Dallas Society of Women Engineers

Event Recap: Abbott Laboratories Tour and Panel Talk

by Dallas SWE on November 24, 2015November 24, 2015 in Meetings

For the third time in recent years, Abbott Laboratories graciously hosted a Dallas SWE professional meeting. The evening November 19 started off with the opportunity to network and to enjoy a light meal. Then a panel of 4 top leaders at Abbott Laboratories shared career advice, including their career paths, seeking out challenges, professional milestones, and mentoring.

Ross Hynek, Senior Director Systems R & D, is the veteran at Abbott, having joined in 1986. However, Abbott is a large enough company that he had the opportunity to transition to a new role almost every 2 years. He recommended making a shift every few years, with the more dramatic the shift, the greater the growth one will experience.

Dr. Sanchali Deb, Principal Engineer in the Reliability Investigation team, provided advice that resonated with younger professionals. She related her experience of being a relatively new hire made the lead of a flagship product, one with a project in trouble and the previous team replaced. She found her age and ability being questioned; instead of reacting, she chose just to do her job to silence the questions. End of story: the product received a Presidential Award.

Cedric Marionneaux, Systems Development leader for Abbott Diagnostic Division, brought a wealth of experiences to Abbott, including military service, the defense sector and entrepreneurial endeavors. Cedric encouraged the audience to feed their passion and to be a Continuous Learner. He is always looking for his next challenge. If he is not given one, he seeks one out.

Michaelene Sprague also had a distinguished career prior to becoming an Engineering Manager for Abbott Diagnostic Division in Dallas. When questioned about challenges, she said that she is always looking for improvement opportunities and relayed a case of reducing the number of tool sets used across different groups. One of her professional milestones took a good idea and saw it through development to become a program of record.

Thanks to the four panelists for sharing their career insights and inspiring us.

Dallas SWE President Barbara Read shared several announcements with the group assembled, including the December 15 meeting to be hosted by Lennox and the upcoming Region C conference in February 2016.

Capping the evening was a tour of the Abbott Laboratories.

Thanks to Abbott Diagnostics Division, Dallas and Alexa Wilde, Sarah Dewees, and Neha Dobhal (members of the Dallas ‘Women Engineers’ employee resource group) for their sponsorship and continued support of Dallas SWE.

Event Recap: Nov 2015 Design Your World – STEM Conference for Girls

by Dallas SWE on November 23, 2015 in Outreach, Special Events

We had another great Design Your World – STEM Conference for Girls on November 14, 2015 at Southern Methodist University. Thank you to our 80 volunteers from Dallas SWE, SMU SWE, State Farm, and Abbott: without your support we would not be able to put this event on! A special thanks also to our corporate sponsors for this event: Exxon Mobil (Platinum), State Farm and Abbott (Gold), and Capital One (Silver).

For photos and our reflections on the event, check out our Event Recap post on the Design Your World website.

Save the date for our next DYW conference April 2, 2016 at the University of North Texas! Stay tuned for details!

12244477_918179148259276_861845909926951575_o-e1448221623598 — Jennifer Vilbig tells attendees about her construction site safety gear at our Engineering Fashion Show!

Event Recap: SWE Lunch & Learn at Lennox

by Dallas SWE on November 16, 2015 in Meetings

2015 11 06 Lennox Dallas SWE — Zaineb Ahmand, Dallas SWE VP of Membership, talks about her experiences in SWE to Lennox employees.

On November 6, Dallas SWE held a SWE Lunch and Learn at Lennox International’s engineering facility in Carrollton! We had a good group, SWE members spread out and helped field questions from our new members. Questions and conversations included:

What is the time commitment involved in volunteering for leadership positions? Short answer: as much time as you’re willing to put into it!
What goes on at Young Member Brunches? Networking, making new friends, enjoying casual engineering conversations and tasty food.
Why did you get involved in SWE? Seasoned members enjoy networking/social, outreach, and leadership opportunities in SWE. New members signed up to get involved in these various capacities depending on their current career and personal needs!
What goes into the application and selection process for regional and national awards? This varies per award, but generally awards include a weighted evaluation of technical, SWE, and community leadership accomplishments. Everyone likes to be recognized for their hard work: SWE awards are one way to do so!

We are so pleased about our new partnership with Lennox and anticipate many of their employees joining us at our upcoming events, especially the Holiday Social Lennox will sponsor on December 15! Their enthusiasm is contagious!

November 19 Professional Dev Meeting and Tour – Abbott Laboratories

by Dallas SWE on November 4, 2015 in Meetings

Join us this month for an industry tour and panel talk at Abbott Laboratories in Irving!

When: Thursday, November 19 , 6:00pm – 8:00pm
Where: Abbott Laboratories, 1921 Hurd Dr, Irving, TX 75038
Please use the entrance off Power Ct and check in with Security (bring your ID!)
Cost: FREE thanks to our sponsors at Abbott Laboratories. There will be a meal and raffle prize drawing.
Please let us know you’ll be attending!

Panelist Profiles

Cedric Marionneaux is an intrapreneur, innovator and technologist with a rich background in product development and engineering. His passion lies at the intersection of technology and business focusing on answering the question- Can technology transform lives? Cedric has over 15 years of experience in the design and development of integrated and federated systems. Currently, he is a System Development leader for Abbott Diagnostic Division (ADD) developing the next generation of Clinical
Chemistry and Immunoassay medical devices. Prior to joining ADD, Cedric held various leadership roles in the Aerospace and Defense industry focusing on communication, avionics and radar systems. He was the co-founder of Unbridled Innovations, a composite development firm specializing in lightweight, state of the art parts for military research and other structural applications, before they were acquired by Phyletic Systems. Cedric is a veteran who was honorably discharged from the
US Army after 8 years of service in the 2nd Battalion (Airborne), 377th Field Artillery Regiment. He has a B.S. / M.S. in Electrical Engineering, M.S. in System Engineering from Southern Methodist University and MBA from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Dr. Sanchali Deb is a Principal Engineer in the Reliability Investigation team at Abbott Diagnostics and her primary focus has been to investigate and discover solutions for the critical errors in the ICQ system. She says that it is a “Research driven role which is the perfect blend of cross functional responsibility and keeps her motivated to succeed”. Before Abbott, she has worked for Fortune companies like Ingersoll Rand and also startups like ConferEdge. At Ingersoll Rand she was a Design Hardware lead where she led many Home Automation projects.

Dr. Deb was awarded with a PhD in Electrical Engineering from UT Arlington in 2011. She holds a patent for inventing the first Wireless Gastric Stimulator, which she presented in her dissertation. She has published more than 8 Journal papers and has multiple conference proceedings. Her ground breaking research was awarded the UT President’s highest award for two consecutive years – 2010 and 2011 and has been published in many local newspapers and magazines. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engg from North Bengal University (India) where she graduated top of her class and secured the Gold Medal. She completed her Masters in Control Systems Engineering from Jadavpur University (India). She is an avid globetrotter, passionate wild life photographer, painter and loves to ride her motorcycle.

Ross Hynek, Sr. Director Systems R&D, joined Abbott in 1986 as a member of the Engineering Professional Development Program. The majority of his career has been focused on product development and operations, developing immunoassay and chemistry analyzers in a number of varying capacities. After joining the Vascular division, in 2011, Ross created the Abbott Vascular Innovation Center, launched numerous Vascular products and then moved into a new role as the Sr. Site Director for the newly acquired AV Webster, TX facility. Recently, Ross returned to ADD and is now responsible for the ICQ instrument development. Ross earned his degree in Electrical Engineering from Northwestern University and quickly accepted an offer to work at Abbott in Lake County. Ross is currently based in Irving, TX.

Michaelene Sprague is an Engineering Manager for Abbott Diagnostics Division (ADD), where she manages a team of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. She has 30+ years of experience in Engineering and Engineering Management in Aerospace/Defense, Telecom, Automotive and Commercial Industries. Prior to joining ADD, Michaelene was the Director of Design Engineering for the U.S. subsidiary of a multinational defense company headquartered in Haifa, Israel; in this role she often led design efforts with team members in multiple countries. Michaelene has presented numerous papers at SPIE Conferences in Europe, and she currently has a patent pending for a “Light Pipe Detector Sensor” (provisional filed in 2013). She is also the Co-Owner of Advanced Photon Applications LLC, a company providing optical consulting and design services. She has an Engineering degree from Texas Tech University.

Fall Upcoming Events and Announcements

by Dallas SWE on November 3, 2015November 4, 2015 in Announcements, Meetings

Younger Professionals Brunch

Join us at Grand Lux in Dallas for the next Younger Professional Brunch. Click here for more information and to RSVP.

Outreach Opportunity with IEEE

On Saturday, November 14, we need a few people to represent SWE at IEEE Dallas Day (and Society Fair) from 9:30am to 2:00pm at ITT Technical Institute. Please email us at dallas.swe@gmail.com if you are interested!

Call for Committee Chairs

There is an immediate need for an Awards Committee Chair to assist with Region C Award nominations (Due December 7 this year). Our previous years’ chair Zaineb Ahmad is a seasoned expert and willing to tutor new volunteers in the ways of assembling winning award packets! In the spring, this committee chair will perform the same tasks for national award submissions. Please email us at dallas.swe@gmail.com if you are interested in filling this role!

Later in the year, we will also need a Nominating Committee Chair to help select and evaluate potential candidates for FY17 Dallas SWE Officer positions. He or she will also serve as the teller for our FY17 election process. This is a great way to meet Dallas SWE leaders and learn more about what our section officers do. Again, please email dallas.swe@gmail.com if you are interested.

December Meeting – Mark Your Calendars

Our Holiday Mixer will be hosted by our new friends at Lennox International in Carrollton on the evening of Tuesday, December 15. Pencil us in to celebrate the holidays with our new Dallas SWE members at Lennox!

Region C Conference Reminder: Registration is OPEN!

Don’t forget to reserve your spot at the SWE Region C Conference February 5-7 in Rogers, AR. If you missed out on the Society WE15 conference, this is a more local opportunity to meet SWE leaders from other sections! Visit the Region C Conference website for more information and instructions on how to register.

Event Recap: Dallas SWE at WE15

by Dallas SWE on November 1, 2015November 1, 2015 in Special Events

Last week, 8,600+ women engineers met in Nashville, TN for SWE’s annual conference. We celebrated the 65th anniversary of SWE’s founding in style in Music City Center and returned to Dallas inspired and excited about the rest of FY16!

11850452_945857165472443_8445577443923454776_o — Some members from Dallas SWE who attended WE15! From left to right: Sree Sripada, Jordan Kayse (SMU SWE), Barbara Read (Dallas SWE President), Nandika D’Souza, PhD (Dallas SWE VP of Outreach), Zaineb Ahmad (Dallas SWE VP of Membership), Cherrie Fisher (Dallas SWE Executive VP), and Shelley Stracener (Dallas SWE Webmaster and Region C Secretary / Webmaster)

Dallas SWE brought home the Outreach Parent / Educator Event Award for the second year in a row for our signature outreach event, Design Your World – STEM Conference for Girls! Dallas SWE Members also received several individual awards. Congratulations to our award winners!

Nandika D’Souza, PhD – Distinguished Engineering Educator Award
Kate Van Dellen – Distinguished New Engineer
Shelley Stracener – Distinguished New Engineer

Next year’s WE16 Conference will be held in Philadelphia, PA October 27-29, 2016. We hope you can join us next year: mark your calendars!

Read below for some reflections from our attendees to the WE15 Conference and enjoy our photo gallery!

Barbara Read, Dallas SWE President

I went to several sessions, including the SWE Membership and Town Hall Meetings, that gave me new insights into how SWE is structured and managed at a region, national, and international level. I volunteered as a room monitor in other sessions: this is a great way to get a hefty discount on registration fees and give back to SWE and the conference planning team! I also enjoyed celebrating with our members who received awards this year: Dallas SWE is an amazing section and I am so proud to be a part of it.

Cherrie Fisher, Executive Vice President

This was my first SWE Conference experience and I really enjoyed it! I went to many great professional development sessions. I especially appreciated being able to support Dallas SWE member Kate Van Dellen by attending her session entitled “Career Paths: 5 Years Out and Where am I Going?” My favorite part of the conference was the dancing and entertainers after Celebrate SWE on Saturday evening! It was a wonderful and inspiring conference.

Nandika D’Souza, Ph.D, VP of Outreach

My 2nd National SWE conference established that I must go to this conference EVERY YEAR to be functional in my work life. My first conference sharing a room with Dallas SWE super-giver Shelley Stracener made planning for the 2nd conference easier (for one thing I understood there was an award banquet AND a celebration banquet, each offering awards). I headed there knowing we were both getting a national award enabled through the nomination by Dallas SWE and meticulous assembly by Zaineb Ahmed. New this time was the enormous group of UNT-SWE students heading to Nashville, including one SWE Future Leader (SWEFL) for Region C, Haley Barnes.

Among workshops and talks I found insightful were those on “introverts and extroverts”, “mindfulness for stress reduction”, “developing a personal brand”, “using humor in the workplace”, plenaries on “how corporate America is making diversity a way of life”, “how does she do it”- stories of executives who had negotiated family and career management. The awards banquet was an opportunity for me to make a statement on diversity. I am passionate that SWE truly embrace globalization- both globally and as an immigrant in America. “Diversity by culture” is unfortunately considered to exclude Asian populations by every policy with Asians left out as being too successful to support. Yet my inbox and chance encounters reveal and increased need for retention in the workforce of the Asian born mum.

At the SWE awards I chose to raise awareness for immigrants producing and delivering in America. I wore an outfit that I purchased in India. In receiving an award for engineering education that reflected teaching, research and service to professional societies I wanted to communicate that service can be a core part of work life. This SWE conference will remain an experience that I will never forget. I grew in appreciation for the value of the local sections of SWE and the wonderful sisterhood that comes from being in a room where one is a majority. I was overwhelmed with joy at seeing my University students hold their own in personality and professionalism. I returned home replenished.

Zaineb Ahmad, VP of Membership

It’s been eight years since the SWE conference was in Nashville, eight years since I lasted attended a SWE conference. As a college student, I was focused on finding internships and jobs back then; going back as a professional and as SWE section leader was a totally different experience. First, the conference is so much bigger now; SWE continues to grow every year and it shows at the conference. Just walking through the halls of the conference center makes you realize you’re in the company of intelligent, beautiful, and ambitious women engineers.

I attended several sessions, with topic ranging from implementing efficiency to leaders leading change to approaches to innovation to work/life balance and more. Some sessions aimed to enhance professional development and career planning, while others focused on technical talks or mentoring or planning a SWE career.

The “hallway/elevator chats” were among my favorite this year; randomly meeting someone in an elevator or after a session and generating conversations. I talked to women in industry about the rapidly changing face of technology. I talked to fellow SWE members and struggles their sections faced. I talked to collegiates about their goals and fears (I remember being there and I hope I helped ease some of their fears). I also got to catch up with some fellow alumni from my collegiate SWE sections and ladies I had met at SWE conference many years ago!

One of the highlights of the event was seeing my fellow Dallas SWE members win some pretty prestigious, well-deserved awards. Furthermore, Dallas SWE won Outreach Parent/Educator Award for the second year in a row and Region C won the Communication Award!

As usual, the SWE conference provides so much to do, so many people to see. It’s three days of ongoing activity, but I came back recharged and motivated. I’m ready to take on challenges in my professional life, I’m inspired to be a better mentor and STEM advocate, and I’m generally more excited than ever to be a woman engineer and a part of SWE! I am looking forward to WE16 in Philadelphia!