Talking Shop with Maira Benjamin - Engineering Leader

You never know who’s gonna impact you or who you’re gonna impact. In this episode we talk with Maira Benjamin who changed the course of Dia’s projects with one comment over tea. She’s Sr. Director of Engineering at Change.org and a major champion for change. Dia and Maira riff on the intersection of the arts engineering, Maira’s work making it possible for more black and brown folks to enter and excel in tech. Plus we hear an awesome shout out from a listener- an example again of how we never know who we’re impacting and how. Listen to the episode now. Want us to talk about something specific? Got a comment or a question? Call us! 341-333-2997 Maira Benjamin has been dedicated to the technology sector for over two decades playing instrumental roles in engineering organizations for over 10 technology companies. Currently, she is the Sr. Director of Engineering at Change.org. She's managed many different teams over the years, such as Computational Programming, Recommendations Platform, Search, Music Tools, Content Operations, and Growth and Retention. She is currently building teams responsible for the organizer empowerment at Change.org and the Communication and Integrity teams. In addition to her professional life, Maira is a published author, lyricist, classically trained pianist, mother of a biochemical engineering doctoral student, and an avid knitter. Her exposure to music and the arts has informed her thought process regarding software development and management. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Statistics from U.C. Berkeley and a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies from Mills College in Oakland. She is a founder of the Tech Intersections conference, a conference for women of color in Tech. She believes fervently in enabling people worldwide to promote the change that they want to see in their communities. Connect with Maira here: www.linkedin.com/in.mairabenjamin