Shine A Light On

Beverlyn Law is an Account Manager at Pinterest. She shines a light on her experiences and recommendations for students and professionals interested in account management, as well as tips to landing an internship & the best skills to have for anyone interested in being an Account Manager.

Beverlyn Law is an Asian-American woman currently living in Los Angeles, California. She graduated from Santa Clara University with a major in Marketing and minor in Retail Studies. After graduation, Beverlyn landed her first role at Walmart Marketplace as a Strategic Account Manager. She is now an Account Manager at Pinterest. Throughout her career, Beverlyn has always believed life comes before the job and that you can be authentic at work by creating a safe space with your peers. Outside of work, she is very passionate about her plants, aquascaping, and playing the kalimba.

Sherene Victor is a Software Engineer at Google. She shines a light on her experiences and recommendations for students and professionals interested in software engineering, as well as work/life balance, emotional awareness at work, and much more.

Sherene is a Software Engineer at Google, working on Spanner within Google Cloud Technical Infrastructure. She works on developing backend solutions for internal customers, while also improving Spanner debugging efforts across teams/rotations. Outside of work, you can find Sherene mentoring students, solving puzzles, or exploring the outdoors.

Elita Liu is a Senior Product Manager at Amazon. She shines a light on her experiences and recommendations for students and professionals interested in product management.

Prior to joining Amazon, Elita had experience in software developer and product manager roles to deliver end-to-end software solutions in the solar and medical device industries. She also worked at the Ciocca Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Santa Clara University to help college students with their startups. Aside from work, Elita loves to do yoga on a daily basis and go hiking during the weekend.

Sarah Klearman, Reporter at the San Francisco Business Times, shares “How I Got Here” in our newest Shine a Light On podcast episode. We shine a light on Sarah’s experiences and recommendations for anyone interested in becoming a reporter.

Sarah Klearman is a reporter covering economic development and commercial real estate for the San Francisco Business Times. She previously covered the business of wine for the Napa Valley Register in Napa and has worked in newsrooms in Silicon Valley, Massachusetts and Connecticut. She is a graduate of Santa Clara University.

The opinions expressed in this podcast are Sarah Klearman's and not necessarily those of her employer.

Sarah Ahmed, Technical Writer at Salesforce, shares “How I Got Here” in our newest Shine a Light On podcast episode. We Shine a Light On Sarah’s experience and recommendations for students and professionals interested in Technical Writing.

Sarah is a Technical Writer at Salesforce. She spends her days creating different types of product content, including documentation, UI text, onboarding experiences, and video scripts. In her role, Sarah enjoys leveraging her natural curiosity and knack for simplifying things to help folks use complex technology.

Story DeWeese, Technical Marketing Engineer at Cisco and CTO of Opal, shares “How I Got Here” in our newest Shine a Light On podcast episode. We Shine a Light On Story’s experience and recommendations for students and professionals interested in the Technical Marketing Engineering roles.

Story is the CTO and a Co-Founder of Opal and a Technical Marketing Engineer (TME) at Cisco. At Opal, Story leads the engineering efforts in designing, building and managing of the Opal web application (app) to match people together for professional mentorship. This includes full-stack code development, building various Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), and creating new solutions to complex problems. As a TME, Story is focused on new enterprise networking technologies, creating and presenting content to help employees and customers understand these new technologies, and hosting hands-on workshops. Story is particularly curious to learn about and develop cloud-based solutions.

Rahimeh Ramezany, a DEI and Intercultural Specialist, shares her “How I Got Here” story. We Shine a Light On Rahimeh’s path to her entrepreneurial role in DEI and recommendations for students and professionals interested in the field.

In this week’s episode of the Pandemic Reflections season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Pandemic Reflections as a Student with Angie McNally.

Angelus McNally is currently a senior at Santa Clara University, majoring in Computer Science and Engineering and minoring in Philosophy. On campus, she serves as the President of the Society of Women Engineers and Vice-Regent of Theta Tau, a co-ed engineering fraternity, and is also an Engineering Tour Guide. Off campus, she has interned at Microsoft and Anduril Industries and plans to return to Microsoft as a full-time employee in September. In her free time, she loves skiing, photography, hiking, and eating with friends!

Valentine’s Day is coming up! Show yourself some love with our surprise bonus Shine A Light On episode. Today we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Mindful Movement with Jyo Gopinath.

Jyo is a body empowerment coach and fitness instructor dedicated to the decolonization of fitness and the celebration of the human body. Movement should feed the soul, not be a way to deplete the body. She hopes today’s discussion helps you seek the former!

In this week’s episode of the Preparing for the New Year season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Recognizing and Preventing Burnout with Ramona Arora.

Ramona Arora is a South Asian data analyst and product enthusiast, currently based in San Francisco, California. She is a highly curious and impact-driven individual that uses data & empathy to improve decision making. She is also the creator of Solo Wave, a community platform for women solo explorers who are challenging the stigma behind alone time. She values equal representation and actively devotes her time supporting womxn of color and underprivileged communities.

In this week’s episode of the Preparing for the New Year season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 How to Find "Me Time" When You're Busy with Sarah Ahmed.

Sarah is a Technical Writer at Salesforce and is pursuing a Master's in Marketing at Santa Clara University. She is passionate about digital equity, mentorship, inclusivity, and education. Additionally, she's always up to chat about cats, crochet, mechanical keyboards, or anything really.

In this week’s episode of the Kickstart Your Career season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Becoming a Founder with Sandhya Iyer.

After graduating from Syracuse University in 2020, Sandhya Iyer began leading career exploration platform Geek Girl Careers, which empowers women to discover their dream careers in tech. She's also part of the marketing team at Chief, the first private network for women executive leaders. Sandhya is passionate about women empowerment, tech for social good and sustainability. In her spare time, you can find Sandhya reading a good book, experimenting in the kitchen or exploring a new coffee shop.

In this week’s episode of the Kickstart Your Career season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Why Productivity is Overrated with Mashiat Mutmainnah.

Mashiat is currently an Innovation Partner at Celo, a mobile -first platform dedicated to make crypto payments available to anyone with a smart phone. She loves looking at the intersection of design, innovation and financial inclusion to pioneer novel use cases of crypto. When she is not conducting pilots, she is running her South Asian magazine JORE, testing her cooking chops or learning new forms of portrait photography.

In this week’s episode of the Kickstart Your Career season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Gap Years and Startups with Shobha Dasari.

Shobha Dasari is a sophomore majoring in Computer Science and minoring in Ethics and Technology. She recently took a gap year from school, where she worked at 2 early-stage health tech startups, built an edtech startup, and published a book called Hacking Healthcare. Shobha is passionate about using technology to improve healthcare access and patient experiences. In her free time, you can find her exploring coffeeshops, listening to podcasts and audiobooks, and trying new flavors of ice cream.

In this week’s episode of the Student Experiences season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Taking a Gap Year with Viruthihaa Baskar.

Viruthihaa is a Software Engineer Intern at Microsoft and a student at Rutgers University, where she is studying cognitive science. She is passionate about the intersection of technology and social good, especially the roles of empathy, education, inclusivity/diversity, and accessibility. Her many interests include UX, product management, mental health, and ethical tech.

In this week’s episode of the Underexposed Student Experiences season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Commuting in College with Daniela Balaguera.

Daniela is a recent college grad from Santa Clara University with a B.A. in Communication and a minor in Management Information Systems. She is passionate about immigration, labor rights, educational equity, and helping first-gen and BIPOC high school and college students. In her free time, you can find Daniela dancing or creating content on LinkedIn and Instagram!

In this week’s episode of the Student Experiences season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 Exploring Tech for Social Good with Resham Khanna.

Resham is a Product Designer passionate about social impact, VR, and accessibility. She is currently on a gap year from studying Cognitive Science and Psychology at UC Berkeley. She is an incoming Game Design intern at Electronic Arts and has worked with organizations such as Oculus, UNICEF, Figma, EY and others.

Her hobbies include volunteering, writing on Medium, and gaming. As a trained opera and jazz singer, singing holds a special place in her heart.

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In this week’s episode of the Underexposed Student Experiences season, we’ll shine a light on 🌟 International Student Experiences with Xin Yi Yap.

Xin Yi (She/Her) is a Diversity Peer Education Scholar (DPE) with Suffolk University’s Center for Student Diversity and Inclusion. As a first-generation international student from a low-income family, she looks forward to paving a career that advances equity in the workplace upon her graduation in May 2021. Her hobbies include writing (some are published on her website!), reading, and exploring the outdoors. Follow her journey on her website www.xincereyiyours.space, and on her Instagram @XincereYiYours.

In this week’s episode of the Reclaiming Your Best Self season, we’ll teach you how 🌟 Cultivating Courage in Yourself with Anuneet Kaur.

Anuneet is an aspiring marketer. She is a huge believer that with courage and faith, anything is possible.

In this week’s episode of the Reclaiming Your Best Self season, we’ll teach you how 🌟 Collaboration Beats Competition with Amy Lima.

Amy Lima is a NYC-based Product Designer, community-builder, and champion for marginalized voices.

A first-generation American and dedicated traveler (50 countries and counting), she leverages her appreciation for different perspectives and fascination with people to create meaningful digital experiences for community and well-being.

In this week’s episode of the Reclaiming Your Best Self season, we’ll teach you 🌟 The Power in Asking for Help with Sharon Kim.

Sharon is a licensed mental health therapist. Her clinical background includes working with individuals, families, and at-risk youth with a history of mental health illnesses. Sharon is also passionate about the intersection of tech and wellness and hopes to make mental health care accessible to all. Additionally, she is a content creator on IG focused on wellness, lifestyle, and career.

In this week’s episode of the Reclaiming Your Best Self season, we’ll teach you 🌟 Setting Yourself Up for Success with Janette Kim.

Janette Kim is a sophomore majoring in business technology management and operations logistics at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. She is currently a Salesforce Consultant at Traction on Demand and also a job search/career strategies mentor on LinkedIn. In her spare time, you can find her hiking or browsing through Netflix!

🌟 Follow #ShineALightOn to be the first to know about new episodes.

🗣 Want to chat with us? https://www.opal-app.org/podcast-sign-up#chatwithus ⁠

💜 Love what you hear? Support Opal https://anchor.fm/opal-app/support ⁠