Pride Month Event with Blend: Intersecting Identities in Tech

Pride Month:
Intersecting
Identities
Celebrating Our
Identities
Raising
Awareness

Recording Notice
This event is being recorded
By continuing to be in this event, you and other participants are
consenting to be recorded.
We will be livestreaming the event to Techqueria’s YouTube Channel.

6:00 PM — Welcome & Intros
6:10 PM — Breakout Rooms — Session 1 - Icebreakers
6:15 PM — Lightning Talks — Abel & Reinaldo
6:25 PM — Breakout Room - Session 2
6:35 PM — Lightning Talks — Cat & Alexis
6:45 PM — Breakout Rooms - Session 3
6:55 PM — Lightning Talks — Kat & Michael
7:15 PM — Group Reflection & Closing Thoughts
7:25 PM — Raffle Prize Giveaway & Wrap Up
7:30 PM — Event Ends
Event Agenda
In Partnership with Blend

Black Lives Matter
Moment of Silence &
Sharing Statement

TECHQUERIA
Techqueria is a 501(c)(3)
nonprofit that serves the
largest community of
Latinx in Tech.

Upcoming
Techqueria
Events
Find out more at
events.techqueria.org and
become a member to get
notified of the latest updates!

Thank you for all your help!
Sal Ramirez
Frances Coronel
Abel Quintero
India Bastien
Techqueria
Event Team

Consumer ﬁnancial
experiences are very stressful
and frustrating
—
bloated by decades of waste and
inefﬁcient process.
Problem

We founded Blend eight years
ago to fundamentally
transform this experience
—
to make consumer ﬁnance
simple, transparent, and
accessible for everyone.

We act as trusted partners
to financial institutions who
are redefining how they
serve their customers
across the breadth of their
financial journeys
Trusted partner

Turn on Your
Video & Mute Yourself
Unless Talking
Event Format Uplift Each Other
Follow our
Code of Conduct
Accept to join the
Breakout Rooms
Be Fully Present

MIJX & Ellos
Fabulosa &
Calladita No More
We are giving away raffle prizes at the end of the event!
Fabuloso &
BLM Stronger
Together

MIJX & Ellos
Prizes are part of Mitu’s
Solidarity Collection
Fabuloso &
BLM Stronger
Together
Fabulosa &
Calladita No More

Breakout Rooms in Zoom
● Make sure to join the breakout rooms when prompted.
● Each breakout room will last 10 minutes and will have dedicated
prompts to help facilitate the discussion!

● Name
● Pronouns
● Role
● Company
● You have your own late night talk show, who do you invite as your
first guest?
● What do you pretend to hate but actually love?
Breakout Room — Session 1 (10 MINUTES)
Icebreakers

Abel
Quintero
He/Him
Board Member, Q Center & Lead, Out in Tech
Twitter @abelq16
LinkedIn

Background
● Location: Chicago -> LA -> PDX
● Chinese, Colombian, and White
● Queer Identity: Bi/Pansexual

Organizing
● Build intersectionality into your events: (Design for
Equity panel, right)
● Center underrepresented voices (BIPOC, QTPOC)
● Questions to ask:
○ Who is benefitting (e.g. socially, economically,
financially) from the project?
○ Who has decision making power?
○ Are there any voices/perspectives that might
be missing?
○ How can you ensure balanced representation?

Definitions (from CRXLab)
● Diversity - “when there is a variety of characteristics within a group, such as a
neighborhood, school, community, or city… a variety of identifiers and characteristics that,
in the case of people, reflects our individuality. Often limited and largely confined to visible
aspects such as race, age, or gender rather than less visible aspects such as ability
status, nationality, or mental wellbeing.
● Inclusion - “the leveraging of difference by integrating diverse perspective and creating a
better outcome for all. Inclusion is an invitation that not only accepts differences, but
celebrates and embeds them.” Note: Diversity and inclusion are not interchangeable.
There can be diversity without inclusion and vice versa.
● Equity - Equity revolves around systemic outcomes and exists when outcomes are no
longer predicted by any aspect of an individual’s identity.

Donate
Source:
Raquel
Willis
https://www.instagram
.com/raquel_willis/?hl
=en

Gracias! Thank
you!
Let's connect!
abel.j.quintero@gmail.com
@abelq16
https://www.linkedin.com/in/abelquintero/

Reinaldo
Labrador
He/Him
Deployment Consultant, Blend
Twitter @blend
LinkedIn • Instagram

● Name
● Gender Pronouns
● Role
● Company
● How have you been able to create your own path into tech? How
does your journey into tech look like?
● What was your first job? What did you like/dislike about it?
Creating Your Own Path

6:00 PM — Welcome & Intros
6:10 PM — Breakout Rooms — Session 1 - Icebreakers
6:15 PM — Lightning Talks — Abel & Reinaldo
6:25 PM — Breakout Room - Session 2
6:45 PM — Lightning Talks — Cat & Alexis
7:05 PM — Lightning Talks — Kat & Michael
7:25 PM — Raffle Prize Giveaway & Wrap Up
7:30 PM — Event Ends
Event Agenda
In Partnership with Blend

Cat
Perez
She/Her
Founder & Chief of Product, HealthSherpa
Twitter @catperezsays
LinkedIn • Instagram

Purpose can be
fluid
Purpose has evolved over time for me.
Primarily driven by moments that sparked
self-awareness of my intersectional
identity. The road was bumpy and
uncertain, but ultimately led me to where I
am today in my career.
Perez Family pre-brother in Newark, NJ 1984
Baby Cat Perez

Class: Low-income
Experience: Parents worked multiple jobs to give us a
better life
Purpose: Achieve wealth for myself & my family
Class
Perez family in Hoboken, NJ 2015

Race: Korean + Puerto Rican
Experience: For example, when I was around my Puerto Rican
family, I didn’t feel like I fit in because I’m more visibly Korean
and I had experiences like this on both sides where I felt
othered.
Purpose: Embrace my Korican-ness
Race
BLM Sit-in Protest in Sacramento 2020

Education: Growing up, access to education was a struggle.
Experience: First in my extended family to go to and graduate
college
Purpose: Make my parents proud
NCAA DII Lacrosse Tournament 2003
Education

Sexuality
Sexuality: Queer
Experience: Knew I was different since I was 5, didn’t
come out until my late 20’s, and wasn’t accepted by my
family. Found community, but still felt othered as a woman
of color.
Purpose: Share stories & document ALL community
members via my blog LesbiansinSF
Pride 2010

Gender Identity
Gender identity: Woman
Experience: For example, as an exec at a previous
company, my ideas were dismissed & I wasn’t taken
seriously by the CEO.
Purpose: Create opportunity & wealth for other women
ESPECIALLY women of color
Catsplaining to an all-white cis-male
panel in DC

2019 - 3 Million enrolled in ACA health coverage
Team Offsite
PURPOSE LED ME HERE
HealthSherpa Team

You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.
Wayne Gretzky
Shots can also be assists in that you can help others along the way and still achieve greatness.
"Cat Perez"

Muchas gracias,
Kamsamnida,
& Thank you!
Let's connect!
cat@healthsherpa.com
@catperezsays
linkedin.com/in/catperez
HealthSherpa Founders 2019

Alexis
Lucio
She/Her/They/Them
Accessibility and Inclusive Design Lead, Splunk
Twitter @alexisxlucio
LinkedIn

I decided to be the role model that I
wanted to see growing up.

"Your purpose on this earth is to open doors for others.”

“How would you like to think of
diversity and inclusion beyond race,
gender, and sexual orientation?”

Thank you!
LET'S CHAT!
TWITTER:
@ALEXISXLUCIO
VOLUNTEER WITH ME!
INNERACTPROJECT.ORG
LINKEDIN
(IF WE'VE MET IRL)

● Name
● Gender Pronouns
● Role
● Company
● Does purpose/mission drive your career? Why or why not?
● In what other hobbies do you find purpose or meaning?
How Purpose Drives Career

Kat
Chiluiza
She/Her
Senior UX Researcher, Fitbit
kac22214@columbia.edu
LinkedIn

Identifying the Actual
Research Need

Identify the Research Need
1. What do you want to know?
2. What do you already know?
3. What are you going to do with this information?

Recruiting a
diverse, yet
representative sample

What is your shoe size?
❏ 5
❏ 6
❏ 7
❏ 8
❏ 9+

What is your shoe size?
❏ 5W / 3M
❏ 6W / 4M
❏ 7W / 5M
❏ 8W / 6M
❏ 9+W / 7+M

Creating Inclusive Questions
● Review or Volunteer to check any
discussion guides
● Soft launch a survey
● Continuously adjust qualitative questions

Advocating Inclusion
● Get stakeholders to watch sessions
● Use quotes
● Show competitor products
● Explain business value
● Create empathy by storytelling

Key Takeaways
● Identify the research needs early
● Speak to a diverse sample
● Keep in mind the user’s context
● Use storytelling

Gracias!
Let’s Chat
Kat Chiluiza
kac22214@columbia.edu
linkedin.com/in/kat-chiluiza/

Michael Orozco Jr
He/Him
Technical Recruiter, Netflix
Twitter @netflix
LinkedIn

Turn aspects of your identity that holds you back into aspects of your identity
that moves you forward
I'm the youngest person on the team I'm queer
I'm the only queer person on the team
I'm brown
My family is low income
I'm the first person in my family to graduate a
4 year university and move out of our
hometown
I don’t fit in / look the part

Intersecting identities in the Workplace
❏ The impact of ERG
involvement + recruiter role
❏ Growth mindset in the
workplace

ERG Involvement and Impact
❏ ERG member to ERG leader
❏ Intersectionality
❏ Expanded network
❏ Growth in Latinx identity
❏ Stronger recruiter
❏ Personal & professional growth

Growth Mindset in the Workplace
❏ Respond to that reach out, interview again
❏ The value of shadowing
❏ Getting the most out of 1:1’s and your team
❏ Go outside of your job description
❏ Identify not only problems but solutions
❏ Feedback - giving and getting
❏ Mentors
❏ Keep impact top of mind

Be loud and proud and
Be an owner of your career
Thank you, Michael
michaelorozcojr@gmail.com

MIJX & Ellos
Fabulosa &
Calladita No More
3 Lucky Winners Will Be Chosen (you must be present to win)
Fabuloso &
BLM Stronger
Together

If you want to share a comment or ask a question to one of the
speakers, let us know by using the chat box or by using the Q&A
feature.
Please be respectful when taking up space and allow space for
others to chime in as well.
Group Reflection & Closing Thoughts

● Name
● Gender Pronouns
● Role
● Company
● Who’s someone you really admire?
● What’s the best advice you’ve ever heard?
Moving Forward in the Workplace

Thank you!
Check out our upcoming events at
events.techqueria.org and feel free to
email us at hola@techqueria.org with any
questions, comments or concerns related
to the event!

Pride Month Event with Blend: Intersecting Identities in Tech

Pride Month Event with Blend: Intersecting Identities in Tech

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