Owl Labs Meet & Greet by Gloria Lau

Gloria Lau
Senior Vice President of Engineering
Lena Prykhodko
Principal SQA
Kushal Dhillon
Senior Software Development in Test
Delaney Patterson
Senior Front-end Engineer
Jennifer Li
Senior Principal Computer Vision Engineer
Automatic Summary

Welcome to Owls Lab: A Space for Women in Technology

Welcome to our insightful Owls lab session, where we're introducing some of the amazing women engineers who are making a difference in our lab every day. We believe their stories and experiences can inspire others in their journey within the tech industry.

Introducing Our Panelists

Meet the amazing women who are part of our panel:

  1. Kusel Dilan, a senior software development engineer in our labs, is passionate about leveraging technology to create products that improve communications and collaborations in the workspace.
  2. Delaney Patterson, a senior front engineer based in Florida, believes in the power of camaraderie within our engineering department and loves the support she receives from her team and upper management.
  3. Jennifer Lee, a part of our software application group as a senior principal engineer, works on cutting-edge AI technologies to ensure the best audio and video experience for users.
  4. Lina Prea, a Principal SQ and release management, leads efforts in improving the testing process thus ensuring an impeccable performance of our product ranges.
  5. Laura Lau, senior VP of engineering who manages the hardware and software development at Owls Lab.

Challenges Encountered as Women in Tech

Our panelists share instances of challenges they faced being women in tech, a field predominantly male-dominated. Delaney pointed out the lack of female role models and mentorship, a sentiment echoed by many others. She also addressed the issue of lack of confidence to speak up and voice opinions, especially when she was the only woman in the team.

Benefits and Challenges of Remote Work Environment

Our panelists found pros and cons in both remote and in-office environments. Lena, who experienced all three modes- office, remote, and hybrid, finds the hybrid model most beneficial as it combines the best of both worlds.

Owls Lab: Creating a Supportive Environment for Women in Tech

Not only does Owls Lab provide flexible work options suitble for women managing both professional and family duties, it also fosters diversity in workplace. The company is proactive in building teams that represent a variety of backgrounds and experiences.

Opportunities for Growth

Our panelists believe there are ample growth opportunities for women in tech. Increasing the pipeline of women by encouraging them to study STEM and increasing visibility of women in tech by highlighting their accomplishments are just some of the ways forward. Also, finding mentors and supportive communities can help women build confidence and progress in their careers.

Getting into the Engineering Industry

Kusel recommends keeping oneself updated with the latest industry trends in technology through online communities such as Stack Overflow and Reddit. Also, following tech blogs that cover various topics including testing strategies and automation tools and taking part in online courses are also beneficial.

To conclude, Owls Lab is creating a diverse, inclusive and anti-bias environment where women are empowered to succeed. With a strong belief in nurturing a supportive culture and providing opportunities for growth, we hope to continue driving gender equality in the tech industry. Together, let's create a favourable space for women in tech!


Video Transcription

Hi, everyone. We're excited to be here. Uh Welcome to the Owls lab session. Uh We are, you know, really excited to be able to meet with you and talk with you. Um Thank you for taking the time to join us.Um I get to work with amazing women engineers every day at work. So we have some of them on the panel today to join us to talk about their amazing experience at our lab. So let's start with introductions. Um We wanna maybe start with Kel.

Yeah, sure, Gloria. Thank you. Hello everyone and thank you for having me here today. Uh My name is Kusel Dilan and I'm working as a senior software development engineer in test at our labs. Uh I'm excited to be here to share my experiences and insights on test automation and quality uh quality assurance. So as an estate at our labs, I have been responsible for ensuring the quality and reliability of various software projects. And I have worked extensively with tools such as Selenium Apium Maven and other automation frameworks in my testing at our labs. We are passionate about uh using a technology to create products that enhance communication and collaboration in the workspace. So as a software development engineer in test, I do play a critical role in achieving this goal. And also by working very closely with our development team to design and execute test plans, identify and report bugs and ensure that our products uh they meet the highest standards of quality. I also work with the project developers to ensure that the testing process is aligned with the project goals and schedules and uh if any issues are and in case of any issues, they are resolved in a timely and efficient manner.

So working on these kind of projects, uh gave me a deep understanding of how automated testing uh can improve the overall quality and efficiency of the software development process. Uh As a tech technology, software testing engineer, I was drawn to our labs uh because of its innovative approach to video conferencing technology. One of the things I love about working at out labs is the opportunity uh to work with the talented and passionate team of engineers, designers and product managers. Everyone at out labs is committed to creating products that are both functional and user, which makes it a great place to work as a technology engineer. I also appreciate the company's focus on continuous improvement and innovation. We are always looking for new ways to enhance our products and stay ahead of the curve which keeps my work challenging and engaging. I feel that I am making a valuable contribution to this mission and I am very proud to be part of such a dynamic and forward thinking organization. Thank you for having me here today. Thank you, Kasha.

Thank you, LA.

Did you wanna do

insurance? Um Yeah, hey, everyone. I'm Delaney Patterson. Um First, I just wanna say thank you to the conference for having me. Um I'm super pumped to be here and talk to you about my experience at a labs and being a woman in tech. Um So I am a senior front engineer and I work in Florida. I mostly work on our customer facing portal called The Nest, which is a web application where our users go to manage their own devices. I work with React and other fun and technologies every day to create components and functionality that allow our customers to, for example, change the name of their devices. They can update the software for their owl devices. They can also check the status of their owls, see which are online offline or in a beating, et cetera. Um It's actually a really exciting time for everyone on this team as we are currently planning and creating some robust features for our enterprise customers. Um One of my favorite things about working at labs is the camaraderie within the engineering department. It is definitely something I haven't experienced at previous jobs. Um The support from my team members on the front end team all the way up to upper management is really amazing.

Um I feel super comfortable going to my manager for any issues I'm having, whether it's personal or work related. Um Everyone works really well together. It's an environment that I'm not really timid in. If I want help or need help, I'm not afraid to ask for it and I will always get it from someone. Um Everyone is really focused on improving the customer experience and we're supporting each other every day to create the best products um that can help our customers thrive in their hybrid work environment. Um Yeah, that's just a little bit about me. Thank you so much

Jennifer. Did you want to go next?

Sure. Thank you, Florie. Hello, everyone. Um I'm very excited to be part of this conference. Uh My name is Jennifer Lee. I have been at all labs as a senior principal engineer in software application group for about one year. I work remotely. Uh My group develops software for an edge device with camera um microphones and speakers. It process audio and video data with cutting edge and A I technologies to make sure the right people are displayed at the right time with good voice and image quality. We try to make the hybrid meeting experience as natural and e effective as in person meeting. So my work is mostly related to image processing, computer vision and machine learning. For example, I added functions to adjust the image uh sharpness contrast color temperature, et cetera so that users can have the best image quality according to their preference and environment. Another example is I developed an average to a crack face distortion for a pinhole camera.

When wide angle camera is used to capture group picture faces that are close to sight are stretched and squeezed. This algorithm cracks those faces and make them look normal and pregnant. I enjoy working on our innovative and exciting products that have positive impacts on people's daily life.

I like my colleagues and managers. They are talented, friendly and supportive. The option to work remotely is also very nice. It saves lots of commute time and helps to reduce air pollution and traffic. OK.

Thank you so much, Jennifer Lena.

Um Thank you, Gloria. Um I'm really happy to be here today. Um My name is Lina Prea. Um I'm the Principal SQ A here at our labs um focusing on SQ A and release management. Uh The nature of my job allows me to um see a big picture across all our hardware and software products and uh as a company as we add more products and more new features. Um I'm constantly, constantly focused on uh leading the effort on, on improving the testing process, making it more efficient, uh making sure that we can effectively and reliably test uh more of the products without the significant impact um on timeline. Um Together with my team, uh we evaluate the upcoming um software list changes, how they might impact the current product um its performance, um their performance, reliability, scalability and what other dependencies might um show up there. Um As ce team, uh we are always in to try to dive deeper in the product understanding. Uh proving the efficiency of SQ A. Uh being a part of early investigation work, being able to help with tuning certain parameters for a new functionalities and advocating for those um changes uh to be properly implemented um in early stage, um Absolutely working closely with product and developers to uh to make sure to scope and prioritize projects properly and allocate resources uh for those and um also providing guidance in the in the executions of the projects, ensuring on time delivery with the best quality that will meet or exceed the expectations of our customers.

Um I'm in Bell Labs for over six years. I joined um the company where when it was a dozen of uh people here and absolutely loved the family welcoming environment and like past the six years, um you can tell, I love the company, I'm still here and I think the key value is the people that we have here. It's just such a talented um kind, knowledgeable, um smart, supporting and passionate group of people working here that I really um inspired uh inspire myself every day with them. Thank you.

Thank you, Lena and hi, I'm Laura Lau. I'm the senior VP of engineering at where I managed the hardware and software development as you can see on the screen, um, we're using our product. Um, so you can see the panoramic that's done by our 360 degree fish eye on top. And then Lena and I are in the, what we call the stage area where whoever's talking it shows. So it's, it's pretty cool. It's a I powered and it's a very smart camera. Um, you know, I really enjoy the strong teamwork we have here as well where we really help each other and support each other. And I think, uh you know, we're very fortunate to be recognized by Inc um as one of the best places to work for the fourth year in the row. So very excited about that. So I'm gonna go on to some uh panel questions. Um What are instances throughout your career where you face challenges as woman in tech? Um The lady, did you want to take that one?

Yeah, thanks Gloria. Um So I have definitely faced a couple of challenges being a woman in tech. Um One of the bigger ones has been at previous jobs, not having a female role model or mentor someone to, you know, look up to or be guided by. Um I think most if not, all of us can agree that women are underrepresented in tech leadership positions. And I actually recently read that management positions in tech are made up of 62% male and only 38% female. So with that number, it's, I mean, it's obvious why I've ran into this challenge. I know I'm not the only one. I felt like a lack of a female role model. Um I was feeling discouraged and isolated at times. Um When you're not seeing someone like you in a position of power, you, you kind of start questioning, like, do I belong here? Can I, you know, make my way up the ladder and really succeed here? Um And you're ultimately asking the difficult question of, should I stay or kind of leave the company and put myself back out there. Um Another challenge I've faced is definitely not having the confidence to speak up um Either in planning meetings or one on one sessions with previous managers, small group settings, large group settings.

Um Just oftentimes I felt isolated being the only woman in the room and ultimately found myself um towards the back, you know, sitting and really just listening, uh nodding here and there in agreement, but not speaking up, uh giving my opinions or any ideas I've had. Um specifically, I can remember at a previous job, me and my team were starting to plan our next project. And at the time, I was the only woman on the team and I had been hired for my angular experience um and skills. And so we started this discussion about what framework or library we're gonna use and it was getting a little heated. Um Things were being said like, uh why would we use angular? No, I don't wanna use angular. I've heard react easier. Let's just stick to Vanilla's Javascript, stuff like that. Um So ultimately, what did I do? Nothing. I didn't speak up. Um I didn't say anything. I didn't speak up for myself or for angular. You know, I could have been like while you're going through that steep learning curve you're talking about like I'm here for support. I can help um I can help anyone on the team as we build this project. Um So, yeah, kind of, kind of sad. Um And if you're wondering, we ultimately did go with Angular because one of my male coworkers was very loud and um he won the argument. So, um but yeah, those are just some challenges I've been through as a woman in tech.

Thank you so much for sharing that. That's really good. The, the next question we have is, do you think remote and hybrid work environments have made it harder or easier for women in the workplace to have their voices heard? Um You know, have there been clear challenges and benefits? Uh Lena, would you like to take that one? Yeah,

thank you, Gloria. Um So I, I myself uh was able to work uh in the office then um during COVID be a remote person and after that, uh right now I am in a hybrid, um, we work and it's all within one company. So probably it's a bit easier to compare. Um, I don't think there is a straightforward answer to, to this question. There are definitely pros and cons, um, in, um, in the hybrid remote approach. Um, and with the office one, I think now I can choose myself and I would definitely prefer the hybrid model. Um, I think it was challenging at the beginning when um besides the work assignments, um I had to manage myself um in the house being a mom, being a wife and kids, not understanding that I might be busy in the meetings. Um But once I figured it out, it all became easier and I was able to actually be more efficient um finding the breaks between the meetings and maybe doing some cooking while still pro processing some thought about some work I wanna do. Um I, I allowed myself to like maybe go and pick some favorite Zumba instructor class that would be hard to do if I have to be in the office.

Um So, so I, I felt like there were benefits where I can please myself a bit more and at the same time, be way effective um at work, um I, I still have the flexibility going to the office and I do it like once a week or so and I can tell uh that it's easy for me to compare that in the office.

I can do less work and I have to catch up at home because it's such an enjoying time just to talk to colleagues to bond with my team as we do a lot of testing in the office. Um So I, yeah, I just have to go back home and catch up with all the stuff. Um But I think that overall the ability to be at home um saving time with commute and I think Jennifer mentioned earlier and saving time with like these other items and being more efficient in planning your day um around all work and non work related activities uh definitely helps me to be more productive at work.

Thank you. No, thank you for sharing. The next question is uh what are the ways in which you feel our labs creates an environment that is supportive of women in tech. Uh So did you want to take that one? Uh Yes. Sure,

Gloria, I do feel that our labs do create an environment that is supportive of women in uh working in technology. So working as a software development engineer in test uh in various tech companies before I can say that our labs is one of the companies that stands out uh in creating a very supportive environment for women in tech. Uh The company's commitment to fostering diversity in the workplace is evident in its hiring process which prioritize building a diverse team that represents a variety of backgrounds and experiences of different types of people. So as a remote first company, our labs also uh offers flexible work options including remote work is one of them and the flex, flex uh flexible schedules, which can be beneficial for women uh who may uh have a unique challenges, balancing work and family responsibilities. I think all these benefits are critical components of building a workplace where women can thrive. Uh I can proudly say that our labs is a company that is committed to creating an inclusive and supportive environment for women in technology. Thank you, Gloria.

Thank you so much. And our last question is, where do you think there is opportunity for growth for women in tech? And uh Jennifer, did you wanna go answer this first?

Sure. Thank you, Glorie. Uh One option is increasing the pipeline of women in tech. Uh encouraging more women to study science, technology, engineering, math fields can help increase the number of women in tech. This can be done through uh outreach programs, mentorship opportunities like uh providing sharing opportunities, high school girls and providing support for women throughout their academic and professional careers. Another option is increasing visibility of women in tech, highlighting the accomplishments of women in tech can help increase their visibility and inspire other women to pursue career in tech. This can be done uh through media coverage, speaking opportunities and awards programs. Thank you.

Thank you so much. And Kelle, did you wanna take this question as Well,

yes, sure, Gloria. I think uh there are many areas where there is an opportunity for growth uh for women in technology. This might include increasing the number of women in leadership roles, uh improving access to funding and technical education as well and addressing some uh workplace, cultural issues and providing networking uh opportunities to women. So I think by addressing these areas, we can create a more diverse and inclusive tech industry where women can thrive. Thank you.

Thank you. And we'll have Lena talk, talk about this question as well. Yeah, thank

you. Um So III, I really believe that an important part for women's career growth is for women to be confident in what they're doing in their professional knowledge. And it is something that I see is pretty frequently missing. So I believe that it's important to, to be able to find the community uh maybe somewhere online or in your workplace uh where you can get the support from other women. Um Having some questions answered, um maybe having some examples um or a piece of advice and this will help like to cons to confidence and just realize how powerful you are yourself. Um And having maybe some mentor uh that, that can reassure you how great you are um will absolutely help you feel better and go from there. And I'm pretty sure that once that is done, your career will go way faster.

Thank you. This is great. Thank you. Everyone. Um, we, we're gonna transition to a Q and A right now. So, um, please definitely put your questions on the chat and we'll, we'll definitely take a look at them and answer them. Don't be shy. Ok. Mm. Well, I think if there's no questions, oh, there's a question. Can you elaborate on some of the products our lab has? Oh, sure. Um, did anyone want to take this question? Hey, Lena. Um,

Yeah, I think uh I can take that one. So six years ago, we started with one product, the Meeting Owl um that is designed for the conference rooms to improve the experience where the remote participants can see those who are talking in the room like you can see from our screen right now. Um And it was a great success. Um So uh we decided to go with uh improved versions of the medias with more functionalities, with better um image quality, with better audio quality. Um And right now, we have like AAA set and ecosystem of the products which includes media, pro media three, um an extended mic that allows to pick up any further um away uh from the TV. Uh We do have a wide board owl product that allows to bring on stage um the uh whiteboard and whatever slides might be. Um There. Uh We also um have a new product, um the Owl bar that also allows to improve um the experience in the room um it's our front and um center conference solution.

Um And uh along with these hardware products, we as well have uh some software products um that allow us to manage um not us the users uh to manage the uh devices uh from the web dashboard. And we have the um mobile and uh desktop apps that also allow to manage the devices for those who are in the room. Um bringing additional pictures uh based on the on the customer's needs.

It's a briefly not very good. Thank you so much. You too. And I do see another question. Um It says uh any tips for dealing with the frustration of when you're told no to progress your career in favor of male counterpart. So this is a very good question. Um I can take this one and anyone else can turn up as well. Um I, I think, you know, it's, it's happened uh in the past to all of us, I'm sure. Um and you know, I think the first thing I would do, at least if it was me, I would, I would try and um talk to my manager and ask, you know, you know, is there anything I can do that, uh you know, that I can improve on that, that, you know, would have helped me progress in my career instead of someone else, right?

Like first trying to figure out, is there something that you yourself needs to work on and and try and understand that if you're not getting a clear answer or if it's not clear, um, or you don't agree with it. I think, I think, I think it's good to maybe find another place where or another department where someone does appreciate you and, and would allow you to progress in your career. So, I think that's, that's another path. Um, and that's my take anyone else you wanna chime in? Ok, great. Thank you for asking that question. Oh Jennifer, did you want to talk about it? Uh

Yeah, I want to echo what you said. Uh Yeah, I agree with you that uh you can find the, you know, the the right play for you for your career development. But it also depends on the manager style. So some managers, you know, they pray for this use whatever he thinks the best and depends on also the the the task priority. So there's a combination of those factors. Um So there, there's many other factors, you know, to the environment and the culture in the company. So yeah, but at first speak up and communicate with the manager to see if it's possible. Uh If not, maybe you know, other department in the company may work out. Yeah.

Thank you so much. And we do have another question. Uh What is the best way for a woman to break into the engineering industry? Any tests? Anyone want to talk about this one?

Yeah, I can take Gloria that one. So uh I think um uh like what I do is I am constantly looking for resources um to help me stay current with the latest industry trends in technology. So what I do is one of my favorite resources for information is the online communities uh science like Stag overflow and reddit. They provide a very detailed information and resources for um uh software engineers. So these forums, they uh also allow me to connect with other uh industry professionals. We can share ideas and get answers to questions. Apart from that, I think there are countless tech blogs out there um that also provide very valuable information and advices for software engineers.

So some of my favorites are the Google Testing blog and the Testing Excellence blog, which I do follow. So these blogs, they uh like kind of cover a variety of topics like including testing strategies, automation tools and best practices. I think online courses. Uh They are also a great way to learn new skills and knowledge sites like uh Odey, they offer courses on a, a wide range of topics including programming uh and software testing methodologies. Um These courses, they are often self paced and uh inexpensive. So making them easy to fit in into my busy schedule. Thank you.

OK, very good. Thank you so much. And I think that this might conclude our session. So really want to thank everyone and especially a big thanks to the panel I get, I also work with you every day. So I'm very lucky. So, anyway, well, thank you everyone for joining us. We hope to, uh, you know, get to participate again next year. Thank you so much. Bye bye everyone. Thank you. Thank you. Bye bye.