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Shannon O’Higgins, President – is the Regional Manager for Canada at Invitae. Previously she was Sales Account Manager at DNA Genotek, where she was responsible for customer accounts in Europe. She has also worked in the lab for their Research & Development group. Shannon worked as a summer student in a molecular biology laboratory at PharmaGap. She holds an MSc. in Biotechnology and Business from the University College Dublin in Ireland, and an Honours Degree in Biology from Queen’s University. Connect with Shannon on LinkedIn. |
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Maureen O’Higgins, CFO – is a senior consultant specializing in broadband deployment strategy. She believes that connectivity is essential for economic and social wellbeing, even in hard-to-reach places. After, completing a Master of Business Administration at The Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto, Maureen moved on to a career in Business Development and Marketing at Nortel, then to consulting on broadband deployment for communities across Ontario. Maureen is an avid skier (on snow and water) and runner. She lives in Ottawa with her husband Brian and three daughters. |
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Jennifer Francis, Secretary – is the Principal of Cafe Noir Consulting, with over 25 years of experience in the high technology industry. Prior to consulting, Jennifer was the Vice President of the Financial Analytics business at IBM, and held a variety of executive positions at Cognos. Jennifer works closely with the Ottawa startup eco-system as Chair of Capital Angel Network, Board member of Invest Ottawa, and mentor at L-Spark. She is also the National Ambassador for Technovation, a program to inspire girls to pursue Technology careers. Jennifer holds a BMath from the University of Waterloo. Connect with Jennifer on LinkedIn. |
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Danielle Hodgson is a Product Manager at Kivuto, an Ottawa based company helping schools go digital. She graduated from Concordia University with honours in Economics and has been working as a Product Manager since for both hardware and software products in satellite communications, IoT, and SaaS. Prior to Kivuto, she was a Product Manager at Klipfolio, SkyWave and ORBCOMM. Danielle is passionate about building great products and advocating for women and girls in the tech community. She is also an outdoor adventurer enthusiast! Connect with Danielle on LinkedIn. |
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Sheri Finlay. Sheri is a Development Manager at Shopify. She graduated from Carleton University with a Bachelor of Computer Science with Honours and has had a fast-tracked career in software development and management in a variety of sectors including the financial sector, domain name and website hosting industry, and government contracting, for clients ranging from “Mom and Pop” shops to multi-million dollar enterprises. Sheri is an active contributor to the Ottawa high-tech community in her role as Co-Chair of the Ottawa Chapter of Women Powering Technology (@WPTGlobal), and previously as Vice-Chair of the Ottawa Chapter of Canadian Women in Technology. Sheri has a deep-rooted desire to help encourage women of all ages seek out opportunities in high tech and create rewarding contributions to the sector. Connect with Sheri on LinkedIn. |
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Claire McLaughlin is a Policy Analyst at Public Health Agency of Canada. She is also the president of Society of Women Engineers Ottawa. Claire graduated with a Master of Engineering (M.Eng.) from North Carolina State University after studying Biochemistry at the University of Ottawa. She developed a broad science knowledge base while managing a science laboratory during her previous career as a high school Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Earth Science teacher. She has advocated for increased diversity in STEM as a leader in the Brunswick County STEM Council, Girls Who Code, and FIRST Robotics. Connect with Claire on LinkedIn. LinkedIn. |
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Shilpi Dave is a product line manager at Nokia in the Optical Networking Business Unit. Prior to becoming a product line manager she was a software developer also at Nokia. Shilpi is keen on working with and empowering women especially in the technology field and is the current Chair of Nokia Canada’s StrongHer antenna. She has a Bachelor of Engineering from Carleton University and a MBA from University of Ottawa. Connect with Shilpi on Linkedin. |