The Abernathy Tech Spotlight series highlights black professionals working in tech, from freelance developers to non-technical founders. Complete this form to submit your profile.
What is your current role and where do you work?
I am an entrepreneur in the mobile space. I create mobile apps and games through teams of overseas developers. I also run a virtual mentoring program called App Breakthrough, for people who want to learn to be successful in the app business.
How did you get into tech?
Though my first degree was in CS, these days I am not very hands on when it comes to the code. As a result, I would say my favorite is probably Asana. Being organized is not a natural strength of mine and Asana makes it so easy to keep projects running smoothly with all assets and communication in one place, rather than what happens when you run projects via skype/email (don’t ask me how I know this).
From a young age I was always fascinated by how things worked, all the way down to the electronic ticker on the B6 bus. I started off by copying lines of code that I found in the back of a kids science magazine I received every month, and ended up incapacitating my mom’s PC which stored her doctoral dissertation. It wasn’t the greatest start. Thank goodness for Norton Utilities.
What project are you most proud to have worked on and why?
I am proud of building my first mobile apps business to over 10M downloads and then selling it. I’m proud because of the many obstacles I had to overcome to get there and because it became successful enough to free me from the corporate world.
What do you see as the most interesting technology on the horizon?
While VR & AR are both intriguing, the types of things that artificial intelligence will make possible feel unreal. To be honest, we probably have no idea what the most impactful technology will be. Probably something we’ve never heard of.
If you weren’t working in tech, what would you be doing?
I might be a writer or a motivational speaker.
What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned in your tech career?
Ideas are great, but they don’t matter without execution. Also, you can achieve anything if you believe in yourself and then are willing to break the goal down into small steps and put the work in to follow through.
What can companies do to create more inclusive environments?
They could start by getting more qualified people of color into leadership roles rather than just paying lip service to “diversity”.
The Abernathy Tech Spotlight series highlights black professionals working in tech, from freelance developers to non-technical founders. Complete this form to submit your profile.