Presidential Sh*t

It's official - your girl is now Co-President of Women at Amazon Web Services (AWS). I've been a part of the evolution of Women at AWS since the first official gathering in 2015, held by female leaders in Seattle. There were about 100 people in the room at that point in time. In 2022, AWS publicly published we have ~136,000 employees of the ~1.5 million people that Amazon employs globally, largely serving our Amazon.com retail business that AWS technology, innovation and profits support. I was the first and only Woman on my first 3 teams at AWS. Now I have 3 strong female leaders in my chain of command, which honestly has made an enormous difference in my employee experience. Their support is why I know I can take on this additional responsibility.

Women make up barely 25% of all workers in the technology sector - 1 in 4. In engineering departments, this disparity is closer to 1 in 10. So, you can guess-timate how many Women I'm advocating for - the ones who are already here in the minority, and the Women across the world we want to include and recruit. In addition to internal improvement in policies and employee experience, we have a significant number of programs focused on developing and recruiting students in highschool and college, giving them access to knowledge, funding and networks critical to entering this field.

The mission of Women at AWS is to be Earth's Best Employer for Women. Amazon operates through our Leadership Principles, one of which is Strive to Be Earth's Best Employer. Inclusion, Diversity and Equity are at the heart of everything we do. Our community of volunteers Think Big, Learn and Listen, and take action to better experiences for all people and employees. Our strategic focus areas include:

Policy modernization and transformation:

1/Family Planning - Equal access to contraceptives globally. *Melinda Gates wrote a BRILLIANT book "The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World", and dedicates her life's work to lifting women out of poverty and giving all of us independence and autonomy.

2/Maternity leave reform - pre and post partum benefits and support. *Today, it is fact that the United States is the worst country in the developed world for maternity leave and childcare. Paid maternity leave is not a federal right.

3/Mental Health Benefit Improvement - Increased access and awareness. *This was recently affirmed with data as the #1 issue in our Women's community.

4/Equitable promotions and compensation. *Over 50% of Women drop out of the workforce around the age of 35 - this is because of unjust, antiquated, inhumane maternity policies, gendered compensation discrimination, and we are passed up for mid-career promotions.

Data Collection & Global Consciousness 

Listen to the voice of our community and create solutions to shared issues and experiences.

Evangelizing & Connecting 

Build strong relationships with Amazonians, our customers and partners, elevating all Women to have equal access to education and careers in Technology.

This is a purely volunteer position, on top of my day job as a Strategic Account Manager carrying an 11 figure annual quota. Do I think that is just? No. I think all employees that take on a leadership responsibility with major impact should be granted additional compensation.  My time is valuable, and my work helping a for profit public company should not mean I'm adding an enormous amount of hours and strategic change, without additional financial compensation. That is another issue I'm going to be vocal about for myself and others in volunteer leadership positions at Amazon. 

I am so freaking excited to spend the next 2 years as President. This is a dream come true. I've been on a long journey of character development, gaining experiences that got me to a place where I feel ready and confident to take on this type of responsibility. 

 

"If you want to lift up humanity, empower Women. It is the most comprehensive, pervasive, high-leverage investment you could make in human beings." - Melinda Gates

Recommended Reading & Watching:

"The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World" - Melinda Gates

Feminists: What Were They Thinking?

Revisiting 1970s photos of women that captured a feminist awakening, this film explores those women's lives and examines the continued need for change. Featuring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Michelle Phillips and many other women share their stories in Johanna Demetrakas's documentary.

BARBIE - THE MOVIE 

This was an amazing movie and very emotion for me. This film reflected my life experiences.