Wit Twin Cities's Podcast

In this fishbowl-style panel discussion, we talk with the folks at the Data Science Minneapolis meetup, hosted by Homi about data science, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and why Amazon should be careful about who buys pressure cookers. Topics ranged from data modeling, bias in the data, the importance of data visualization, business acumen, and why data science cannot (or should not) be the answer to everything. Our rotating panelists shared key skills that help when you’re getting started, and what they do (or have done) to continue learning.

We started this episode with the idea of talking about what it means to be an “only” on your team, in our organization, wherever. We traversed space (space! NASA! Moon rocks! again!), early influences (brothers! Taking stuff apart! Barbies!), how to ask for what you need from your allies (if that’s time to breathe, someone to raise up our voice or sit with us, or someone to just listen)...and why there are no magic bullets. Why it can be frustrating to be asked to help when the person asking doesn’t seem interested in really doing the work. Why some days navigating the world just makes a person tired. Why even with all that, the little kid that wanted to work at NASA, that little kid who got in trouble for taking things apart, still loves working in tech. Alecia Hodges, little girl who learned about the planets from her brother, shares her wisdom and her experiences and her stories. And we should listen. - Anna’s Favorite Tech Things introduces us to Better Allies: the website (betterallies.com), the newslett

In this live podcast from Minnebar 14, we discuss machine learning's influence on the world in a fishbowl discussion format where the audience is invited to join the podcast and be a part of the conversation. Our panel kicks off with Dave Mathias, Rudy Agovic, Ethel He, and Jessica talking about how we can work to understand the impact of machine learning and avoid some of its worst consequences. Others join in as the fishbowl discussion continues (and Anna moderates) and leads to talk of war and the need for people in the role of “tech ethicist.”

Anne Steiner is a leading voice in the Product Community and an all around wonderful human being. She is currently VP of Product Agility for CPrime (where she gets to lead the merry band behind Agile Day and Product Conf) - but did you know that she wanted to be a paleontologist when she was a kid? Or that she coaches women’s hockey? Our conversation takes us from her early days in tech to what she learned from her days as a Marine to why we should pay closer attention to the voices of those we respect, both when they offer constructive feedback and when they offer praise. We talk about leaders who guide us through situations we may not feel ready for and don’t let us quit, even when we really want to do just that. And take on a few broad stereotypes as we go. Anna’s Favorite Tech Thing this time around is MinneInno and their 2019 Inno on Fire winners and Jess brings us Homebrew, the package installer for Mac OS in Tech Support.

Kate Agnew is many things, including the host of the fantastic podcast “Drinks With Her” (https://www.drinkswithher.net/). We throw her into the deep end and swim through topics ranging from organizations, both local and national, that are working towards equity in tech to her Geocities site that sparked her love of tech. We talk coder dojos, Hack the Gap, Technovation, and Girls in Tech and get from there to gender pay gaps and why child care is an important issue both at tech events and the workplace. This episode’s Favorite Tech Thing from Anna is the Mapping Prejudice project (https://www.mappingprejudice.org/), and Jess talks version control and GITHub (https://github.com/) for Tech Support.

In this live podcast recorded on March 29 at MinneAnalytics’ Halicon 2019 we talk about Emerging Tech with Marisa Brandt, Jay Myers, and Arun Batchu. The conversation ranges from determining if your tech is a pain pill or a vitamin for your customers; the implications data privacy, who owns your data, and informed consent; using story telling to sell emerging tech to your stakeholders; and, eventually, Kohler’s voice-enabled toilet. Our panelists talk about balancing risks and competitiveness, how emerging tech can help with pressing issues like aging in place and rural health care, looking for adjacent possibilities, and the importance of STEAM. (Because this was a live panel discussion, we did not include “Tech Support” and “Favorite Tech Things” - those segments will return in Episode 3.)   You can find more links and other stuff we find interesting by following us on Twitter at @wittwincities, Instagram at @wittcpodcast, and Facebook at @womenintechtc.

We all want to be successful in our careers - but not many of us know what we want to be when we grow up, even after graduating college and entering in the workforce. Inspired by Michelle Obama’s book, “Becoming,” and Ms. Obama’s stories, Jess and Anna talk about their own decidedly non-linear career journeys and the stories and influences that got them into data science and product management (respectively). In this conversation, we talk about how we are still swerving, exploring and rethinking our journeys as we seek to “become” and not just follow a singular path a monolithic idea of “career.” In her “Tech Support” for this episode, Jess gives an overview of the command line and some of her favorite resources for using it [Command Line For Beginners]. Anna recommends “Purl” a short from Pixar SparkShorts (https://youtu.be/B6uuIHpFkuo), 8 minutes that quickly get you into the space of being an “only” at work and what true inclusion can look like, in her “Favorite Tech Things.”   You can find more links and

Women in Tech Twin Cities is a podcast that explores inclusion and intersectionality in the Twin Cities tech scene through shared experiences and a passion for technology.