This year’s edition of Grace Hopper Celebration India (GHCI) is around the corner, and I am proud that SAP is one of the key sponsors of this important event again. For the uninitiated, GHCI is a one-of-a-kind of women-centric conference that takes place in November in Bangalore every year. It attracts probably the largest congregation of women from all levels of IT under one roof and offers a great platform for attendees to experience and learn.
It’s also a great opportunity to meet female technologists who have made their mark in the industry. For a young person starting out in their career, these women show us what’s possible and helps us feel like we’re not treading this path alone.
I first learnt about GHCI last year and had the chance to help out behind the scenes. It was my first taste of the level of preparation that’s required for an event of this scale. There is so much to be done to ensure attendees have a great experience when they visit our career and technology booths. Every day brought something new to learn and work on. We had to plan a lot of demos and materials to showcase our company. Ultimately, we want people to walk away with an appreciation of what SAP does, and possible even explore a career with us! I was upbeat about the whole experience.
If you’ve never been to GHCI, and considering attending this year, you will have the chance to attend a variety of talks, workshops and presentations. Topics can range from the purely technical, to how technology is used for good, from soft skills to talk sessions with some of the biggest names in the industry. I attended as many of these as I could. Inevitably, something or the other would get missed, which was heartbreaking. With multiple interesting activities happening at the same time, picking one can be tough. So, my tip to the GHCI newbies: research the GHCI calendar in advance to prioritize the sessions you really want to attend.
If you are still on the fence, I encourage you to attend GHCI and make the most out of it. If nothing else, you could win yourself some really great goodies!
GHCI opened a lot of avenues for me, be it about awareness of industry trends or learning about how some of women at high levels are handling life and work balance and getting best of both worlds. The conference also offered me a chance to get out of my comfort zone and interact with people who were more experienced and advanced in their career. Every interaction offered a valuable learning.
Hopefully, we will get a chance to interact at GHCI this year. Catch you all there!
