July 13, 2021

Episode 154 - Equity in Technology with Olivia Herriford

by Hacker Valley Studio

July 13, 2021

Episode 154 - Equity in Technology with Olivia Herriford

by Hacker Valley Studio

Show Notes

Today in the studio, we have Olivia Herriford, whose great and exceptional work is focused on equity in technology.  Olivia is the Regional Director and Employer Engagement at Bay Area Community College Consortium.  

Olivia’s background is in technology, and with the Bay Area Community College Consortium, they support 28 community colleges in the San Francisco Bay region.  She often tells people she has what one would call an “ancient” computer science degree which she earned in 1973.  Olivia takes us back to what it was like to be a black woman in the mid-70s working with hardware and software engineers in the area of hardware design.  Sadly, she experienced a rather hostile work environment.  

In today’s world, Olivia believes one of the best things we can do for reaching out to younger people is instill confidence.  These young people do not need to be swayed by comparing themselves to others, but rather realize we all bring something unique to the table.  Everyone needs to understand their own capabilities and power.

 

Key Takeaways:

2:26 Olivia’s background

6:38 How Olivia ended up where she is

15:45 How do we change the environment

17:17 Progress & future

20:42 Making an impact

23:04 Cultivating conversations

26:22 Equity in technology

29:08 Advice for awareness

32:35 Connecting with Olivia

 

Links:

Olivia on LinkedIn

Olivia on YouTube

Support Hacker Valley Studio on Patreon.  Follow Hacker Valley Studio on Twitter.

Follow hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran on Twitter.

Sponsored by Panther Labs

Read more

Listen Now

test
Episode 154 - Equity in Technology with Olivia Herriford

July 13, 2021 Hacker Valley Studio

00:00:00

Recent Episodes

March 21, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the podcast, Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran share insights and tips on how to navigate a career in cybersecurity. They discuss the importance of having the right mindset, finding the right career path, building a network, and ...

March 14, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the Hacker Valley Studio podcast, hosts Ron and Chris tackle arguably one of the most difficult roles in cybersecurity: Incident Response. Drawing on his years of experience at organizations such as US Cyber Command, NSA, and N...

March 7, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode, Chris and Ron are joined by author, TED Talk presenter, and Chief Research Officer at WithSecure, Mikko Hyppönen, to discuss the past, present, and future of cybersecurity. With over 30 years of experience in cybersecurity, Mikko ...

February 28, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the Hacker Valley Studio podcast, Chris Cochran and Ron Eddings discuss cybersecurity resources for learning and standing out in the field. In the episode, the two discuss SANS Institute posters for pentesting, purple teaming, and ...

February 21, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

Welcome to the Hacker Valley Studio podcast, Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran reflect on their most pivotal moments in the industry. The two share personal stories that shaped their careers, from Chris' journey to landing his dream role at Netflix to Ro...

February 14, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the Hacker Valley Studio podcast, hosts Ron Eddings and Chris Cochran explore the power of ChatGPT and attempt to build a Python script that scrapes BleepingComputer for the latest headlines. Chris also takes a moment to reflect on...

February 7, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the Hacker Valley Studio, hosts Ron and Chris are joined by McKenna Yeakey to talk about her experience with being laid off in cybersecurity and finding a new job. Mckenna shares her journey through the emotional and psychological ...

January 31, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of the podcast, Maril Vernon joins Ron and Chris and discusses the importance of breaking down silos between cyber teams and inspiring individuals to drive their own careers in cybersecurity. Maril has been a key player in promoting t...

January 24, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

In this episode of Hacker Valley Studio, Rob Wood, Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) at CMS, discusses the challenges of data silos within organizations. Rob explains that security teams often operate in silos, with different departments focu...

January 17, 2023
by Hacker Valley Studio

Taylor Lehmann, Director of Office of the CISO at Google Cloud, has made it his mission to make healthcare and life sciences more secure and strategic for everyone. Joining our security podcast this week, Taylor talks about how security and strategy ...