As Women’s History Month comes to an end, the EDGE360 editorial team continues to highlight women of the channel that have made great strides in their careers and continue to foster approaches to diversity and inclusion. With a focus on innovation, the IT industry must embrace many voices and perspectives to continue to grow and expand into the future.
In this video, we spoke with Jennifer Keating, Director, Public Sector Partner Organization for Cisco, Pippa Sturkey, Partner Distribution Manager at Cisco, and Danielle Turcot, Field Account Executive for Comstor. Each of these women joined the technology field, stayed with it and found their talent in the industry through perseverance.
“When I first started, I was the only female sales representative for the [small start-up] company,” Sturkey recalls. In a male-dominated field, Sturkey found herself in a position where she needed to prove herself. When she was first pregnant, she remembered that she didn’t want to tell anyone. In fact, she only took three weeks of maternity leave at the time to ensure that her accounts stayed intact. “Things were definitely different at that time,” she said. As she progressed in her field, and joined Cisco, she found an organization that embraced inclusion and women in technology and found a support system.
Danielle Turcot went to college to be a physical therapist, but a mentor pointed her in the direction of IT. “A good friend and mentor told me I was in the wrong field and needed to come over to IT,” Turcot told us of how she got started in this field. “I went to work for her and have been in IT ever since.” Turcot has progressed in her field, finding a successful path in her career in the IT channel and at Comstor.
As a veteran of the IT channel, working in distribution, for partners, and now a part of the Cisco partner organization for public sector, Jennifer Keating told us that she has seen many changes throughout her time. “There are more women who have a seat at the table,” she said. “I also see a commitment from companies for diversity. Not just gender diversity but diversity of thought and it’s refreshing. So, it’s an exciting time to be a woman in this country.” Watch this video, as these women of the channel share their challenges and proudest career moments:
