It was standing room only at this year’s Women in Semiconductors (WiS 2023), held in conjunction with the Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Conference (ASMC) in Saratoga Springs, New York. Hosted by the SEMI Foundation, the May 1 program was an opportunity for women and men to discuss the importance of allyship, mentorship, overcoming biases, all of which bridge the gender gap and create a work environment in which women can grow, succeed and find belonging.
This year’s Women in Semiconductors was made possible through the generous support of Athinia, Axcelis, EMD Electronics, Energetiq Technology, IBM, Intel, Lam Research, Nikon Precision, Onto Innovation and TEL.
In their welcoming remarks, WiS co-chairs Garima Gautam, Engineering Manager, Fab Sort Manufacturing (FSM) Productivity at Intel, and Marie Le Guilly, Director of Procurement at Entegris, encouraged the audience of 200 people to be open to connecting and sharing throughout the program. Gautam invited attendees to complete a pledge for action to increase equity and parity for women and underrepresented minorities in the semiconductor industry through allyship.
The keynote panel, Bridging the Gender Gap Through Allyship, moderated by SEMI Foundation deputy director, Michelle Williams-Vaden, included Debbie Gustafson, CEO, Energetiq Technology; Priya Mukundhan, PhD, Sr. Director, Product Marketing, Onto Innovation; Gary Patton, PhD, Corporate VP and GM, Design Enablement and Components Research, Intel; and Daniel D. Woodland, PhD, SVP and President, APS, Entegris. A recording of the panel is posted on the Women in Semiconductors page.
Bridging the Gender Gap Through Allyship panel (right to left): Debbie Gustafson of Energetiq Technology, Priya Mukundhan of Onto Innovation, Gary Patton of Intel, and Daniel D. Woodland of Entegris.
Per LeanIn.org, allyship is "an active and consistent effort to use your privilege and power to support and advocate for those with less privilege.’’ Throughout the discussion, Williams-Vaden probed panelists on what roles allies play and how can they ensure that women are supported and provided opportunities for growth and promotion to positions of leadership. Panelists were invited to share personal stories and provide strategies and some best practices around allyship.
Rita Allen, Founder & President, Rita B. Allen Associates, presented a workshop on Strategies for Overcoming Bias which was especially impactful for Ashleigh Hunt, a materials science student at Rochester Institute of Technology. “The entire event was so encouraging,” Hunt said. “I love connecting with other women in engineering fields. “The talks were right to the point and were very relevant to common issues or insecurities. I definitely liked the discussions surrounding confidence, knowing your brand, knowing your worth, and navigating these experiences in the semiconductor field.”
Marie Le Guilly, Entegris
My first WiS in 2022 was a formative experience. Juggling a career as an engineer and manager in the semiconductor industry as well as being a mother of three had not allowed a lot of time to gather with other women in the field and deeply reflect on our experiences. WiS was eye-opening and sometimes bittersweet as some of the topics brought up challenging experiences in my own career. The stories shared by other women were very relatable: trying to influence the industry to offer more balance, flexibility and inclusive practices, striving to advance our careers in an industry still dominated by men.
I was honored (and intimidated) to be invited to co-chair the 2023 event. As we prepared for the 2023 program, my co-chair Garima and I, together with committee members, met frequently to brainstorm and develop program content. We were determined to open the event further to men and we all decided the theme would be allyship. Men need to be part of the conversation and promote allyship if we want the industry to change.
We were intentional about inviting male executives from our companies to participate in the panel because it was important to have them share why and how they are allies. The panel was a huge highlight of the program. Many male colleagues attended the conference, and we could feel the buzz in the room as everyone engaged and shared ideas. These ideas are not usually talked about in the semiconductor industry, and it felt like we were breaking barriers, all of which was very inspiring and energizing.
We were fortunate to bring Rita Allen on the program to create a workshop on strategies to overcome gender biases. This was an amazing learning experience as Rita shared her strategies and tips, which are built on very positive, affirming principles.
During the workshop Q&A, Sabah Haji, who came to the U.S as a refugee and is now a manufacturing technician at Wolfspeed, shared her experience as a first-time attendee. "The Women in Semiconductors program further reinforced and highlighted the importance of sharing stories and building personal brands for establishing oneself in the industry," she said. "Through this transformative event, I gained invaluable knowledge, forged meaningful connections, and ultimately found a sense of belonging in a field that once felt out of reach. I learned first-hand the power of allyship in creating inclusive environments that empower women and allow minorities to thrive."
As I look back at my career and life journey so far, I am grateful I was able to contribute to Women in Semiconductors and promoting equity, diversity, inclusion and belonging in the semiconductor industry.
Garima Gautam, Intel Corporation
My journey with Women in Semiconductors began when I was invited to keynote WiS 2022 on Girls in STEM to Women in Leadership. This topic was very close and personal for me. The experience was very meaningful and had an impact on me. All the messages and conversations with so many amazing women in our industry motivated me to challenge the status quo and propose greater integration between WiS and ASMC. We encouraged SEMI ASMC organizers to add a workforce development category to its call for papers. Along with Marie Le Guilly, I was invited to co-chair 2023 program. We pushed for greater awareness of WiS to the ASMC audience to participate. As a result, we saw greater participation from everyone, including men.
For WiS 2023 we went with a theme of Bridging the Gender Gap Through Allyship to help us pave the path for future years. It was a historic year both in terms of overall attendance as well as the number of male attendees. Including men who could share their journeys as allies, mentors and sponsors was a key component of the discussion. We want a paradigm shift on how we approach the conversation.
By show of hands, almost half of attendees indicated that this was the first time they had attended WiS. The panelists and attendees were very engaged, and the room was full of energy.
It was important for me to ensure that the workshop Strategies to Overcome Biases spoke to the audience that was predominantly women engineers. Rita was very open and helped us tailor the workshop content. One attendee shared that the information from the session would have been helpful early in her career. The content and resources from this workshop were relevant to anyone who attended.
I wanted to use WiS as a role modeling example and worked with the panelist to volunteer their time to mentor. We offered a mentoring raffle and paired the winners with mentors at the end of the program. This was a big hit, and the winners were excited to be paired with industry leaders. We have talked a lot about the changes we need to see in our industry during these kinds of events. But how do we keep the momentum going? I suggested we create a Pledge for Action – a step forward to act – to increase equity and parity for women and underrepresented minorities in the semiconductor industry. Working with Marie, the amazing committee members and getting insightful feedback from attendees was the most rewarding part of my WiS 2023 journey.
Group Mentoring
As in the past, the program concluded with an interactive session. This year, the committee developed a group mentoring session where mentors and mentees could engage in one of several topics. The session was intended to provide an opportunity for those with more experience to support those who were new to the industry or needed additional guidance to help in their professional growth. Topics included:
- Addressing bias
- Building relationships
- Cultivating confidence
- Knowing your brand
- Self-care
Discussions throughout the program were real and relatable to many participants. It was heartening to hear from many attendees both during and after the program. Trenice White is an Army veteran and a field service engineer at Automation Equipment Services Group who attended with her colleague, also a veteran. White said they were encouraged to attend by their boss who is an ally. White was grateful for the amazing Women in Semiconductor program. “I learned a lot from that experience,” she said “And I broke out of my shell. It was very informative and a great chance to network and a chance to get better overall.”
If you have questions about the Women in Semiconductors program, are interested in participating in the committee or would like information about other SEMI Foundation activities, please contact mkindling@semi.org
Garima Gautam is Engineering Manager, FSM Productivity at Intel Corporation. In addition to her WiS leadership, she is co-chair of the Oregon Women @Intel Network and 2023 co-chair of the Women in Semiconductors committee. She can be reached via LinkedIn.
Marie Le Guilly is Director of Procurement Center of Excellence at Entegris and 2023 co-chair of the Women in Semiconductors committee. Marie can be reached via LinkedIn.