Presentation Outlines and Speaker Biographies
Check back soon for more details!

Keynote
Margaret Anderson Kelliher

Margaret Anderson Kelliher is the president and CEO of the Minnesota High Tech Association, which supports the growth, sustainability, and global competitiveness of Minnesota’s high tech economy.  Prior to joining MHTA, Ms. Anderson Kelliher served six terms in the Minnesota Legislature, the last two as speaker of the House of Representatives.  She holds a degree from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, and is also a lecturer at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey Institute.

Session 1

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM)
Doug Paulson

STEM is an acronym being used in K-12 schools to delineate the integration of engineering across the domain specific curriculum.  Partnership with business and engineering professionals are essential for the continued growth of STEM in Minnesota schools, so this session will focus on what STEM integration looks like in schools across Minnesota along with helpful pedagogical ideas for working with teachers and students. Also, tools that are available through the Minnesota Department of Education such as our getSTEM-mn.com web portal will be highlighted. Come prepared with any questions you have with connecting with schools or teachers, working with classrooms, or any general questions for K-12 education work.

Doug Paulson is the STEM (Science Technology Engineering Mathematics) Specialist at the Minnesota Department of Education working with schools to successfully integrate learning in the classroom through the STEM domains. Currently working on his dissertation in Leadership, Policy, and Administration at the University of St. Thomas, Doug spent 10 years as an elementary and middle school science and math teacher and curriculum coordinator in Robbinsdale and Anoka-Hennepin School Districts. Equity and access issues in STEM have been a passion of his in co-coordinating a Saturday program at Bethel University titled “Girls in Science: Changing the World” and connecting with “mirror mentors” for his students. Doug has presented the research from the Bethel program at the P-16 Research Summit for Engineering Education for Purdue University.

Leadership – from Engineering to Management and Beyond
Kathleen Kolbeck, PE, LEED AP

In the "Leadership - from Engineering to Management and Beyond" session, Katy will speak about her fast-track move from being an engineer to being the President/CEO of an engineering company.  She will discuss key factors in being a leader as a woman with an engineering background.  This session will focus on what to do to move up with an engineering background, challenges that may be presented along the way and lessons learned on the path from engineering to the top.

Katy Kolbeck is President/CEO of Dunham, a Minneapolis based consulting engineering firm providing mechanical and electrical engineering services to clients across the United States.  She has over 30 years of experience as an electrical engineer, project manager, and engineering principal, and is a registered Professional Engineer in 31states. 
 
Katy is a graduate of Marquette University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering.  She started with Dunham in 1976 as an engineering designer in the Power Distribution Group.  In 1979, she moved to Portland, Oregon and worked for 4 years for PAE Engineers, before returning to Dunham in 1983 as a Project Electrical Engineer.
 
Katy was named a Partner at Dunham in 1987, Managing Partner of the Minneapolis office in 1995 and President of the firm in 1996.  In 1998 she assumed the additional role of Chief Executive Officer. 

CLCC Session – Building Teams
Molly Johnson

Working well in a team is a crucial skill for any engineer at any level. Come to learn what a team is compared to a group, discuss the phases of developing a team, teaming strategies, effective team traits, and how to continue developing a team over its lifetime. We will also go over the cycle of a team including forming, storming, norming, and performing. 

Molly Johnson is a Consultant at Baker Tilly Virchow Krause in Minneapolis, MN.  She is a part of the Manufacturing Technology team for Baker Tilly - an accounting and advisory firm based in Chicago.  She has Bachelor and Master’s degrees in Industrial Engineering from the University of Wisconsin – Madison.  While at Wisconsin she began her active involvement in SWE, including serving as Section President.   She has been a member of the Collegiate Leadership Coaching Committee since 2007 and is the Region H Team Lead. 

Maximizing the Message - Engaging More Girls
Allison Pedersen

Proper messaging to students positively impacts the perception of engineering as a career choice.  Participants will learn tips and techniques to become more effective role models, and get the most out of hands-on activities, classroom visits, and field trips.  Maximize your message with this training! 

Allison Pedersen has worked at Goodrich Sensors and Integrated Systems (GSIS) for 12 years.  She currently holds the role of Engineering Manager and is responsible for the Systems Application and Integration team within the Air Data Systems Center of Excellence.  Allison has also been an active SWE member for 16 years.  Since graduating from UND with a bachelors of science in Electrical Engineering, Allison has been active in the SWE-Minnesota section, where she has held numerous positions on the Executive Council.  She has also been a member of the SWE-MN Outreach Committee for several years.  In addition from FY07-FY10, she held her “dream position” as the SWE Outreach Committee Chair and continues to be very active on that Committee.

Session 2

Women and Money: Taking Care of Your Financial Health
Maura Steblay

How do women address money and finances in an honest and constructive manner that allows for both self-care and rewarding giving? As with most things, we must first care for ourselves. Learn some great cost cutting tips, ways to indulge for less and how to make the most of your gifts to charities and others. Join Maura Steblay, MAEd and Financial Advisor for a session that promises to be lively and engaging. Remember, girls just want to have funds!

Maura Steblay is a financial advisor for Minneapolis Financial Group. She also is a licensed parent educator with a master’s degree in education. As one of seven children, a wife and a mother of two daughters, she focuses her practice on empowering women through financial education. She focuses on families with special need dependents as well as elders needing financial health assistance.

Managing Different Generations
Cathy Krier & Lesley Wyckoff

In today’s organizations we encounter four generations of workers: Gen X, Gen Y, Baby Boomer, and Traditional. The diversity of characteristics and values represented by each group can make an issue of communication, collaboration, and motivation. As the generations continue to shift it will be essential for successful organizations to share and transfer knowledge between generations. We must first recognize the characteristics and values that are representative of each group. This module discusses differences in work ethics, leadership styles, work-life balance, and views on education, money, and much more. Participants will also assess which generation they fit into, and discover it might not even be the generation they were born into.

Cathy Krier is a Senior Principal Strategic Sourcing Consultant, Global Talent Acquisition at Medtronic, Inc. headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.  Cathy is responsible for developing and implementing multifaceted strategies and tactics to attract high potential, diverse talent for Medtronic Quality, Regulatory, and Clinical (QRC) functions.  She collaborates with QRC leadership and HR partners across all business sectors.  She is the Chair of the Medtronic Women’s Council and a Leadership Coach for the Society of Women Engineers. 

Cathy has more than 18 years of medical device industry experience.  She has held positions with increasing responsibility providing oversight for products and therapies released by Medtronic.  In 2007, she became the recipient of the Emerging Leader in Quality award presented by the National Society of Women Engineers.  Cathy obtained her bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering from Milwaukee School of Engineering and her MBA from Capella University.

Lesley Wyckoff is a Mechanical Engineer at Stratasys in Eden Prairie, where she has been a design engineer for 3 ½ years.  She is an alumna of University of St. Thomas but is originally from Germantown, TN.  Lesley is currently serving as Vice President of the SWE-MN Professional Section.  Lesley has a strong passion for outreach and has been a major contributor to SWE-MN’s outreach activities for the past 3 years.  In her free time, she enjoys watching her favorite show, Gilmore Girls, playing Sudoku, and hanging out with friends.  Being the first “right out of school” engineer in her department, Lesley has had learned how to manage different generations and discover for herself how she best fits in with her “more experienced” coworkers.

Microsoft
Details coming soon!

Job Seekers Workshop: Keep Your Chin Up and Your Pipeline Filled
Kelly Rietow

Join us for this working session that will help you to clarify your “elevator pitch” and differentiate yourself from other job candidates.  Attendees will depart with: 

• A clear understanding of their unique talents to offer an employer
  
• Strategies to market yourself to win the interview
  
• Post interview follow up suggestions
  
• Sample resume and cover letter formats
  

Attendees are encouraged to bring a current copy of their resume to the session.

Kelly Rietow specializes in creating practical systems and tools that fit the culture, engage the workforce and develop organizational capabilities. With broad-based expertise in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Facilitation and Leadership, Kelly guides and challenges her clients to strategically align people, process and culture with the execution of business objectives. Kelly brings over 15 years of diverse experience working with both global, public organizations and small, privately held organizations and has a particular passion for optimizing the performance of non-profits and organizations experiencing growing pains. A two-time recipient of the Employers Association Best Practices Award, Kelly earned her MBA from the University of St. Thomas and the Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification through the Society for Human Resource Management.

Session 3

Journey to Your Heart Song.  Singing the Truth Within.
By: Nielle Arnold

Journey to Your True Heart Song.
Take an hour-long journey into energizing breathwork, powerful intention-setting, inner-explorative guided imagery  and the written word and discover the inner song your heart is singing. Step into a yoga-inspired space of gratitude and positivity and connect with the authentic truth and limitless strength and opportunity that is available within always.

Nielle Arnold is the founder of ceremonI Personal & Professional Power Practices, offering unique and customized empowerment and healing experiences for individuals and groups; ranging from personal one- on- one coaching sessions to retreat planning, to workplace workshops for innovative corporations in the Twin Cities.  Nielle has been teaching yoga and meditation in the Twin Cities for six years and is currently instructing at Corepower Yoga locations six days a week where her classes are inspired by music, mantra, meditation, positive affirmation and present moment consciousness. 

Technical to Management
Jessica Eidem and Terri Lundak, IBM

You’ve been in your technical role for some time and wonder what management would be like.  You ask questions like “Would I be good at it?” and “Could I go back to being technical?”  This presentation is for you!  Two IBM mangers with unique backgrounds will cover the process and emotions related to doing just that.  The purpose is not to convince people that one way or the other is right, but to strengthen their intent to move into management or help people decide it is not for them.  A Q&A session will follow. 

Terri Lundak is the Manager of  IBM System and Technology Group (STG) Rational Deployment Team with the responsibility of deploying IBM Rational solutions to +25,000 IBM STG system developers, testers, and project managers. Terri started her 14 year career at IBM as a Technical Analysis in the performance area of System i or AS/400, moving into the communications area as a Software Engineer after obtaining a MS in Telecommunications. She began her management career 7 years ago but continues to hold various technical and project management roles. Most recently, she was part of a team of 14 IBM'ers from 12 countries working for 4 weeks in Brazil on an IBM Corporate Service Corp assignment as a consultant to drive business growth

Jessica Eidem currently manages a Compliance Department at IBM in Rochester, MN.  The team is responsible for mid-range Safety and EMC certifications.  She has also managed an IBM Customer Test department.  Before becoming a manger in June of 2006, she was a Mechanical Design Engineer at IBM for five years working on a variety of products.  Jessica Eidem has a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from South Dakota State University and an M.B.A. from Cardinal Stritch University. 

Public Speaking 101: The Basics and Beyond
Martha Feda

Public Speaking 101-The Basics and Beyond.  What are your speaking techniques? 
What does public speaking have in connection with your professional development? 
This interactive session gives the tools and tips to public speaking and takes a look at leadership, creating your own style, and removing public speaking barriers. 

Martha Feda is a member of the Community Spirit and PowerTalk Professional Toastmasters. She does professional speaking for the Minneapolis Business College and presents wellness seminars to corporations and community groups.  She is the President and owner of Mind Your Medicine and works as a Health and Life Coach.  Her expertise focuses on building visions and goals, conflict resolution, stress and weight management for organizations, community groups, and individuals.  She has a Masters Degree in Organizational Management from Concordia University and her Masters of Liberal Studies Degree from the University of Minnesota is in Public Health, Adult Education, and Gerontology.  Martha enjoys cross-country skiing, bike tours in the summer, reading, and spending time with her three daughters.

Ergonomics and the Efficiency of a Healthy Desk and Life
Amanda Cole

Ergonomics is defined as human engineering.  We’ll discuss good health and fitness and how it can make you a more efficient, whole person.  Learn how to have a healthful desk set up and an exercise, stretching, and relaxation breathing routine that you can do in 5 minutes at your desk.

Amanda Cole is a Certified Personal Trainer through the National Association of Sports Medicine and the National Council on Strength and Fitness, as well as a Group Fitness Instructor through the National Exercise Trainers Association and a yoga instructor certified by the Yoga Alliance.  She has an A. A. S. degree in Personal Training from St. Paul College as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Studio Art.  Amanda runs Small Group Personal Training and Hatha Yoga at Total Balance Fitness (her own company) in South Minneapolis, is a personal trainer at Anytime Fitness in St. Paul, and teaches Boot Camp and Yoga at Bally Total Fitness in St. Louis Park.  She loves running, bicycling, gardening, cooking, helping people achieve their fitness goals, and teaching and encouraging health and wellness!

Session 4

Healthy Eats
Rita Katona
Details coming soon!

Living an Intentional Life
Tanja Scott

We as women have so many demands in our life that we often live on autopilot, reacting to those things that hit our day to day life instead of creating a plan for what we want our lives to look like.  I want to give women some things to think about in order to live more intentionally and with purpose.

Tanja Scott is the founder of EverDream, a Minneapolis based consulting company.  She helps people to spark change in their worlds by living an intentional life.  Tanja earned her Masters in Counseling Psychology from Boston College.

Geek Girls (Social Media 101)
Nancy Lyons and Meghan Wilker

How can businesses use social media tools to connect with employees, clients and customers? Additionally, how can people use social media tools to connect with colleagues, clients, and build industry relationships? From those who have been using Facebook since college to those who avoid Twitter like the plague, the session aims to make web technology accessible and exciting. Complete with a step-by-step walk through of how to create a professional social media strategy that really works, including real-world examples of people and organizations finding value with these tools.

Nancy Lyons and Meghan Wilker launched the Geek Girls Guide in January 2008 as a place to publish their perspective on the Interactive industry and demystify technology for non-technical audiences. Their mission is to make web technology accessible and exciting and cultivate a movement of empowered women and men online by:

• hosting safe, welcoming places to ask technology questions online and in real life
• educating non-technical audiences on the practical applications of Internet technology
• creating opportunities for women and men in software and web development to socialize and network
•  advocating for our audiences at software and web industry events

Barriers and Enablers to Innovation
April Horne

Medical innovation is often delayed by the difficulty in developing relationships between practicing physicians and medical device developers. The Mayo Clinic Division of Engineering facilitates medical device innovation by integrating physicians and researchers with a cross-disciplinary engineering team. Engineers work closely with project proponents within the clinical environment to analyze problems, propose designs, and deliver a clinical solution. This presentation will address the well-recognized barriers and drivers to innovation and will outline the key attributes of this unique partnership that have enabled this long history of success. It will cover the full product life-cycle, from opportunity identification through commercialization.

April Horne, BSGE, MBA, PMP, held leadership positions in IBM in new product development. She now leads the Mayo Clinic Engineering Technology Development team which "builds unique medical devices and systems to enhance patient care, advance medical research and support the educational mission of Mayo Clinic."