Brenda Darden Wilkerson on GHC in Chicago: Part Two

I was lucky enough to have the chance to sit down with Brenda Darden Wilkerson, our President & CEO at AnitaB.org, to ask her a few of the questions I had on my mind pre-GHC 25. Here’s how it went (a continuation from Part One):   

6. The theme of Grace Hopper Celebration this year is UNBOUND. How does that theme resonate with you personally, and what do you hope attendees take away from it? 

What I love about UNBOUND is that I feel like so many of us didn’t know we were bound up; we thought we were free. Now, totally aware of the pressure that comes after us, it’s almost like using it as a verb. “I’m going to UNBOUND myself.” [For GHC themes] historically, we started with, “I am.”, and then we did, “We are.”, and then we did, “We are here.” We’ve been progressing, and to me that is unbinding. WE must be self-aware enough to understand how to free ourselves from the faulty expectations of those who would stop us from doing all we could do. The question is, how can I be free to be who I am supposed to be, so I can contribute what only I can? How do I stop being what somebody told me to be? How do I recognize the conditioning I’ve weathered throughout my life and career, and take steps to lesson the impact until I’m truly unbound? What I hope it means for attendees is that they have a new lens on their life and what they can contribute, and on the lives of others, so they don’t bind up their neighbor. 

7. For someone attending GHC for the very first time, what moment or feeling do you hope they experience? 

The first thing I want them to have that myth-busting moment. And that’s that moment when they go, “Wait. I’ve been told there weren’t very many of us, that perhaps we didn’t merit what others do. But yet, here we are.” That’s the first thing. I want them to walk in and go, “Yeah, this is different. This is the truth. This is something different here.”  

8. We know you’re deeply committed to creating pathways to get people into tech. What are some ways GHC 25 is helping our community get skilled, hired, promoted, paid, and funded? 

Once our community shows up at our events, or in our Membership platform and sees what they and others possess, they are then ready to avail themselves of all the opportunities that are present within our offerings.  They can find upskilling and coaching which we’re planning to increase offerings so that even more is available. And not just one and done-type training, but the type that stretches across time, and some into GHC, and afterwards, to not only keep a sandbox open for you, but the new community you find in the training. I think one of the most important things people get is community, which we also provide year-round through AnitaB.org Membership. So you can think of Grace Hopper Celebration as at least two things: it’s a capstone and it’s a commencement. People show off what they finish, they get exposure, they get speaking experience, and they get to brag. The commencement is, “Now we get to start something new!”.  

We used to call a part of our community “seekers,”: those who are, for instance, inside tech companies, but in finance or some other discipline, but they want to be in tech. When they come to GHC, they find out how much their skills already apply inside their own company, or how to get the skills they need to actually move.  We also help their company leaders understand that these candidates should be top priority for growing their tech workforce in that their time at the company spells knowledge of the company’s mission and processes, along with loyalty.  These are great foundations on which they can build tech expertise. 

9. You’ve spoken about the importance of keeping people—not just technology—at the center of progress. How is that human-first philosophy showing up at GHC this year? 

I think that the theme UNBOUND is about people. I think that’s our signature. It’s always people first for me. It’s always going to be people first. How are we thinking about the people when we make this tech? Or who are the people who are getting to make this tech? Or what research on people do we do? It’s got to be about people. This idea, executed well, is the very foundation of tech that works. We take every opportunity to address the fact that the highest and best use of tech is in service of people, period.  

10. What’s one story or moment from past GHCs that still gives you goosebumps—and how do you hope we’ll top that this year? 

I remember my first GHC in 2017, when Megan Smith, Obama’s CTO, joined us. I remember walking into the Expo, and Megan was standing in the center of this sea of young women, and they were reaching for her and talking to her. I remember that her countenance told them how much she connected with them, and she beamed her willingness to talk to and listen to them until they got what they needed to. And I just thought, that’s amazing. Even though her celebrity could have made her standoffish, and she just came there as a tech woman, and opened herself up, decreasing the distance. I thought, that’s a great example. She showed a meaningful example of brilliance and leadership that is open to sharing. What I loved is that the attendees felt free to act like the women we are. And every time I saw powerful women like Megan, who are running the world, willing to pour out of themselves to those who could benefit from having that kind of proximity, yeah, that made me want to weep. 

Help Us Build What’s Next in Tech 

AnitaB.org is a nonprofit driving change across the tech ecosystem—and we can’t do it without you. Donations from our community power the programs that help tech workers grow, lead, and thrive. 

From our Membership program to the AnitaB.org Apprenticeship Pathway Program (APP), and of course, Grace Hopper Celebration (GHC)—coming to Chicago this November—your support makes it all possible. (Registration is officially open!) 

Want more bold conversations and behind-the-scenes impact? Follow Brenda Darden Wilkerson on LinkedIn to see who she’s impacting. And tune in to our podcast, B The Way Forward, where Brenda leads conversations with greats in tech about the industry.