health during quarantine!

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Ali with her dog

Q: What’s your go-to work snack?

Ali: Chips, Chips and more chips.

Lauren: Before our offices closed, I definitely would go for our usual Wednesday bagels, but since work from home, I love going for a classic avocado toast with tomatoes and balsamic vinegar or Trader Joes' soft dried mangos!

Q: What was the last song you listened to?

Ali: I don't wanna know - Fleetwood Mac

Lauren: Pretty Bug (feat. James Vincent McMorrow) by Allan Rayman

Good Space Giveaway and Interview with Owner, Mika Silverman

In collaboration with Good Space Coworking, we are awarding a student in STEM one membership grant!

This grant provides one student with a membership to Good Space for one academic term, beginning January 2020. Good Space Coworking provides a quiet, focused study and work space for students and professionals alike. We are following all local COVID recommendations including frequent sanitization, socially distant workspaces, and enforcing mask usage for all of our members.

A winner will be selected on December 30th!

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For more info on Good Space Coworking, check out our interview with owner, Mika Silverman below!

Q: Being a woman in STEM - studying physics at UCSB, working in IT and project management, and as a consultant and business owner - why do you find it so important to support students entering STEM fields?

A: STEM isn’t easy but it is exceptionally valuable to individuals, society, and the planet. Personally, it took me years to feel comfortable contributing when I was the only woman in the room. I felt I was under added scrutiny. The tipping point for me was when I knew I was the best in the room. I want to help others get there so they can make valuable contributions. 

Mika Silverman, Owner/Founder of Good Space

Q: What makes Good Space stand out when it comes to study spaces for students? 

A: Aside from being a comfortable place to study, with plenty of desks, great wifi, comfy chairs, outlets everywhere, quiet, with plenty of free, easy parking, the Good Space community is what makes it a great place to study. Good Space has many people studying not just from various universities but for exams such as MCATs, LSATs, USMLE. 

Q: favorite Hobbies during COVID?

A: I have always been a hiker, but lately, without anything social to do on a Saturday, I have switched from doing a quick four or five miles to doing longer ten or twelve hikes. I usually take the podcast “More or Less” with me. It is a fantastic deep dive into popularized news statistics, going past the number into how the data was gathered, the accuracy, and analysis.

Q: What have been some of your clients’ successes using Good Space during COVID? 

A: Good Space has been facilitating stress-free productivity for many members during COVID. That has translated into different types of success. I hear about great test scores, funding for new ventures, landing new jobs, contracts for hundreds of thousands of dollars closing, and great term GPAs. I think everyone is succeeding in their own pursuits.

Q: Anything else you want to talk about? 

A: Good Space was founded to bring the business, science, technology, and academic communities together because my personal passion is bringing people together to support them. I encourage people to contact me. Entrepreneur looking for some pitch deck feedback, contact me. Student in desperate need for a quiet place to study, but can’t afford membership, contact me. Work-from-home parent professional that needs space a few days a week, contact me. Looking for contacts to help find a job, contact me. I can’t always help, but if I can I want to.

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Workshop Follow-Up: Healthcare industry insights

Thank you for attending our Virtual Panel and Workshop! In this post and some future ones, we will answer more of your questions with help from members of our network. Up first is nurse practitioner Vicky Diaz.

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Below are questions and answers about the healthcare industry from Vicky Diaz, MSN FNP:

Q: How important is networking to get your foot in the door in the healthcare industry? 

A: I feel that networking is very important. I have actually found most of my jobs through people that I know. I'm a board member for the California Association Nurse Practitioner SB chapter and I encourage nurse practitioner students who are about to graduate to come to our events. During our monthly meetings we often announce job openings. The best way to get the foot in the door of a new job is to know somebody who works there. The more a person sees you, the better they know you and the more likely it is that you will be considered for a job.

Q: How does medical training/education look different right now due to COVID?

A: I'm a preceptor for nurse practitioner students. However, due to COVID my boss decided that I could not take any students due to distancing and decreasing the traffic in our practice. We are also required to wear PPE and for a while it was difficult to get N95 Masks for our staff, so having a student was out of the question. I feel that [due to COVID] student nurse practitioners are struggling to get placement for their training since there are only a few places that allow students. I have had to turn down several students in order to protect my patients (since I work with elderly population). Therefore, my advice would be for anyone who is a student to try to get an internship or a lower paying job in the company where they want to eventually work. It is OK to start as a janitor or the dishwasher at the company if this will lead to other opportunities. 

Q: What are your top tips for students who are figuring out if they want to enter the medical field? 

A: I highly recommend young adults to consider going into the medical field since it offers job security. However, don't do it if you hate working with people or hate blood. The best way to know if you would like working in the medical field is to do volunteer work at a clinic or hospital. This way you can get used to being around sick people. It is important to acquire skills on how to help others in need and learn to be compassionate and caring. I started working as a caregiver. 

Q: Why did you choose to enter the medical field, and what did your decision process look like?

A: I decided to go into the medical field after my sister found me a summer job being a caregiver for a lady who was dying of cancer. It felt good to help somebody and get paid for it. It did not feel like a job.

Since I had no money for college, I started at SBCC. I do feel that many city colleges offer vocational degrees that are in demand. Getting my registered nurse degree from SBCC led to more opportunities and I was able to find a job right away. Also being able to work allow me to pursue my dream without having too many student loans.

Virtual Workshop - Meet Our Facilitators!

Our Virtual Workshop is tonight - Thursday, October 15th at 6pm! Read about our workshop facilitators who will share specific experiences and perspectives that will benefit and/or encourage attendees.

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- Manasa Mannava -

facilitator

Manasa Mannava is a technology enthusiast with comprehensive experience in building scalable software. She specializes in full stack software development and works for RealPage Inc as a Full Stack Software Developer. Four years ago, she graduated from Arizona State University  with a Master's degree in Computer Software Engineering. 

Manasa enjoys singing carnatic classical music and painting during free time. She also wouldn't miss out on nature hikes and beach sports!

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- amanda antonelli -

facilitator

Amanda Antonelli is an Environmental Planner/Project Manager with a specialization in water supply infrastructure. She works with municipal water agencies on projects across California, including recycled water, groundwater recharge, wastewater treatment, and pipeline expansion. At Rincon Consultants, Amanda evaluates the potential environmental impacts of proposed infrastructure projects. Amanda received a Master's of Environmental Science and Management from the Bren School at UCSB, where she specialized in Water Resources Management. Before working on water infrastructure in California, Amanda worked for several years in sustainable international development in Washington DC and overseas. Amanda is a lifelong surfer (of small waves), and in her spare time you can find her going on bluffs walks with her wife, Sarah, and their dog, Zazu.

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- sarah antonelli -

facilitator

Sarah Antonelli is an environmental professional with experience in geospatial science, strategic communication, and database management. She has been working for several years as a data scientist, specializing in spatial data management and visualization for renewable energy development, groundwater remediation, and human health risk assessment projects in the United States. She is passionate about harnessing data to make informed decisions about environmental, financial, and human health. Sarah is currently working as a GIS Analyst at ENGIE North America in Santa Barbara.   

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- emma kroloff-

facilitator

Emma Kroloff is a PA-C (Physician Assistant) in Santa Barbara. She works in pediatric orthopedics in an outpatient clinic and does surgery inpatient at Cottage Hospital with two physicians -- Dr. Early and Dr. Maguire. Emma earned her undergraduate degree in Biochemistry at Saint Mary’s College of California where she was a D1 student athlete on the soccer and cross country team. She then went on to earn her Physician Assistant degree at the University of Southern California. In her free time, Emma enjoys hiking, backpacking, trail running, and climbing.

Emma developed a passion for orthopedics early on in her medical education after working with the team physician for the Chicago Bulls. Her interests include sports medicine and pediatrics.

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- lauren vucovich -

facilitator

Lauren Vucovich is a Lead Product Manager at Evidation Health. She leads a team that covers Product Management, Product Operations, and User Experience for software products that engage individuals in health research opportunities. Prior to Evidation Health, Lauren completed her PhD in Computational Cognitive Neuroscience at UC Santa Barbara. Outside of work, Lauren enjoys visiting national parks, hiking, and watching the Great British Baking Show.

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- alena higgins -

facilitator

Alena Higgins is a Scientist on Apeel's Molecular Sciences Team focused on extracting, purifying, and transforming valuable compounds from biomass for use in Apeel's technologies. By sourcing materials from discarded biomass, her work aims to serve Apeel's mission of reducing food waste by giving new value to fruits and vegetables that would otherwise go to waste in the processing of food products. A member of the Apeel team since 2016 - when she began as an Extractions Intern - Alena became an Extraction Scientist in 2018 after receiving a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She fills her free time with friends, family, and her dog by enjoying quiet activities like knitting, watching movies, and driving through Santa Barbara's beautiful mountains in search of the perfect ocean view.

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- graciela “grace” vega -

facilitator

Graciela “Grace” Vega is a first-generation Salvadorian American who was the first in her family to graduate high school, obtain a bachelor’s degree, and is currently completing the last year of her master’s degree. Grace is currently working in the mental health field focusing primarily with at-risk youth within the Latinx community. Grace strives to become a pillar of support and growth for the Latinx community here in Santa Barbara in hopes of normalizing and prioritizing mental health. Having previously been on track to apply to medical school, with over 10 years of experience in the medical field, she has a lot of insight into the process and isn’t afraid to share advice. Grace is also a local artist and poet who has helped to both host art events and showcase her art to the Santa Barbara community. It is important for Grace to share her knowledge and experiences with others because she believes life is not a competition and often times you are not alone in your fears of the future.

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