Friday, June 7, 2013

Bay Area Girl Geek Dinner #41 - Sponsored by Linkedin



On May 30, I was lucky enough to (literally!) win a lottery to attend the Bay Area Girl Geek Dinner sponsored by Linkedin. Girl Geek Dinners are hosted by Silicon Valley's hottest companies, who

"buy dinner and drinks for girl geeks, and give away a piece of co-branded schwag (to extend the lifetime of the event). Invite female speakers in areas of their expertise, from well-known names to the up-and-coming. Encourage networking amongst the girl geeks and recruiting by the sponsoring company. Everyone wins."


Linkedin's offices in Mountain View are the usual very nice facilities, with lots of free food and drinks. For the event, though, they had dinner and refreshments catered in. The fruit trays were pretty spectacular (and tasty).

 Of course, you get to meet lots of Girl Geeks, who are all very talented, driven and interesting people.

 We got a goody bag with lots of Linkedin stickers....

 The food was all Asian-themed, and quite good - as you can see above. Vegetarian and Non-Veg options were on offer, and there was plenty of food.

 After eating, drinking, and socializing, it was time to hear the speaker panel. From left to right:

Manager, Technical Brand, Culture, and Innovation Programs at LinkedIn; Senior Data Scientist at LinkedIn, Team Lead for Mobile data analytics; Principal Software Engineer; Senior Web Developer Lead and a VC who used to work for Linkedin and Google, and now makes her own Venture Cap deals.

The take-away here is that these women really do not have work-life balance, and all have worked some horrendous hours. If you want to make it in the Valley, hard work and long hours are part of the deal.


 After the panel discussion, it was time for dessert!

 Linkedin scored again in the dessert department.

 All drinks are free for Linkedin employees - check out the Peet's coffee station!

 Linkedin employees also get free Froyo - your choice of two different flavors!


My makeup that evening was a combination of Tom Ford and NARS: Tom Ford Traceless Foundation 03 Fawn; NARS Delphes Eye Shadow Trio; NARS Puerto Vallarta Multiple and Laguna Bronzer. My lipgloss had vanished after the meal ;-)

If you are in Tech and live in the Bay Area, you must attend a Girl Geek Dinner!

Cheers,

Jamilla

4 comments:

  1. I am glad you are back to blogging. I didn't know you were native of Bay Area. If I am not wrong you were in the UK right? Congratulations with your new blog!

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    1. Hi Sunny! Yes, I was born right here in the Bay Area - however, I also have British nationality and lived in the UK for 16 years before moving back to the States last year.

      Thank you!

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  2. You're BAAAACCCKKKKKK!!!!!!!! I totally jut caught up with the news - I'm so glad to see you blogging, and to see that the past year or so has worked out all for the best! I know you went through some hard times, but you have pulled through and are stronger for it, and are back to blogging! :D

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  3. Musicalhouses - THANK YOU!! It's great to be back!

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