Tell us a little bit about yourself and your career at GoDaddy.
I’m Hillary, a Senior Software Engineer here at GoDaddy. I work on the Platform Team for Recommendations as Data (RAD) and Switchboard. I joined GoDaddy almost two years ago. I made my career out of following interesting challenges, such as modernizing US Navy RADAR distribution software and developing ephemeral environments at CISA for cybersecurity scans and testing.
I look for highly-collaborative work environments with teammates who foster curiosity and inclusivity, and I found that here at GoDaddy! This year, I became a part of the leadership team for our Employee Resource Group (ERG) GD United. The ERG is dedicated to the LGBTQIA+ community and allied employees. Within the leadership team, I feel surrounded by fantastic people who care about making a positive yet focused impact.
How do you feel that GoDaddy supports you to do things that are important to you?
At GoDaddy, I experience a supportive work environment where leadership and colleagues alike foster a culture of shared accountability. This culture enables us to make relevant decisions, contribute to social causes with donation matching, and recognize each other as Everyday Champions. I enjoy collaborating across the organization and mentoring others through another ERG called GDWIT, focusing on women in tech. I also appreciate that we use our own tools and strive to make them more user-friendly. I feel that I have a stake and an impact in the outcomes we pursue.
What has been one of your proudest moments at GoDaddy?
I think we all expect the big achievements to be our proudest moments, such as rebuilding a compute cluster, solving an error, or providing technical justification to prevent an issue. However, I have found that what happens in the quiet moments along the edge of understanding matters just as much. I call these “aha!” moments! Here are some of my favorites:
- Making users’ lives better
- Being spotlighted for Pride Month
- Encouraging togetherness through Patio Pride
- Managing a Cluster rebuild
- Providing information and technical justification to my skip-level boss and seeing that information used to help other developers
- Getting my entire team to start humming “The Final Countdown” while awaiting the output from automated job runs and checks
What does Pride mean to you?
Pride is about authenticity, intentionality, and openness to other ways of being. Admiral Grace Hopper said that “Humans are allergic to change. They love to say, ‘We’ve always done it this way.’ I try to fight that.” Pride to me is about being authentically myself and making others around me feel safe to do so as well.
What advice do you have for allies who want to support the LGBTQIA+ community?
Stay curious! Listen, ask, and seek resources.
Books and media are a great exploration of possibilities. I recently read Translation State by Ann Leckie. It was a fabulous read in so many ways! I really appreciate how reading the book helped normalize using neopronouns in conversation and storytelling.
It’s important to take time to connect with the dignity and humanness of an individual rather than trying to lump everyone into arbitrary groups. I identify as nonbinary in a way where I don’t have a strong preference on what pronouns people use as long as I can tell I’m being referred-to. We should all take time to educate, stepping in for pronoun practice and call-ins with compassion. I recommend taking just a bit more time to reflect on conversations, rather than speaking “for” or “over” individuals.
What are some things that you enjoy doing outside of work?
I like to garden, hike, swim in the ocean, and enjoy the outdoors with my dog, Belle. She enjoys The Zoomies, yelling at squirrels, and splashing in water (on the ground only - sky water is expressly prohibited). When I’m not in front of the computer, I’m often making art, overthinking something, playing games with friends, or up to other shenanigans.
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