March is Women’s History Month and ITS is celebrating by highlighting Carolina women in technology. All month long, ITS News will share profiles and Q&As to share the breadth and diversity of the Tar Heel women-in-IT experience. For the full list of profiles and to read some ways to get involved, visit Celebrating Women’s History Month with Carolina women in IT.
Tell us about your current role and what you do.
I wear several hats as part of Innovate Carolina, but I’ll talk about my role as a database developer for our highly customized “innovation data system” that uses Salesforce.com, FormAssembly and Zapier to help us manage innovation and entrepreneurship programs and track impact metrics for the University. Ten years ago, I was asked to get the system up and running. I didn’t expect it to turn into such a big part of my life, but it’s our 10-year anniversary this spring!
But I enjoy the problem-solving aspects of database development, working with team members and program stakeholders to co-design solutions, and seeing the outcomes in reporting metrics about UNC’s startups, programs and ecosystem participants. It’s rewarding to point to our impact dashboard on our website and our impact reports to say “here’s what I work on” and that Carolina is a leader in measuring and reporting these types of data and concisely defining what they mean.
What do you forecast for your field?
Growing. Data science, even with the introduction of AI and machine learning, is a growth field. Everyone needs data for how they work, for their stakeholders, for budgeting, etc. But not everyone enjoys it or even wants to spend time cleaning and curating data. As we learn more about how to analyze and present data and how to turn it into information, knowledge and even wisdom, there is a great need for people to be data scientists/analysts, database administrators and database developers.
About Cindy Reifsnider
Cindy Reifsnider leads data, research and impact services for Innovate Carolina. She is lead developer and database administrator for the Innovate Carolina Operations and Metrics Platform (two databases and add-on apps), which manages programs and tracks progress of innovative and entrepreneurial teams and University-born firms. Reifsnider holds a master’s in information science from UNC-Chapel Hill and a bachelor’s in meteorology from UNC-Asheville.
Has your gender affected your career trajectory, path, or choices?
Certainly. There have been challenging moments and enlightening moments that led me to choose my path in very decisive ways. But I think the most important thing I can say is about the environment I’m in now — the team I’ve chosen to work with: the Innovation Hubs and Engagement team within Innovate Carolina. You may be surprised to learn that we are a team mostly comprised of women. That’s a very supportive environment to be in, especially with the men on our team also being great to work with. They’re a great, smart and overachieving group of people, and I appreciate them every day.
Have you had a mentor in your career or someone else who made a difference for you?
So many. But I’ll mention my first boss, Jim Owenby, who taught me to spend time talking with the people in the basement. Yes, he meant it literally at the time — our government office’s printing press was in the basement, and in the early 1990s, getting data to people meant printing it on paper. But what he was really saying is that it’s important to connect with the people around you in all the roles and capacities that they serve in. When a supply chain problem occurred and the printing press staff couldn’t move forward without a decision, they knew they could call me to get the decision makers to weigh in. That experience has guided me throughout my entire career.
What would make it possible for more women to work and succeed in IT?
Support children early on — in grade school and middle school. Teach them early that IT, science, math, and engineering are open to everyone in so many ways. And we need to be mentors ourselves. During my tenure at Carolina, I’ve hired and mentored more than 50 students. I love hearing what they’re doing now and am proud to be a reference person for them during their careers.
What career advice do you have for women in IT?
Be bold. Be creative. Design your role and your life.
What resources would you recommend for women looking to start or advance their IT careers?
As above — be bold and creative. Find mentors. Believe in yourself and your capabilities. And something Evelyn Daniel, past dean and faculty of our School of Information and Library Science, said to me, it’s OK — even good — to not know exactly what you want to be or do when you grow up. Our field is evolving, growing and transforming — being able to pivot to the next new and exciting thing is a strength.