On this monthly column, Defense Every day highlights individuals from across the federal government, industry and academia whose efforts contribute day by day to national defense, from this system managers to the human resource leaders, to the engineers and logistics officers.
Carolyn Duby is Field CTO and Cybersecurity GTM Lead at Cloudera Government Solutions, Inc. On this role, she leads the team’s open-source cybersecurity efforts and is supporting agencies of their missions to satisfy White House implementation plans and first cybersecurity-focused mandates. Duby has over three many years of experience in software development, engineering, data and the cyber realm. Since 2022, she has led projects across DOD agencies that enable teams to construct real-time data collection pipelines, break down data silos with Dataflow technologies, and help address data privacy requirements.
How did you get entangled within the defense industry or community?
Once I graduated from Brown University, I began working for Cadre Technologies, Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tool vendor. Nearly all of Cadre’s customers used Teamwork to design large embedded systems projects. I used to be a software engineer on the time, but after a giant solution release, the leadership team wanted me to attach with customers to review the brand new features. I loved hearing about how the shoppers were using the tools and bringing their feedback to the event team – I used to be bitten by the shopper bug!
After Cadre I co-founded a small consulting firm specializing in model driven architecture for defense and medical device real-time embedded systems. It was an important opportunity to assist customers revolutionize their software development processes by constructing reusable domains.
Did you are feeling like you mostly had sufficient mentors and leaders to assist guide you? Why/why not?
I used to be fortunate to learn from some amazing senior engineers in my first job out of faculty – they were integral in the primary few steps of my work post-grad. As I progressed in my profession, I spent more time mentoring other people and didn’t have as much support for my very own profession. Two years ago, I made great progress with an executive coach after which joined CHIEF. Our CHIEF core group is a sounding board and support system of ladies in search of chief level roles.
Mentorship is critical to skilled growth. Knowing that it’s, I aim to support and uplift those around me. There is critical value in helping others and mentoring provides the chance to vastly enhance and alter the profession path of other professionals in your industry.
How do you’re employed to be a mentor yourself to younger counterparts?
I’m consistently searching for ways to encourage and develop my team. It’s extremely necessary to construct inclusive teams that develop everyone to their fullest potential. Not only is the team more practical, but inclusion and development help retain talent. In sales and technology, it is rather expensive to lose a team member. Key relationships with customers are lost and it’s a costly, time-consuming process to coach a brand new team member.
Cloudera hosts a collaborative environment where we’ve many opportunities to work along with sales team members across the globe to search out the most effective technique to help our customers. I’m energetic in our subject material expert (SME) program and work on shared projects with our solutions engineering team. In that very same vein, I’m also energetic in our Cloudera Women Worker Resource Group.
Last yr, I co-chaired our internal Data in Motion Hackathon. Through this friendly internal competition, our team tests hard data problem-solving skills, cultivates a collaborative work culture, and strengthens our mission solving capabilities. The outcomes are at all times amazing!
Outside of Cloudera, I take part in various women’s tech organizations and am a sponsor of Hack @ Brown. I find immense value in supporting various organizations and lifting my fellow tech professionals through these efforts. Mentoring is a win-win for each participants – I’m at all times learning from everyone from the brand new college graduate to essentially the most senior team member. Every individual brings forth a brand new perspective value learning from. It is thru collaboration that innovation has the space to thrive.
What does it mean to achieve success in your profession field?
Success is constructing teams that engineer products and solutions that make a positive impact on the planet. There’s much to be said for excelling in a field, nonetheless I find the true sense of success stems from harnessing our field for positive change. Utilizing our advanced technology for the betterment of society is a chance that brings meaningful, intangible, and invaluable success. Our each day lives have gotten increasingly affected by cyber incidents, and my work in cyber helps keep the world secure from cyber criminals and nation state actors.
Fortunately, I actually have found an organization that aligns with that mission. As a purpose-driven company, Cloudera leverages our people and company society with products that allow our customers to satisfy mission objectives. There are lots of different profession paths within the technology industry and with that gives infinite possibilities to have a positive impact.
I’m also very happy with my contribution to the Cytyc ThinPrep Pap test. The ThinPrep Pap test is the primary FDA-approved, liquid-based cytology option in cervical disease screening. It has revolutionized the diagnosis of cervical diseases and stays the popular pap smear over 20 years later. I’m honored to support this meaningful solution that helps women on daily basis.
What are among the under-appreciated positions within the defense field, the unsung heroes or essential cogs within the machine that help the job get done with less recognition?
In defense contracting, the test and verification teams are the unsung heroes. Once the code is written it’s a multi-year effort to make sure the product works appropriately and safely in difficult environments.
There’s an in depth technique of testing, retesting and troubleshooting that must happen before the code is fully functional. Many positions within the defense field are given constant accolades, that are warranted – nonetheless, the work done backstage can also be crucial to coding and is a necessary function of the proverbial machine that has direct impacts on mission-critical operations.
How can the industry improve in promoting these individuals and constructing them up?
Engineering teams are inclined to be very focused on their very own area inside a much larger project. Helping the team understand their roles and the way it affects others builds empathy and engagement across the organizations, in addition to the industry as a complete. The hot button is to proceed to construct and grow relationships, while also using the principles of constant improvement. It may make the project, in addition to its outcome, higher for everybody.
I also consider that valuing the private growth of team members is crucial for maintaining a robust worker base for each Cloudera and the general industry.
How has the culture modified around diversity inside your profession?
The approach to diversity inside the federal government technology industry has modified drastically throughout my profession – the shortage of diversity has been recognized as a problem for a few years, typically. The difference today is that evidence and data highlight that diversity strengthens firms and is a board level concern for a lot of organizations.
Our team at Cloudera Government Solutions measures diversity and has a particular group dedicated to improving diversity throughout our company. The long run opportunity is to embed diversity and inclusion across all teams within the organization. Straight away, many diversity efforts are driven by a small team, but with a view to make a major impact, diversity and inclusion have to be an integral a part of every department.
What’s your advice for brand spanking new entrants to the defense/military community?
If I had one piece of recommendation to provide to recent entrants on this realm, it’s to repeatedly learn. Technology changes quickly and you will want to consistently reinvent yourself. There have been so many technological advancements already but there are still many on the horizon. With generative AI, quantum computing and 5G communications, the necessity to adapt is becoming increasingly vital today.
Beyond that, I need to emphasize the importance of constructing relationships across the organization and learning the total picture of the product you’re working on. It’s at all times helpful to be eager and hunt down opportunities to try recent things and get out of your comfort zone – you could discover a recent passion!
What do you see as the long run of your sector in national defense?
The geopolitical landscape has modified dramatically over the past two years. Space, AI and quantum are all amazing opportunities and great threats for the defense industry. Within the private sector, crucial consider all that is ensuring that our technology continues to evolve to meet the needs of our government partners, especially as cyberwarfare is becoming an increasingly prevalent focus in matters of national security.
Who’re the Force Multipliers in your community? Tell us at [email protected].