Featured Speaker(s)

Our panelists for the Technology Trends are distinguished women in the fields of Biotechnology, Energy, Space Technology and Information Technology.

Jacqueline Northcut Waugh, President and CEO of BioHouston, will address the trends in Biotechnology and what may be especially "hot" in Houston. In her role as founding CEO of BioHouston, Jacqueline is helping to create an environment that will stimulate technology transfer and commercialization of research, build a critical mass of life science activities, and make our region a global competitor while generating economic wealth. Prior to joining BioHouston, Jacqueline was the lead audit partner with Arthur Andersen for life science companies in Texas. She worked with emerging businesses from the initial start up phase through maturity in various industries including biotechnology, venture capital, medical device, and several service industries. Her passion for life sciences is exemplified by her affiliations with the Association of Bioscience Financial Officers, Texas Healthcare & Bioscience Institute, the Texas Technology Transfer Association, and the BioMedical Technology Club.

Nancy Sauer, State Government Relations Director at Unocal Corporation, will share insights into the some of the new legislation for the energy industry and how it will shape technology trends in energy. At Unocal, Nancy is responsible for state lobbying, government relations and public policy issues. Prior to her current position at Unocal, she operated a consulting business specializing in state and international government relations and business development. Nancy previously held government relations positions at the former Pennzoil Company and American General Corporation. She also served in the White House Office of Public Liaison. Nancy is active in a wide range of public policy groups and serves on the Board of Directors for the Public Affairs Council (Washington, D.C.), Texas Association of Business (Austin, Texas), Fort Bend County Chamber of Commerce (Sugar Land, Texas) and the Women’s Energy Network (Houston, Texas.) In addition, Nancy also serves on the Houston Technology Center’s Energy Executive Committee.

As head of the Tech Transfer Office at NASA in Clear Lake, Charlene Gilbert will bring an insider's view of the technology trends coming out of the space programs themselves as well as technology needed to support the space industry.

Denise Kelley of The Boeing Company rounds out the panel with her extensive software background and the perspective of someone on the frontlines as Boeing Loaned Executive to The Houston Technology Center to address the IT technology trends. Prior to her HTC assignment, Denise served as the Boeing Manager of the Simulation & Tool Software Development Organization for the International Space Station Program working with NASA at the Johnson Space Center. Denise has over 23 years software engineering experience starting with JSC and then moving to MITRE (Massachusetts Institute of Technology Research and Engineering) Corporation in Houston on the Space Shuttle and Station programs. She has published numerious articles and received numerous awards including most recently the 2001 - Women of Color Technology Award presented for her technical expertise and achievements in Aerospace. She is actively involved in Women & the Sciences, a mentoring program in which young women are teamed with female science professionals to assist in career planning. A native Houstonian, Denise attended college on a dual-degree scholarship program at Texas Southern and Rice University in Houston where she studied Computer Science and Electrical Engineering.