Sarah Rainsberger owns technical documentation at Astro. What was her path into open source and technology? It might surprise you. Sarah started as an avid user of the Astro project and turned it into a career. She chats with scott about how important technical writing and documentation is to the end user experience.

Saghar Salehi is a former member of the Afghan girls’ robotics team. The team became a symbol for the progress of Afghan women. They participated in the global robotics competition held in the US in 2017 and won an award for “courageous achievement” given to teams who persevere through trying circumstances. The team was able to escape Afghanistan a few months ago, as the Taliban resurged. Scott talks with Saghar about the importance of STEM education and her plans for the future.

Dr. Julie Gurner is a doctor of psychology and executive performance coach with nearly a decade of experience working with some of the nation’s top tech and finance executives and teams. She is the founder of the Ultra Successful, a newsletter that provides insights into the psychology behind what ultra-successful people do differently to achieve their goals. She is also an executive performance coach who has been compared to Wendy Rhoades of ‘Billions’ by The Wall Street Journal. Scott chats with Dr. Gurner about the science of performance.https://drgurner.substack.com/ 

Ankita Kulkarni has taken the learnings from her career as an engineering leader and turned it into a course, community, and ebook. Scott talks to Ankita about the The Engineering Leader's Playbook. As a leader working in tech for over a decade, she's got lots to share in this episode! Visit Ankita's website, with a custom page for Hanselminutes Podcast listeners!Check out Ankita's book "The Engineering Leader's Playbook" with a 25% of coupon for listeners

In this episode, we talk to Dr. Nicki Washington, a Professor of the Practice of Computer Science at Duke University. She shares her insights on how identity and cultural competence affect the computing disciplines, from education to industry, and why they are essential for developing inclusive and ethical technologies. We also discuss her courseware which explores the diversity challenges in computer science and the effects that this lack of inclusion has on technology and technologists. Tune in to learn more about Dr. Washington’s journey in tech and her vision for a more culturally competent computer science field.