07 Mar Women Inspiring Women
We are so excited to announce a new XR Atlanta sub-group, Women in XR Atlanta! Our mission is to cultivate new talent through mentorship programs, uplift the incredible female talent in the industry, and provide education within our ecosystem. Stay in the loop and get all of the latest XR Atlanta and Women in XR Atlanta news by signing up at www.XRAtlanta.com and following us on Twitter @XRAtlanta!
In honor of International Women’s Day, we asked Women in XR Atlanta members to weigh in on women who have inspired them in their careers.
Dagmar Boggs, President GlobaI 7-Eleven, The Coca-Cola Company
I had the pleasure of hearing Dagmar Boggs speak at a Women in Leadership event. Her session, “Successful Women Don’t Run from Change: They Run Toward It.” could not ring more true of her career. As a current executive at The Coca-Cola Company, she has blazed her path by speaking up, speaking out, and overcoming challenging situations to get what she wants and deserves. She made me understand that change is good and the women’s equality conversation needs to be two-sided – with both men and women collaborating for change.”
– Annie Eaton, CEO, Futurus
Evelyn Miralles, Principal Engineer and lead VR innovator for the Virtual Reality Laboratory (VRLab), an astronaut training facility at NASA Johnson Space Center
“Seeing a Latina working in the industry and blazing the trail truly inspired me to jump in. Meeting her was a great honor and she has influenced me immensely.”
– Cathy Hackl, Marketing Futurist, Co-Author of Marketing New Realities
Helen Papagiannis, Ph.D., author of Augmented Human
“Helen has been working with Augmented Reality (AR) as a designer, Ph.D. researcher, and public speaker for 12 years. Long before most women had started, Helen has been exploring new modes of storytelling and experiences in AR. Her book Augmented Human changed the way I think about the future, how AR will eventually replace our mobile phones and the responsibility we all have as creators for this new space we are all designing for. Follow Helen on LinkedIn and Twitter.”
– Dana Xavier Dojnik, Senior Director of Strategy, You Are Here Labs
Bozoma Saint John, Chief Brand Officer, Uber
“Bozoma has a stellar track record and has breathed new life into brands like Pepsi, Beats, and Apple. Within the past year, she stepped in as Chief Brand Officer at Uber when they were at one of their lowest point – a challenge most people wouldn’t be up to facing. Not only is she turning around the company’s image, but she’s also simultaneously working towards bringing diversity to the tech industry. Follow her on Instagram.”
– Amy Chmielewski, Brand Strategist, Futurus
Alexa von Tobel, Founder and CEO of LearnVest
“Since college, I have been a regular user of LearnVest because they first catered their brand to millennial women and professionals. Alexa and I are about the same age, so we both experienced a gap of a thorough education in personal finance in our 20’s – an intimidating time when people usually deal with student-loan debt and careers for the first time. She dropped out of Harvard Business School to start LearnVest, which took a lot of courage and set out her fast-growing, successful company to be a proven platform for smart, savvy individuals to master topics ranging from basic budgeting skills to understanding confusing retirement plans. I have since felt confident and empowered by being in better control of one of life’s biggest stressors – money.”
– Jane Nguyen, Account Manager, Futurus
Ada Lovelace, Mathematician
“Ada Lovelace was a mathematician who lived in the early 1800’s. She is mostly known for her work on Charles Babbage’s proposed mechanical general-purpose computer, the Analytical Engine. Computers, of course, didn’t exist back then, so all of her work was theoretical. Alas, she published the first algorithm intended to be carried out by such a machine, and as a result, she is regarded as the first computer programmer. Today we celebrate the achievements of women in STEM in her honor every second Tuesday in October. She is not only an inspiration to women today, but to anyone with a creative vision that feels ahead of their time. As a Women in VR I can relate to that feeling.”
– April Arrglington, Co-Founder of ARchimeral Inc.
Who are the influential women in your life? Tweet at @XRAtlanta.
