Lisa Hufford: Pay it forward – women helping women in the cloud economy

Simplicity participated in the Women in Cloud Summit last year, and our team left feeling inspired by the energy in the room and the collective drive to support women in the industry. I’m thrilled to see how the community has grown since then. I was incredibly moved by the women and allies on the stage last year, including Gavriella Schuster, Thai Lee, Chaitra Vedullapalli, and Gretchen O’Hara, and I’m so honored to be joining them as a speaker at this year’s event.

I’m passionate about supporting women in business and technology, at all stages of their careers. I’ve had many sponsors throughout my career—women and men alike—and I want to do my part to pay it forward however I can. I love the quote, “You can’t be what you can’t see.” If nothing else, I hope to show attendees that women-owned businesses can and will be successful.

At Simplicity, our business is all about connecting people and building community. I’m passionate about helping people find meaningful work that aligns with their personal brand and values, while helping clients successfully reach their goals. Events like these enable us to expand our community and extend the reach of our impact, which supports the event’s theme of action and Women in Cloud’s goal of creating economic opportunity.

This year at the summit, I’m joining Gillian Muessig of Outline Ventures, Margaret Dawson of Red Hat, and Dina Grimstead from Microsoft on a power panel aimed at sharing best practices on access to investments, customers, and talent. Attendees can expect actionable, relevant lessons learned from a range of leaders from a range of industries and backgrounds.

Women in Cloud’s ambitious mission of helping women entrepreneurs create $1 billion in economic opportunity by 2030 inspires me. Reaching this goal will require collective action from businesses, allies, and the broader community. Yes, supporting and empowering women is important, but those actions are meaningless without actually focusing on women’s access to economic opportunity. 

Women are the lifeblood of our economy—and often the primary breadwinners of their households—and if they succeed economically, we all do. Working toward economic inclusion will require a meaningful reduction in the gender wage gap, especially for women of color; increased access to leadership positions; widespread paid parental leave; and increased funding and access to capital; to name a few.

Purchase your tickets today, and be a part of the change we deserve in our society. To get more information visit the summit website, and don’t forget to apply the 20% discount code: JOINME@WIC

See you there! Take action by joining our online network to get engaged today!