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SWE Community Spotlight: Early Career Professionals Affinity Group

SWE Community Spotlight: Early Career Professionals Affinity Group - Affinity Group
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About Us

The Early Career Professionals Affinity Group (ECP AG) was formed to address the gap from collegiate to professional SWE and equip individuals with the support, resources, and inclusive community to excel in the first ten years of their career. The mission of the Affinity Group is to aid in the recruitment and development of early career professionals, and to facilitate their engagement with and participation in the Society. By providing a forum for networking, professional development, and opportunities to promote diversity of thought, the ECP AG aims to empower early career professionals to succeed professionally and personally. Collegiate seniors, graduate students, and individuals in the first 10 years of their career are encouraged to join.

What are our goals?

  • Strategic Goal #1 – Professional Excellence
      • Act as a primary source of professional development, to include all engineering disciplines and career paths, meeting the needs specific to early career professional SWE members.
  • Strategic Goal #2 – Globalization
      • Empower early career professionals within SWE from all geographic locations, cultures, environmental experiences, and career paths.
  • Strategic Goal #3 – Advocacy
      • Encourage early career professionals to be advocates for their career growth and in the face of challenges.
  • Strategic Goal #4 – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
      • Increase representation of early career individuals among Society, AG and local section leadership.

 Why should I join the ECP AG?

  • Future growth, professional and leadership development in both SWE and the workplace
  • Networking opportunities and engagement with the global early career professional SWE community through organized social events and social media (Slack, LinkedIn, etc.)
  • Access to professional development resources through events and mentorship

How can I join?

Connect with us here to join our mailing list, Slack, LinkedIn, and learn about upcoming events and activities!

Meet our Leadership Team

 

ECP AG Co-Lead: Amber Kreceman (She/Her)

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Dallas SWE Section

Program Manager – Raytheon Technologies

University of Tennessee: B.S. BME (14), M.S. ME (16)

Amber Kreceman is a Program Manager in Advanced Concepts and Technology (ACT) for Raytheon Intelligence & Space (RIS), a business of Raytheon Technologies.  She leads a cross-functional team developing cutting-edge technology and is responsible for execution, schedule, and cost of $33M in active and projected advanced radar strategic system programs and $6M in internal research and development efforts. Kreceman started her Society of Women Engineers career as a collegiate at the University of Tennessee Knoxville serving as the Vice President of Special Events. She continued her involvement with SWE at UTK as a graduate student, attending WE National Conferences and eventually hiring on to Raytheon at WE15. Amber returned to conference at WE16 as a panelist for the Collegiate Welcome Luncheon and continued in subsequent years as a recruiter for Raytheon and speaker on behalf of the Early Career Professionals Affinity Group. After arriving in Dallas, Texas in 2017, Amber took on multiple leadership roles within Dallas SWE outreach eventually becoming the Executive Vice President of the section in FY22. Amber was also selected as a co-lead for the Early Career Professionals Affinity Group in FY22. In her spare time, Amber enjoys spending time with her family and is expecting her second child this Spring.

 

ECP AG Co-Lead: Mahati Vavilala (She/Her)

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Atlanta SWE Section

Procurement Analytics Consultant – Insight Sourcing Group

Georgia Institute of Technology: B.S. IE (19)

Mahati Vavilala is a Procurement Analytics Consultant at Insight Sourcing Group (ISG), a boutique management consulting firm based in Atlanta, GA. At ISG, she manages spend optimization opportunities for multibillion dollar clients across a number of industries and is heavily involved with the Women’s Network and firmwide D&I initiatives. Mahati kickstarted her involvement with SWE at Georgia Tech in 2015, where she served in multiple leadership roles including VP of Technical Development in FY18 and President in FY19. She has attended the annual SWE conference every year since WE17 and has continued her involvement in SWE after graduating from Georgia Tech as a part of the SWE Atlanta Executive Board as Social Media Chair and Professional Development Chair. Most recently, Mahati presented “WE Beyond SWE: Championing Diversity & Inclusion in the Workplace” at WE20 and led “Career Fair Tips and Tricks” and the “College to Career Panel” at WE21 in Indianapolis. In her free time, Mahati enjoys cooking, exploring restaurants and coffee shops, volunteering and mentoring, and spending time with family and friends.

 

Professional Development Chair: Amar Dabaja (She/Her)

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Detroit SWE Section

Electrical Hardware Engineer – Veoneer

Lawrence Technological University: B.S. EE (21)

Amar Dabaja is an Electrical Hardware Engineer at Veoneer. At Veoneer, she designs crash detection modules for major local OEMs and is involved in the Veoneer Women’s Network. Amar first became involved in SWE during her undergraduate studies at Lawrence Technological University, where she served as Secretary and then President of her Collegiate section. After graduating, Amar continued to be involved by joining the SWE Detroit Communications Committee and the SWENext Publications Workgroup. In her free time, Amar enjoys reading, spending time with family, volunteering at local youth events, and trying new hobbies.

 

 

 

Professional Development Chair: Jenni Johnson (She/Her)

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Central New Mexico (CNM) SWE Section 

Reclamation Engineer EIT – State of New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division

New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology: B.S. EnvE (18)

Jenni Johnson is a Reclamation Engineer for the State of New Mexico Mining and Minerals Division, a regulatory agency that oversees the mining industry. She reviews cost estimates and engineering designs for coal and hardrock mines, conducts site inspections of hardrock mines, and manges almost 20 mine and drilling permits. Her work is focused on ensuring that mining related disturbance is properly reclaimed to protect the environment and allow for future beneficial use. Jenni joined her New Mexico Tech collegiate SWE section in 2016 and became the Vice President for FY18. As a collegiate SWE member, she attended WE16 and WE17. In 2019 she joined her local professional section where she has had multiple roles over the years. Currently her three SWE CNM roles are outreach chair (FY22), social media chair (FY21), and the collegiate counselor for the New Mexico Tech collegiate section (FY20). Jenni is also on the 2022 WELocal Host Committee for Albuquerque, NM and is looking forward to attending her first WELocal conference. In her free time you can find her playing hockey, hiking, and trying new restaurants and obscure board games with friends.

 

Networking Co-Chair: Marissa Doyen (She/Her)

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Baltimore-Washington SWE Section

Incoming Systems Engineer – The Boeing Company

Western Michigan University: B.S. AE (20)

Marissa began her involvement with SWE during her university years. Marissa was President of the Western Michigan University collegiate affiliate during her senior year. Her recent SWE Leadership includes roles in both the Latinos and the Early Career Professionals Affinity Groups. In these roles, she works to encourage and support underserved communities in STEM and is a champion for diversity, equity, and inclusion in industry and academia. Marissa spends her free time crafting and being her cat’s #1 fan. She is looking forward to attending the SWE Annual Conference in person again soon, and is grateful for the home she has found within SWE.

 

Networking Co-Chair: Juliann Forbes (She/Her)

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SWE Silicon Valley

Solutions Engineer – Keysight Technologies

New York University, Tandon School of Engineering: B.S. EE (19)

Juliann Forbes is a Solution Engineer at Keysight Technologies on the Manufacturing Test team. As a Solutions Engineer, she works hands-on with OEM and CM customers, in a wide variety of industries including automotive and consumer electronics, to develop and optimize their manufacturing test strategy. She specializes in Keysight’s big-data analytics tool, Pathwave Manufacturing Analytics (PMA). Using data she is able to bring customers meaningful insights into their manufacturing process, catching systematic issues and improving transparency in their supply chain. She began her involvement with SWE at New York University (NYU) when she joined as a member in 2016 and was later connected with Keysight through the WE18 SWE conference. She decided to become further involved post-college by joining Keysight’s SWE organization and then becoming a leadership team member of the Early Career Affinity Group. Through SWE she has been able to present on topics close to her heart such as “Creating a Welcoming Environment for College Hires” and “Easing the Onboarding Process.”  When she’s not working, she’s trying out new recipes, dancing and playing lots of Beat Saber and Dungeons & Dragons. She is very excited to meet more of the amazing women engineers in SWE and is very glad to have found an early career community! 

 

Membership Co-Chair: Marie Pierre (MP) Delisle (She/Her)

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Los Angeles SWE Section

Ph.D. Candidate – University of California, Los Angeles

University of California, Los Angeles: B.S. CEE (18), M.S. CEE (20)

Marie-Pierre (MP) Delisle is a Ph.D. Candidate in Coastal Engineering at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Her research focuses on the dynamic interactions occurring in the shallow coastal zone and the impacts sea level rise will have on coastal flooding magnitudes and behaviors. MP attended SWE events as an undergraduate including WE17 and became more involved with SWE as a graduate student. She is currently an advising Board Member of the Graduate Society of Women Engineers at UCLA, having previously served as the Mentorship Director and President. She combines her love of teaching with her passion to empower under-represented groups in STEM by serving on the organizing committee for the Women in STEM Conference at UCLA and as a mentor for the Center for Engineering Excellence and Diversity at UCLA. On the weekends, you’ll likely find MP outside running, swimming, or skiing with family and friends. You can also catch her at WELocal ABQ in February 2022 where she will be participating in the Collegiate Competition! 

 

Membership Co-Chair: Tharima Ferdausi (She/Her)

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Boston SWE Section

Associate Distribution Engineer – Leidos

University of Massachusetts-Lowell: B.S. ME (21)

Tharima Ferdausi is an Associate Distribution Engineer at Leidos, formerly known as Science Application Internal Corporation (SAIC). She works in the Civil Sector in Framingham, MA where she designs systems that distribute power throughout the electric utility line. Her projects vary from joint use make ready, street light management, structural analysis of poles, developing work packages through Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and performing field work to observe telephone poles. She has been an active member of SWE since joining the organization in her collegiate years. Currently, she is a member of SWE in the Boston section. Tharima enjoys volunteering to encourage young girls to pursue STEM and participating in SWE events to support women in STEM. During her free time, Tharima enjoys embroidery, going for walks, listening to podcasts, and spending time with her family and friends.

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