Katy Dickinson

20 ways to get promoted in the tech industry

An article which mentions Sun's SEED Engineering mentoring program was recently published in InfoWorld: "20 ways to get promoted in the tech industry" by Dan Tynan, October 16, 2006. The whole article is well worth reading - look for the SEED reference in item #10. Here are the twenty ways:

1. Think Business First, Technology Second
2. Raise the Bar ... and Leave It There
3. Hold Your Nose and Raise Your Hand
4. Don't Pass the Buck
5. Be a Lone Voice in the Wilderness
6. Back Down Gracefully
7. Develop a Killer App
8. Stay on the Cutting Edge
9. Feed Your Mind
10. Find Your Yoda
11. Take Deadlines Personally
12. Share the Wealth
13. Be Your Own Cheerleader
14. Build Your Own Portfolio
15. Schmooze It or Lose It
16. Walk and Talk
17. Hire Your Own Replacements
18. Embrace the Gray Areas
19. Keep Your Nose Clean (Not Brown)
20. Consider a Switch -- for the Right Reasons

Posted at 03:22PM Oct 26, 2006 by katysblog in Mentoring & Other Business  | 

350 square feet of paper (caboose application)

John finished printing out all of the pages and copies needed for our formal application to San Jose city planning to move our WP668 caboose into our backyard and hook it up to utilities. The application materials he developed are printed on very large sheets of paper (24" x 36") and include maps, satellite views, street photos, site diagrams, blueprints, descriptions of what is there now and what is proposed, etc. The whole package required by the city comes out to 350 square feet of paper. This is more than twice the floor size of my office here at Sun. John is scheduled to present it downtown on Halloween, next week. Then, we go through a formal hearing process. We were going to present the application this week but we ran into scheduling conflicts, including getting ready for my father's 80th birthday party this weekend.

When I tell people about our caboose project, those from outside of the US often ask What's a Caboose?. Check out Wikipedia for a full description but basically, a caboose is a manned railroad transport vehicle at the end of a freight train.

Our caboose, WP668 (meaning number 668 caboose from the WP or Western Pacific Feather River Railway line), was built by Pullman in 1916 as a boxcar, converted to caboose service during World War II (1943), and retired in 1977. She was acquired by the Golden Gate Railroad Museum (GGRM) in San Francisco, and finally sold to us earlier this year. Here is the picture of WP668 from the GGRM web site:

Posted at 03:02PM Oct 23, 2006 by katysblog in Caboose Project and Other Trains  | 

SEED Mentoring Annual Event

The SEED Engineering mentoring program holds its big kick-off event tomorrow and Wednesday here in Menlo Park, California. SEED holds monthly phone-in meetings plus two in-person annual events: this two-day meeting in September plus a one-day meeting in March. Over 100 people are signed up for the event. We have participants who have travelled here from China, Czech Rep., France, Germany, India, Ireland, Russia, The Netherlands, and the UK.

Executive speakers tomorrow include:

• Jonathan Schwartz, CEO and President
• Juan Carlos Soto, Vice President of Adoption Marketing and Technology Evangelism
  Talk Title: "Career Paths"
• Ivan Sutherland, Sun Fellow and Vice President
  Talk Title: "On Leadership"
• Leslie Lambert, VP & Chief Architect for Sun IT
  Talk Title: "What Sun IT is Looking for from Sun Engineering Leadership"

HR Director for the CTO Carol Gorski and I are also giving a repeat of our SEED talk at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing 2006: "5 Years of Mentoring by the Numbers". Part of each day is devoted to the SEED Showcase (brief presentations on current work by SEED participants, past and present). The SEEDs will eat lunch together and then go on afternoon tours.

For this event, Tanya Jankot has arranged these tours:

• Sun's Menlo Park Enterprise Technology Center
• Sun's Menlo Park Executive Briefing Center (EBC)
• Sun's xDesign Menlo Park Usability Labs
• Computer History Museum in Mountain View
• Sun Labs in Menlo Park

This event is by invitation only. SEED program participants, their managers and mentors from any term are invited.

Posted at 02:04PM Oct 23, 2006 by katysblog in Mentoring & Other Business  | 

Convention a Success, Over Early

The annual ECR diocesan convention ended early: all resolutions were passed, withdrawn, or rejected, all positions were elected (one after three ballots), the 2007 budget approved without amendment, our structure and funding models chosen for the future. Three Bishop's Crosses were distributed honoring extraordinary leadership and contribution to the diocese.

There were three services of celebration and thanksgiving: at the start, before lunch, and at the closing. Ours may be the only Episcopal diocese in which services are routinely held in three languages: Spanish, English, and Philipino. Prayers, bible readings, and even hymns alternate between languages. Ours may also be the only diocese in which the Bishop sings calypso songs at the convention to call it to order. Of course, we sang right back.

In fact, the singing is one of the pleasures of annual convention here on California's central coast. There are so many good voices and trained singers among the clergy and lay delegates that when we sing a hymn to pass the time while ballots are being counted, it comes out in harmony. Unpracticed but fine harmony among 250 people is a delight to hear.

ECR is so much more positive and effective during the last two years when we have been honestly assessing our own progress and potential. As Bishop Romero said, our wine may be sour but it is our wine: we need to drink it together and get on with our work. With our new diocesan structure, we can build a shared ministry and prepare to welcome our third bishop next summer.

Posted at 05:36PM Oct 21, 2006 by katysblog in Church  | 

Despacio por que precisa

Bishop Romero has a favorite saying "despacio por que precisa" which he translates as "take your time, our business is urgent". He says this when we are in the heat of discussion, urging us both to make the best decision we can, and to make time for the thought and prayer needed.

The ECR annual convention just considered Resolution E - Bishop Search Process:

Resolved, That the 26th Annual Meeting of the Convention of the Diocese of El Camino Real requests the Search Committee for the Third Bishop of El Camino Real and the Electing Convention give equal consideration to all qualified candidates without regard to their sexual orientation in compliance with Title III.1.2 of the national Canons.

Before we voted, Bishop Romero asked the convention to stop, pray, and think. He asked us to consider not just our diocese here on California's central coast but also the Anglican Communion worldwide. Come Holy Spirit, Come. The resolution passed overwhelmingly.

Posted at 02:23PM Oct 21, 2006 by katysblog in Church  | 

Diocesan Structure and Funding Model Passed

We have finished the morning session of the annual convention of the Diocese of El Camino Real (ECR) here in San Luis Obispo (SLO) on the central coast of California. So far, we delegates have passed the Consent Agenda, chosen the Collaborative diocesan structure model, and chosen a new funding model (10% of the first $178,000 of each ECR congregation's NDBI - net disposable budgeted income - plus 20% of the rest goes to ECR as fair share support). We have also voted on who will serve on a variety of commissions and departments but those election results have not been announced yet.

We left for lunch with 5 minutes remaining to discuss amendments to the new diocesan structure. We have already heard a wide variety of amendment proposals but none have yet passed. Bishop Romero is keeping the meeting moving well and telling stories to fill the time while votes are tallied.

The convention has been very well managed and even though we still have some tricky resolutions plus the budget yet to pass, there is good hope that we will adjourn in time for dinner.

Posted at 01:28PM Oct 21, 2006 by katysblog in Church  | 

Episcopal Convention - DESC Discussion

Today is annual convention for our Episcopal Diocese. Yesterday, there was pre-conference training on Anti-Racism and Safe Church (two different classes!), plus a final question and answer session with DESC. DESC is the Diocesan Evaluation and Structure Committee (fondly called Dezzi) which put together the 5 year report on the Diocese of El Camino Real (ECR), plus the two new structure proposals plus the four new financial model proposals. They have been holding discussions and making presentations all year.

Many of yesterday afternoon's questions were very specific. That is, following up on what the questioner had read and thought about, rather than general "I just don't understand" types of questions. This is a tribute to DESC's amazing efforts toward good communication and inclusion. If there is anyone in ECR who does not know about DESC and the details of their work, they have been hiding under a rock all year.

That does not mean that DESC's work is fully developed or without controversy. Many of the questions were on fragments of ideas which got left behind from an older document revision. Another set of questions was on how ECR's 13 missions will be supported and managed in the new proposed structures. ECR will be voting on two mostly-but-not-fully developed structures and models today, and trusting in the Holy Spirit to get us the rest of the way.

Posted at 07:31AM Oct 21, 2006 by katysblog in Church  | 

Annual Convention - Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real

I am here in San Luis Obispo, 187 miles south of the bottom of the San Francisco Bay, to attend the annual convention of the Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real (ECR). I am a delegate from All Saints' church in Palo Alto and also the Convener for the department of diocesan missions. This has been a wild year for ECR with energetic and detailed discussions about our future structure and funding models. ECR is one of the youngest diocese in the worldwide Anglican Communion and in the USA. At 25 years old, we are still trying to figure out what we want to be when we grow up.

ECR is in the process of searching for our 3rd bishop but we want to get our finances and organization sorted out a bit before she or he arrives. Tomorrow, we will vote for one of two diocesan structures and one of four proposed financial models. We are also voting for the representatives to various diocesan bodies during the next year.

All of us lay delegates and all of the clergy will be present to vote. Most of the delegates have been going to meetings all year to hear presentations and discuss alternatives. We have read through the 1/2" of paperwork, resolutions, summaries, lists of candidates, annual reports, and so on. Since only lunch is provided tomorrow, we have to decide everything before dinner. It will be quite a day.

Posted at 03:47PM Oct 20, 2006 by katysblog in Church  | 

Caboose Paperwork Progress, Project Blackbox

John went to City Hall again yesterday to discuss the permits for the final phase of the WP668 caboose move and utilities hook up. The representative of the planning department reviewed our application materials and approved them for formal submission next week - Hooray! John also made the formal submission to the water district. Both organizations said everything looks good. We still have to go through the rest of the special permitting process with the planning department but so far, so good.

The application materials we have been developing are printed on very large sheets of paper (24" x 36") and include maps, satellite views, street photos, site diagrams, blueprints, descriptions of what is there now and what is proposed, etc.

I went by the Project Blackbox announcement in Sun's parking lot today. I even collected one of the nifty toy trucks with a Sun Blackbox as the trailer. It is sitting on my desk next to my red HO-scale model caboose. The prototypes for these two models have much in common.

Having worked on a caboose-which-will-be-my-office for about nine months now, using a shipping container as a virtualized datacenter makes good sense to me. A caboose was originally a mobile office (including self contained records and records storage on the train's cars and cargo) as well as a rest area for the crew. A railroad caboose contained much smaller amounts of information than a modern data center. However, like a Sun Blackbox shipping container, a caboose was a large, heavy, largely self-contained, robust, yet mobile container for storing complex units of information in a form which could be swapped in or out quickly (as needed with every car coming into or leaving the train).

Posted at 02:59PM Oct 17, 2006 by katysblog in Caboose Project and Other Trains  | 

Hopper Photos

We have Sun's Hopper photos collected and posted now. Here are some highlights:

1. Recruiting table:

2. Radia Perlman and fans:

3. Lobby group:

4. Badge of many colors:

5. Recruiter team:

1. Pictured, Left to Right: Sreemala Pannala, Tanya Jankot, Katy Dickinson, Sudesna Dash, Sonia Leon, Meenakshi Kaul-Basu, Wendy Dow, Margaret Stern

3. Pictured, Left to Right, Top: Margaret Stern, Meenakshi Kaul-Basu, Susan Landau, Sudesna Dash, Tanya Jankot, Katy Dickinson, Left to Right, Bottom: Sonia Leon, Geetha Vallabhaneni, Sreemala Pannala, Radia Perlman

5. Pictured, Left to Right: Faith Harris, Wendy Dow, Kim Smith

Images copyright 2006 Katy Dickinson

ghc2006

Posted at 04:12PM Oct 13, 2006 by katysblog in Hopper - Anita Borg Institute  | 

Sun Shot - Six Sigma

I am drinking a caffe latte and checking out the conference room I will be in for the next two days. As a Sun Sigma Master Black Belt, I have been asked to help two Sun groups based in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia Pacific to sort out their roles and responsibilities. A member of a Sigma team I ran several years ago asked me to get involved even though (or maybe because) I am not in their organizational area. It is always interesting to work with groups outside of my own: we both can learn new ways of solving organizational problems.

As usual with a very short Sigma project (Sun Shot as we call it), the focus is on change acceptance, communication, growing together in understanding, and building a list of next steps and future directions rather than in-depth problem solving. The team leaders (both from Europe) and I have been on the phone several times to develop the charter, then we met in-person yesterday to work out the details. Even though the next two days will be very hard work, I am looking forward to the discussion.

Posted at 09:48AM Oct 11, 2006 by katysblog in Mentoring & Other Business  | 

12 Weeks to Go for College Applications

My husband and I are having a special dinner Thursday night. Jessi called from school at lunch break today to say that she had not talked with us about anything but college, grades, and SATs for weeks and could we please have a meal at which those topics are banned?

She has a point. For the next 12 weeks, every kid in the USA who is applying to go to college in September 2007 will be preparing and sending in their applications to their preferred schools. Even those who have already sent in their Early Admittance or Early Decision requests are probably working on the applications for their backup choices. (It is a little disturbing that I now know the difference between Early Admittance and Early Decision.) After years of discussion and preparation, it is strange to be this deep in the process of deciding where to send our beloved daughter and eldest child off to college.

Jessi's college advisor at Harker recommended that she and we read The Gatekeepers by Jacques Steinberg. This is the story of the Class of 2004 admissions process for Wesleyan, a university in Connecticut. I found the book of particular interest because the SEED Engineering mentoring program I manage for Sun has many similar application and admission processes. The volume of college applicants far exceeds anything SEED gets, thank goodness; however, we do hold the same discussions of how to value one set of accomplishments over another. In Wesleyan's case, the choices often seemed to be high SAT test scores or grades vs. demonstrated leadership vs. writing or dance or music talent vs. cultural origin. In SEED discussions, it is often work history vs. demonstrated creative ability vs. patents or publications vs. high recommendations vs. demonstrated leadership or technical excellence. Few candidates excel in all areas and, just like the admissions officers in the book, I always wish I could accept more than I have spaces for.

It is hard to read The Gatekeepers just now because I keep thinking over my own daughter's academic, athletic, musical, and personal profile and wondering what a college admissions officer will make of her. I think Jessi is wise to call an occassional time out from college discussions to reconnect as a family who loves each other.

Posted at 09:34PM Oct 10, 2006 by katysblog in Home & Family  | 

Natural Bakeware

I admit I can't cook. While I have a green thumb for gardening, it is definitely a black thumb when it comes to cooking, particularly baking. I am blessed in having a husband who cooks like an angel who has taught our kids to cook. Our daughter bakes to relax. When Jessi has a week of exams, she brings muffins and cookies and cakes to each test (a habit much encouraged by her classmates, you can be sure). However, I have a strange fascination for Nordicware.

"Nordic Ware is a family-owned, American manufacturer of kitchenware products founded in 1946. ... Nordic Ware is best known for its Bundt® Pan. Today, there are nearly 60 million Bundt® pans in kitchens across America."

I have proven myself unable even to cook a bundt cake (famously the easiest cake to make) but I have developed a collection of the fancy cake pans for use by my family. I was originally seduced by the Cathedral pan (modeled after Notre Dame Cathedral, my favorite), and went on to buy the heart, rose, sand castle, and bouquet muffin pan. I find it amusing to arrive at a meeting or pot luck party with a cathedral shaped cake as my contribution.

The Nordicware Christmas catalogue just arrived. They are now offering a stadium-shaped cake pan but the carousel pan looks more fun. What confuses me is the catalogue section on "Natural Commercial Bakeware". What is natural about bakeware? Wikipedia lists many meanings of "natural", but bakeware?

Posted at 08:51AM Oct 10, 2006 by katysblog in Home & Family  | 

Diversity at the Hopper Conference

It may seem odd to write about diversity at a conference of 1,300 women and just a few men; however, in many dimensions the Hopper attendees were impressively varied. I particularly noticed this at the Systers lunch. I shared my table with women from Morocco, Mexico, Russia, India, China, and America. There were women who were older and women who were much younger. Many were just starting their career and others were over twenty years into it. Some were rich and others were students.

Conference dress ranged from faded jeans and a t-shirt to an elegant sari, from a western business suit to muslim hijab. Ijeoma Terese Ihenachor of Nigeria (a recipient of the Anita Borg Social Change Agent Scholarship underwritten by Dr. Fran Allen) was remarkable for the complex elegance of her personal presentation: it was worth looking for her in any crowd.

Still, it was notable that almost everyone at Hopper was both female and working in or studying science or technology. Stu Feldman (ACM President) opened his remarks by saying that gender discrimination was alive and well: when he went to register for the Hopper conference, the woman at the desk asked if he didn't mean to be at the Grocer's convention, next door.

ghc2006

Posted at 05:28PM Oct 09, 2006 by katysblog in Hopper - Anita Borg Institute  | 

Wrapping up the Hopper Conference

More than 30 Sun women attended and worked at the Hopper conference in San Diego last week. Working at Sun's recruiting table and at the Treasure Hunt table gave us opportunities not only to talk with potential new Sun staff but also to get to know each other better. I think I have seen two dozen enthusiastic emails just this morning from the Sun Engineers, executives, and managers who attended the Hopper conference and came home with a buzz.

Several names got inadvertently left off of the presenters' list on Sun's press release "Sun Microsystems' Executives Among Leading Presenters at 2006 Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing". The whole list of Sun presenters at Hopper was:

• Katy Dickinson (Director, Business Process Architecture, CTO and Sun Labs) and Carol Gorski (Director, CTO and Sun Labs HR)
  4 October: talk on mentoring at the TechLeaders Workshop on "5 Years of Mentoring by the Numbers"
• Ingrid Van Den Hoogen (Sun Sr. Vice President, Brand, Global Communications and Integrated Marketing), and Emily Suter Ransford (Sun Business Development Manager, Marketing)
  4 October: "It Takes a Village (and Vision): The Role of Communities and Interoperability in Next Generation Networks" poster session
• Dr. Radia Perlman (Distinguished Engineer, Sun Labs)
  5 October: "What's a PKI, why would I want one, and how should it be designed?" invited speech
  6 October: introducing keynote speech by Dr. Sally Ride
• Katy Dickinson (Director, Business Process Architecture, CTO and Sun Labs)
  5 October: "Mentoring by the Numbers" panel by Katy Dickinson, with Dr. Carol Muller (MentorNet) and Dr. Mary Jean Harrold (Georgia Tech)
• Dr. Gilda Garreton (Staff Engineer, Sun Labs)
  5 October: "Latinas in Engineering" BOF (Birds of a Feather)
  6 October: "Research in Industrial Labs: How Collaboration Aids Innovation" talk by Tarik Ono and Dr. Gilda Garreton
• Tarik Ono (Staff Engineer, Sun Labs)
  6 October: "Research in Industrial Labs: How Collaboration Aids Innovation" talk by Tarik Ono and Dr. Gilda Garreton
• Dr. Susan Landau (Distinguished Engineer, Sun Labs)
  6 October: "Non-Traditional Ways to Advance Your Career" panel

ghc2006

Posted at 12:18PM Oct 09, 2006 by katysblog in Hopper - Anita Borg Institute  |