Tech It Out

PAST EVENTS

2022 Tech It Out Speakers

2022’s Keynote Speaker: Christopher Lafayette

Christopher Lafayette is an emergent technologist, humanitarian, architect, speaker, and virtual worlds explorer. He is bringing thousands of communities and millions of people into the metaverse, humanely. He works for a more equitable culture of technology as a thought leader and advocate for greater inclusion and cross-cultural community building. He is the founder of GatherVerse and The Black Technology Mentorship Program. An expert on the metaverse, medtech, ai, education, Web3, and applied sciences, he has served with and advised companies, organizations, and universities around the world.

Jennifer Andreoli-Fang
Senior Manager
Service Provider Cloud Architecture – AWS

Tracy Baumgartner
Vice President
Business Process Effectiveness- Environment, Comcast

Jenna Ficula
Engineer
Slalom Element Lab212

Sheri Byrne Haber
Senior Staff Architect
Accesibility, VMare

Petr Kucheryavyy
Senior Accessibility Manager
Charter Communications

Amber Longtin
Student of Industrial/Organization Psychology

Bruno Sarda
Partner/Principal
Climate Change and Sustainability Services, EY

Evan Shapiro
Lead
ESHAP

Kat Stracquatanio
Senior Director
UX Engineering and Design Systems, Comcast

Carmela Stuart
Director
Future Infrastructure / CableLabs

Susie Tomenchok
Executive Coach

John Tomik
Managing Director
Slalom Strategy / Slalom Element

Rob Wilmoth
Senior Principal Architect
Red Hat

2022 Tech It Out Schedule

Time	Overview	Speaker(s)
8:00-8:45	Breakfast
	UX Engineering – The Best of Both Worlds	Kat Stracquatanio
	How AI and Digital Virtual Technology Mirror Sci-Fi Technologies, and how they’re changing life today and in the future	Jenna Ficula, John Tomik
10:00-10:20	Break
	Tech Talk 10G/Converging Network Stacks	Carmela Stuart, Rob Wilmoth
	Sustainability Fireside Chat	Tracy Baumgartner, Bruno Sarda
	Inclusive Design	Sheri Byrne Haber
	The Pain of Potential – Building Careers with Neurodiversity	Amber Longtin
12:00-1:00	Lunch
	The Power of Positive Politics	Susie Tomenchok
	Disability Inclusion in Entertainment	Petr Kucheryavyy
1:30-1:50	Break
	Bringing Media into This Century, Now	Evan Shapiro
	Tech Talk	Jennifer Andreoli-Fang
	Keynote – The Humanity Driven Metaverse	Christopher Lafayette
4:00	Closing

2021 Tech It Out Speakers

Sofia Rossato
SVP of Strategic Partnerships
TeamSupport

BJ Daisey
Vice President, Emerging Experiences
Comcast Product Experience

2021 Tech It Out Schedule

Immersive Experiences Enabled by 10G
Debbie Fitzgerald

Convergence
Mariam Sorond

Connecting to the Cloud
Cathy Fogler

Tech Talk – Beyond Chat: How continuous conversations are changing the way we do business
Sofia Rossato

IoT Still Matters – Why the Next Big Thing is Pushing 30
Bryan Hagedon

Broadband Billions – Washington’s Infrastructure Plan
Lou Borrelli and Matt Polka

Developing, Implementing and Maintaining DE&I as Part of Your Culture
Steve White

Panel Discussion – The X, Y, and Z of Generational Perspectives
Cynthia Carpenter, Sandy Grason, Haley Kwiat, Maria Popo, Rachel Popo, Dan Hillen, Laura Keralla

Tech Talk – Proactive Notifications – A Digital Journey
BJ Daisey

Children in Suits – How Unresolved Childhood Trauma can Make You Desirable to the Workplace
Rachel Beisel

Alexa, Do Men Talk Too Much? A Lighthearted Look at the Serious Need for Allyship for Women in STEM Using ML/AI
Sireesha Muppala and Shelbee Eigenbrode

Keynote Address – Conquer Crisis. Train Like a Triathlete. Body + Mind + Business
Jill Tupper M.A.

2020 Tech It Out Speakers & Topics

Rich DiGeronimo – Chief Product and Technology Officer, Charter Communications, & Cynthia Carpenter – VP/Human Resources and Employee Experience, Charter Communications
- In Conversation: Cynthia Carpenter and Rich DiGeronimo: Charter execs Cynthia Carpenter and Rich DiGeronimo discuss what it took to survive and thrive during the extraordinary events of 2020 – including what positive developments arose from the worldwide shelter-at-home transition, and what innovations are helping to shape Charter for the future.
Jan Hofmeyr – Executive Vice President and Chief Network Officer, Comcast Cable & Leslie Ellis, Technology Writer
- In Conversation: Leslie Ellis and Jan Hofmeyr: Comcast EVP and Chief Network Officer Jan Hofmeyr joins technology writer Leslie Ellis in a candid conversation about the year so far, innovations prompted by the pandemic, relevant new technologies, and what’s coming next.
Dana Filip-Crandall – Senior Vice President, Customer Experience and Call Center Operations, Comcast West Division & WICT Rocky Mountain’s 2020 Woman of the Year
- Current Events at the Intersection of Customer Care & 2020: Dana Filip-Crandall speaks about what it’s like when you need to very quickly pivot thousands of care employees into home-based workflows. Also: How consumer behaviors and demands are changing, coincident with the freakish events of 2020 – and what’s working to adapt along with them.
Jana Henthorn – President and CEO, The Cable Center, & Janice Silver, Vice President, Programs and Marketing, The Cable Center
- MythBusters: Innovation Edition: Are entrepreneurs responsible for the majority of groundbreaking innovations? Are most innovations the result of that “light-bulb” moment? Are innovators born or made? Join us as the Cable Center duo, Jana Henthorn and Janice Silver, examine 6 common innovation beliefs, a la MythBusters style, to determine if they’re fact or fiction, and how intrapreneurship can be your key to success.
Rama Sreenivasan – Cofounder & CEO – Blitzz Inc.
- TECH TALK: Part customer care evangelist, part scientist, part Zen master, Rama exudes a passion for service that is powerful and infectious. Hear how his company, Blitzz, is helping industries to adapt to mid- and post-pandemic customer realities using Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality.
Teresa Elder – Chief Executive Officer and Director, WideOpenWest, Inc., & Camilla Formica, Chief Revenue Officer of NCTI
- In Conversation: Camilla Formica and Teresa Elder: Camilla Formica interviews Teresa Elder about her journey (so far!) as a female leader, pro tips for overcoming obstacles, and what it means to lead an organization heart-first – with compassion and kindness.
Joe Hunt – GVP, Software Development and Architecture, Charter Communications
- TECH TALK: As a film enthusiast with a proclivity for “future-facing” themes, Joe shares what ideas from the movies made it into our day-to-day lives, and reflects on what’s coming next.
Rachel Beisel – Senior Vice President & Chief Marketing Officer, CableLabs
- What COVID Is Teaching Us About Leadership: As CableLabs’ first-ever Chief Marketing Officer, Rachel Beisel is a powerhouse of ideas, action, and energy. Learn what the COVID pandemic taught her about the human side of leadership, how COVID gave new depth to the WICT Touchstones, and what matters when communicating during a global pandemic.
Ruha Benjamin – Education Equity Advocate; Sociology & African American Studies Scholar; Author; Princeton University
- KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Ruha imparts actionable wisdom about biases in technology, and recommendations about challenging predispositions when building new products and services.
Dr. Jennifer Andreoli-Fang – Distinguished Technologist, CableLabs & WICT Rocky Mountain’s 2020 Technology Woman of the Year
- TECH TALK: When she was growing up, Jennifer Andreoli-Fang thought it was normal to get to school an hour early to help her physics teacher get set up for class, and to attend science and math camps in the summer. Since then, she’s risen to become our industry’s leading technologist when it comes to the inevitable intersections between mobile and fixed networks. She’s also an artist, and will illustrate her journey with some of her own sketches.
Jessica O. Matthews – Founder and CEO, Uncharted Power
- KEYNOTE SPEAKER: She invented a soccer ball that provides off-grid energy for the developing world – when she was 19. At 22, she founded Uncharted Power, a global, full-service power technology company that builds, owns and operates renewable power infrastructure. Jessica is a dynamo! Don’t miss this … powerhouse (ahem) of a keynote.

2020 Webinars, Videos, & Photos

Did you join us last year? Revisit the highlights with access to all of the webinars, videos, and photos here.

2019 Tech It Out Speakers & Topics

WICT Champions – Shane Portfolio
- How Tech can Leverage Diversity and Inclusion to Win
Morning Keynote – Dr. Davidson
- Leadership/Facing Challenges Head On
Panel Discussion – Maria Rothschild (Moderator) with Kate Tummarello (Engine,) Debbie Fitzgerald (CableLabs,) Chris May (Comcast,) Manish Jindal (Charter)
- Oh Gs! Wired and Wireless at the Edge
Tech Talk – Eilisa Reed, Woman in Technology Winner
- Perspectives from the Engine Room: IT Operations at a Major Cable Operator
Tech Talk – Daisy Henderson, Young Woman in Technology Winner
- Being a Young, Ambitious Woman in Tech
Tech Talk – Sarah Vergara
- Near Future Video and Behind the Tech
Fireside Chat – Leslie Ellis interviewing Stephanie Mitchko
Show & Tech Demo – Jodi Robinson
- Demo Tech House
Leadership Talk – Cynthia Carpenter
- Dare to Shine
Tech Talk – Rebecca Rusk
- Ethics in Design – How do we Keep Human-Centered Design Human?
Tech Talk – Mona Kessel
- How to Communicate Effectively in Male-Dominated Fields
NextGen – Shreya Nallapati
- Never Again Tech – Using Machine Learning Algorithms to Detect Markers of Mass Shootings
Tech Talk – Lisa Schwab
- The Innovator vs The Entrepreneur: Why we Need Both
Keynote Speaker – FlyGirl