Linda Drumright Linda Drumright
Vice President, Engineering
DigitalThink

Linda Drumright leads DigitalThink's engineering organization in developing the technical underpinning to all of DigitalThink's products. Linda came to DigitalThink in October of 1999 from Hyperion Solutions where she was the vice president of budgeting, planning and forecasting application product development. Prior to that, she headed the tools and applications division at Arbor Software and directed a large portion of the SQL server development organization at Sybase. Linda has 16 years of experience in building commercial software products and scaling organizations, both in process and in structure. She has managed all functional areas and prides herself in creating highly motivated, committed teams.

1. What was your first job in technology?
My first job in technology was in a co-operative job placed through UC Berkeley as a software engineer writing an insurance application in Fortran.

2. Who has been your most significant mentor? Why?
Laurie, an engineering manager that I worked for many years ago, has been my most significant mentor. She taught me to manage with fairness and to uphold high standards. She modeled "doing the right thing," even in the hardest of circumstances. She realized the potential in me and nurtured it often. She taught me to always keep my sense of humor.

3. What has been your greatest challenge and what strategies did you use to overcome obstacles?
Working full-time in a challenging career while raising 4 children has been my greatest challenge. My strategy has been 3-pronged:

  1. to create a strong partnership with my husband,
  2. to create a great team with my kids and
  3. to ask for help.
In creating partnerships and teams at home, I have recognized the similarities between the two and have been able to apply similar strategies and techniques.

4. Who has been the most influential person in your life? Why?
I have had many teachers that have influenced me greatly, but clearly the most influential people in my life have been my parents.

They taught me that there is "no such thing as 'can't'." They instilled in me that I was capable of doing anything I set my mind to. They encouraged me to take chances and simply to try my best at whatever I attempted. They supported my decisions, no matter how treacherous they perceived them, and applauded even when I achieved less than I had intended. They taught me to be self-sufficient – a survival skill that yields great accomplishments or severe isolation, if not applied well. My mother taught me how to create things out of any resources I had available – a skill I use handily at work and at home to this day. In a very tangible way, they taught me that from a vision I could create anything in my mind’s eye.

Both of them modeled hard work and determination. Together, in all that we did, endurance, perseverance and end results were all that mattered.

5. What lessons have you learned that would be valuable to women beginning their careers in technology?
Lessons I'd like to impart:

  • Integrity and reputation are all that you take with you when you leave a company. Value those and you will do well.

  • Work for companies that value skills, competence and contribution. Glass ceilings do not exist at such companies. Life is short, work there.

  • Focus on what you need to do to be a better person, a better contributor to the company and to society. All the rest will follow.

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?
Broadband communications will have a huge impact on the efficiency and accessibility of information. Internet effectiveness will be positively impacted in all areas - work, play, life and learning. The risk, of course, is that as we become more and more dependent on such technologies (as we will in the course of 20 years), we will become more and more inept in human interactions and personal relationships. The challenge is to manage that.

On a lighter note:

1. If you could have dinner with any 2 people (living or not), who would they be?

Amelia Earhart and Lucille Ball.

2. What was the last book you read? What books do you love to recommend?
The last book that I read was "Credibility" by Posner and Kouzes. I love to recommend "Leadership and The New Science" by Wheatley, "The Dance of Anger" by Lerner and "The Celestine Prophecy" by Redfield.

3. If you couldn't do what you are doing now, what profession would you choose?
Either interior design, or career guidance counselor for middle, high school and college students.

4. What is your definition of success?
Creating a vision and "shipping" it!

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