1. If you could have dinner with any 2 people (living or not), who would they be?
I would enjoy dinner at the White House with Eleanor Roosevelt and my grandmother Lida Butterfield who were contemporaries and both forward-thinking women of great strength. It would be a thrill to listen to their conversation and to find out what they would think of my life in the 21st century.

2. What was the last book you read? What books do you love to recommend?
I just finished "Memoirs of a Geisha" by Arthur S. Golden. I enjoyed learning about the women of Japan who lived as mistresses of powerful men and I was impressed by the perspectives of the main character who was increasingly aware of her situation and of the world outside her own.

I read fiction for pleasure and while I also read management books, my regular business reading is done in periodicals such as Fast Company, Forbes, Inc. and Time.

3. If you couldn't do what you are doing now, what profession would you choose?
I've already had three professions: fiber artist, professor and high-tech exec. That doesn't include mother, wife and volunteer. If I could start over, I would be a medical doctor, probably an Oncologist.

4. What is your definition of success?
Success is about balance. To me it means improving the state of things for others balanced with doing things that bring me professional and personal growth. On a personal level, this balance is between pushing my boundaries of comfort so I learn as much as possible while maintaining a healthy lifestyle with diverse involvements.

Leslie Butterfield answers these questions:
1. What was your first job in technology?
2. Who has been your most significant mentor? Why?
3. What has been your greatest challenge and what strategies did you use to overcome obstacles?
4. Who has been the most influential person in your life? Why?
5. What lessons have you learned that would be valuable to women beginning their careers in technology?
6. What new technology do you believe will have the most positive impact on the world in the next 20 years? The most negative impact?

On the lighter side:
1. If you could have dinner with any 2 people (living or not), who would they be?
2. What was the last book you read? What books do you love to recommend?
3. If you couldn't do what you are doing now, what profession would you choose?
4. What is your definition of success?