Purdue University and SAP host “Women who get IT” event

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I had the privilege to attend a terrific event at Purdue University yesterday which was designed to encourage more women to consider careers in information technology. It was attended by over 150 students, faculty and IT professionals. 

The College to Careers event was subtitled: Celebrating female role models in the field of technology and featured an outstanding group of women working in a range of technology careers. The panel of professionals spoke enthusiastically, candidly, and personally about the wide range of careers in IT and related fields. The event provided a unique opportunity to hear from hardworking and inspiring technology professionals with a focus on the challenges women face today on the road to becoming effective leaders in this domain. It was a very positive forum that aligned strongly with SAP’s commitment to United Nations Sustainability Goal #5 – Gender Equality and our SAP Next-Gen work with the UN Women #sheinnovates campaign.

The panel members are listed below and included several key SAP partners who also hosted networking and information tables for the attendees.

Panelists:

Sara Marshall; Industry Advisor/Director; SAP
Rhonda Chicone; Professor; Kaplan University
Janice Zdankus; Vice President; Hewlett-Packard Enterprise
Julie (Spatola) Kukesh, Director of Education Programs, Mendix
Kathryn Seigfried-Spellar; Assistant Professor; Purdue University
Carol Song; Senior Research Scientist; Purdue University
Laura Larimer; IT Officer; Indianapolis Public Schools
Christine Drury; CEO; Co-Founder Christine Van Marter Consulting; Conference Ventures, LLC
Amy Hershman; Central Area Manager of Strategy and Planning; Cisco

 Panel Moderators:

Victoria Farnsworth; Executive Director, Enterprise Solutions; Purdue University
Regina Kunkle; National Vice President State and Local, Higher Education; SAP

During the networking portion of the event I was able to join several SAP colleagues in speaking with Purdue students about SAP careers and careers in our ecosystem.

SAP Next-Gen is an innovation community for SAP Leonardo which drives innovation with purpose supporting SAP’s commitment to the 17 UN Global Goals for sustainable development. SAP Next-Gen enables corporations, governments, and NGOs to connect with academic thought leaders and researchers, students, startups, tech community partners, venture firms, purpose driven partners, and SAP experts.

Corporations and partners can reimagine the future of industries with SAP Leonardo, seed in disruptive innovation with academia and startups, and build skills for digital futures.

SAP University Alliances is a global program enabling more than 3,200 educational institutions in over 111 countries to integrate the latest SAP technologies into teaching. Learning resources on SAP Leonardo and other SAP solutions enhance how faculty prepare the next generation with knowledge and skills for the digital future.