Capital One sponsored the first event for the East Coast Chapter of the Women in Big Data on November 9th, 2016. Participants from across the D.C. metro area gathered in McLean, Virginia. New college hires and seasoned executive leaders came together to network, mentor, and show support for one another in the fast-paced field of big data.

 

The East Coast Chapter Director, Gunjan Sharma, opened the event by introducing the Women in Big Data Forum, highlighting the mission’s forum and its growth over the last year.

Kristi Cunningham, Capital One’s Vice President of Enterprise Data Management spoke about Capital One’s Big Data journey and its commitment to diversity. She urged women to maintain a growth mindset and invest in learning opportunities to succeed in their careers.

Donna Fernandez, Co-Founder of MetiStream, captivated her audience by sharing how her family helped ignite the spark in her to pursue her dreams of creating a big data company focused on Apache Spark solutions. She also talked about emerging standards and opportunities in the healthcare industry.

All in all, a great evening! Thank you to Capital One for sponsoring this event and many thanks to all our volunteers and committee members for putting up a great show!