Tech Bae Event Opens Doors for Female Adtech Executives

Tech Bae was born over an informal night out for Viacom39s vice president partnership development Seema Patel FreeWheel39s senior vice president strategic initiatives Sarah Foss Operative39s senior vice president customer success Brenda Garcia Railroad 1939s business development executive Heather McCrea and Spectrum Reach39s vice president strategic initiatives Christina Villano As they talked they realized that while they were glad to have seats at the proverbial table themselves and to have peers with whom to discuss challenges they wanted to open doors for other women in adtech Opening those doors is the raison d39amp234tre for the organization they now call Tech BaeAs Villano explained to those present at the start of the recent event the term Bae meaning quotBefore Anyone Elsequot sums up the approach they are taking creating events and conversations that are inclusive open to women nonbinary attendees and men at all stages of their careers welcoming friendly and comfortable and making the growth and success of others paramountquotWhether it39s about your work life your home life changes at your company amp8212 whatever your current challenges are Tech Bae reminds you that you are not alone and that together we can make an impact And for those of us at more senior levels it39s a reminder that we have an obligation to pay it forward mentor and advocate for our sisters to join usquot Patel said during an opening panel at the recent eventGarcia added quotI39ll call it out to my colleagues when I walk into a room where everyone else seems to be white and male and the imbalance is striking But I know there are women who find it harder to speak up Having access to a group like this makes it easier for them to know that it should be differentquotVillano pointed out that while there are many professional organizations focused on empowering women also supported by companies in the industry Tech Bae fills a unique need quotWhile our founders are all at a fairly senior level Tech Bae is about bringing women at all levels together amp8212 particularly those who are new to ad tech amp8212 in a natural casual organic wayquot she said quotas a force for goodquotThe founders39 employers have been supportive of the organization And the willingness of companies such as Viacom to host events has removed barriers like attendees needing to pay in order to attend quotIt demonstrates their commitment to diversity and inclusion in techquot said McCrea emphasizing the founders39 gratitude for their employers39 and colleagues39 enthusiasm and supportThe attendees39 enthusiasm for the messages of defining success on their own terms seeing women like them in leadership roles and encouraging newcomers was clear Garcia a selfdescribed quotDominican from the Bronxquot who mentioned her admiration for the bold attitude of pop star Cardi B was immediately surrounded by a group of young women from Girls Who Code after the opening panel they all exchanged contact information to become Baes for each otherSharon Melnick PhD a business psychologist and leadership coach moderated the panel She reminded the audience that women are underrepresented at senior levels across many industries particularly in technology Melnick spoke of her work fighting gender bias and encouraging executives such as the Bae founders to see the roles that resilience confidence and influence play in empowering women in the workplaceThe founders wore white to the event making themselves easier for attendees to identify and connect with during the networking portion of the evening amp8212 a nod to their commitment to being accessible to others The color also evoked the spirit of women39s rights activism because American suffragettes famously dressed in whiteFoss acknowledged that wearing white was an unusual choice particularly for an event in New York amp8212 even a summer one quotIt doesn39t feel entirely good but it is good to stretch ourselvesquot she said quotWhat feels uncomfortable can be a key to professional success And we39ve got each other39s backs as we do itquotVillano noted that one challenge is to keep the spirit of a curated friendly and supportive movement authentic as the group gets bigger She added that the founders encourage adtech executives who share their mindset to get involved quotFrom our first event last November to now and to our goal of helping make connections across the country Tech Bae is about the power of the human connection and how women like us can support each other amp8212 whether someone is an entrepreneur or a corporate executive or those just beginning to think about where work can take themquotPictured above from left to right Sarah Foss Dr Sharon Melnick Heather McCrea Christina Villano Brenda Garcia Seema PatelClick the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Tech Bae Event Opens Doors for Female Adtech Executives

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Kathy Newberger

We Are the Outliers - By Jack Myers

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Tech Bae Event Opens Doors for Female Adtech Executives

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Kathy Newberger

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