Yelp Awesome Women in Engineering

Yelp Awesome Women in Engineering Below is an article originally written by Grace Jiras, University Recruiting Manager at PowerToFly Partner Yelp, and published on February 14, 2018. Go to Yelps page on PowerToFly to see their open positions and learn mora.As a recruiter, I talk to a lot of people about what its like to work at Yelp. Most often, I find myself answering questions about the work environment and individual growth opportunities. During my four and a half years at Yelp, I would summarize the people here as very sharp and intelligent, while also humble and open minded. This spirit has fostered an environment that encourages individuals to learn by trying things for themselves (new hires get to push code out their first week) and empowers them to ask questions.This collaborative work culture invites tremendous opportunity and gives employees the power to participate in the projects they are most passionate about, whether its specifically related to work, technology, communi ty or otherwise. This attitude is core to Yelps values and allows employees from every walk of life and every skill set find opportunity and growth.In an effort to foster community and build relationships across the organization, Yelp has a number of Employee Resource Groups. One of the groups that Im actively involved with is Awesome Women in Engineering (AWE). AWE is focused on building a strong community for women in engineering and their allies by facilitating professional career building activities, networking, leadership, and mentorship. Over the years, Ive had the privilege of learning more about this groups experience working in the tech industry as well as their experiences here at Yelp. As I heard more stories, I felt inspired to collect and share them with others outside of Yelp. Thus began the start of our hackathon project AWE the Book.As with any hackathon, the idea of creating a book welches pitched to a group of engineers and those interested joined to help turn this idea into a final product Our team came together to craft compelling interview questions ranging from childhood aspirations, what they love about Yelp, and helpful advice they wish they had received earlier in their career. We had over 60 women in Engineering and Product volunteer to participate Along with the interviews we had (very talented) Yelpers take portraits of each individual. After Hackathon we had even more volunteers, men and women, across the entire engineering organization help transpose, type, and edit the interviews. It was so much fun seeing everyone work together to make the book come together. The finished product was incredible to read - over 120 pages of stories, experiences, and advice shared by women professionals in tech.Here are some of my favorites Pictured above from left to right Yue Wu, Product Manager Ya-Lin Huang, Software Engineer Marianne Gosciniak, Software EngineerHow did you get into tech?Ive always been interested in tech, a lot of my favorite products are tech products. I used to be in consulting and data, working on heavy data driven roles. Then I went to geschftlicher umgang school to try to find a career change outside of consulting. I found a lot of good opportunities in tech. This is an area Im very passionate about. I had my favorite products as a consumer and Yelp was right on the top. Being able to work on one of my favorite products ever is awesomeYue Wu, Product ManagerWhat did you want to be when you were a kid?When I was a child, my parents wanted me to become a teacher because they thought it would be a stable job. Its a very regular job from 8-4 and you deal with kids - what possible trouble could kids get into? At that time, though, I didnt think too much about being a teacher. I played a lot of video games, a lot of Super Mario, so I wanted to be either the character Super Mario, or someone who creates Super Mario.Ya-Lin Huang, Software EngineerWhat is the most exciting thing you have worked on at Yelp?I really loved my internship project. I added addresses and street suggestions to the location suggest service. When I was presenting during the intern project presentations, a lot of people said they were wondering why we never had this. It was really exciting to help make a feature that a lot of people had been wanting and then later got to use.Marianne Gosciniak, Software Engineer Pictured above from left to right Alex Phillips, Engineering Manager Jen Wang, Software Engineer Ellen Heirbaut, Technical RecruiterWhat do you love about Yelp?When I was looking for a job, I was looking for four things that I really valued in a job. One was mentorship - I would love learning from other peoples experiences and I find that I can do that a lot at Yelp. There are so many different people with diverse backgrounds and diverse experiences that I feel like I learn something new every day. Two is problem solving - within Yelp and within Yelp Reservations, its a fun problem - Its relatable. Thirdly, I think the culture we have at Yelp is really extraordinary. The friendliness, the collaborative nature, the kindness, the relatability, and the welcoming feeling. Were always helping each other learn - thats so wonderful to have. The last thing was opportunities to grow and I think thats something that Yelp has been really focusing on lately. Those are the main reasons why I chose to work at Yelp and why I continue to work at Yelp.Alex Phillips, Engineering ManagerHave you ever broken Yelp?Oh, lots of times. Ive caused lots of codedeploy rollbacks. I tanked SEO for awhile. Ive also recommended changes that ended up breaking Yelp. I wont go into the specifics here, but one of the things I like the most about Yelp is the empathetic environment. It is OK to make mistakes, as long as you take responsibility for them and learn from them and dont keep repeating them. Better yet, teach others how to not make the same mistakes or build tools that safeguard against them. Ive broken Yelp many times, but Ive learned from all of them and made my peace. None of them give me nightmares now. Well, except, maybe the SEO one.Jen Wang, Software EngineerHow do you balance a personal life and work life?Im a working mom, so I always feel like I should be doing more. I do a lot of events outside of work, like the Expat Women meet-up. Its a lot of time management and balancing priorities. Some days I will have my son and on those days I have to leave right on time. If Im not on time, they can kick us out of preschool, which is not an option I feel like Yelp makes it easier for me. My manager is very understanding when I have to leave early, and other days I work longer. The nice thing is I have a very happy, fulfilling life with many different aspects to it.Ellen Heirbaut, Technical RecruiterMake sure to ask the see the book in person whenever you come by our HQ in SFFor more information about roles at Yelp check out o ur PowerToFly page. One of the biggest challenges in almost all industries today is achieving gender parity. Gender diversity provides huge benefits in the workplace. pWhile some industries have made significant advancements in gender diversity, some industries lag further behind... and the construction industry is well-known for being in the latter category. If someone says, construction workers, youll likely picture a group of men in yellow hard hats analyzing an architects plans or laying bricks on top of a scaffold. And men at work signs only help to reinforce this image.pThis stereotype is rooted in reality. When was the last time you actually spotted a woman on a construction site? Or hired a female plumber or carpenter? Your answer is most likely never. In fact, the Bureau of Labor Statisticsreports that only 3.4% of the total of 8.3 million construction employees are women.pBut the construction industry has a lot more to offer tha n steel-toed boots and hard hats, and it needs women to help advance the industry in this era of rapid change. Here are 5 reasons why women joining the workforce or looking to make a pivot should consider a career in construction.h21. Fuel Innovation/h2pNot only is diversity the socially and morally right thing to do, but it is also actually an excellent business strategy. pResearch presented in the Harvard Business Reviewshows that diverse teams develop more innovative ideas. This is further supported by a study conducted by Gallupon the performance of gender-diverse teams versus single-gender teams, which found that the difference in backgrounds and perspectives led to better business performance and problem-solving. h22. Capitalize on Demand/h2pThe construction industry is currently experiencing a labor shortage. The industry itself is booming and projected to be one of the fastest-growing industries, with total spending projected to exceed $1.45 trillion in 2023/a. However, most construction companies are unable to meet the rising demand. pAccording to the Associated General Contractors of America/a, more than 80% of contractors are experiencing difficulties filling hourly craft positions that represent the bulk of the construction workforce.pAnd demand isnt limited to individual contributor roles. Given the industry boom, there are a number of open stable and high-paying roles (any project managers out there?) waiting for the right candidateh23. Leadership Opportunities/h2pAccording to the Bureau of Labor Statistics/a, women compose only 7.7% of the total 1 million managerial positions in construction.br/pBut given the highly collaborative nature of construction work, more women in leadership roles would help drive innovation and enhance productivity.Furthermore, as a woman in construction in a leadership position, youd have the unique opportunity to drive change for the industry and make it a more attractive option for other women.h24. High-Income Potent ial/h2pSalaries for many skilled positions in construction are on the rise, making a construction career a prime choice for women looking for a high-paying job,pThe 2018 Construction Craft Salary Surveyconducted by the National Center for Construction Education and Research revealed that salaries for many skilled craft areas are increasing. Project managers and project supervisors topped the list at $92,523 and $88,355, respectively. The next set of highest-paying jobs include those of combo welders ($71,067), instrumentation technicians ($70,080), pipe welders ($69,222), power line workers ($68,262) and industrial electricians ($67,269). Of the 32 categories of workers in the survey, 19 positions earned an average salary of $60,000 or higher.h25. Sense of accomplishment/h2p The construction industry can give employees a unique sense of achievement. Yes, the job is stressful and the work can be demanding, but nothing beats the feeling of being able to build something from the ground up. pHow many professionals in other industries can point at a school, a hospital, or a skyscraper and say I helped build that?pThe construction industry has a long way to go in combating gender bias and supporting women in the workforce, but given the current demand for workers, theres no better time to pick up a sledgehammer (figurative or literal) and smash the gender stereotypes plaguing the construction industry.