Meet Jamila Parham-Cullers

 

We were lucky to catch up with Jamila Parham-Cullers recently and have shared our conversation below.

Jamila, thank you so much for joining us today. Let’s jump right into something we’re really interested in hearing about from you – being the only one in the room. So many of us find ourselves as the only woman in the room, the only immigrant or the only artist in the room, etc. Can you talk to us about how you have learned to be effective and successful in situations where you are the only one in the room like you?

In the technology industry, it’s unbelievable to be a woman of color in the tech. Statistics actually quantify this experience where 1 in 10 Tech professionals is a minority woman. I realized there was a huge disparity when it came to representation of people of color in the technology industry. I decided to do something about it and shift the narrative of what technology looks like. I’m affectionately known as The Tech Unicorn which is a term of endearment and the name of my business. A public servant, tech ecosystem builder, and champion for diversity and inclusion. I advocate on behalf of under-represented and under-valued communities to address the lack of diversity in STEM. My life’s work is to provide positive role models to our youth, amplify voices in marginalized communities and address the lack of diversity in technology. It was once said that “If all the good and talented people leave a place, that place will be left without hope”. I refuse to leave any place without hope. I use my passion for advocacy, mentorship, and love for Chicago and beyond to shift the narrative. My journey has led me to use my platform as an opportunity to share my story and amply voices that are not always heard. It is described as ‘unreal’ because no one believes we exist, also described as ‘unicorns’. I turned my passion into a business of social impact. The Tech Unicorn was founded with a mission to close the success and opportunity gap and advance women, and underrepresented communities of color in STEM.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I’m a proud native of the South Side of Chicago, raised by my father who was a blue-collar worker, and my mother, a lunchroom lady who became a stay-at-home mom. Being a Chicago native and a product of an inner-city public school system, your success expectancy is close to null. There are many negative connotations with being an inner-city youth. It was when my father purchased our first family computer that I discovered my love for technology at 13 years old. I’ve had to be very resourceful and resilient throughout my journey by overcoming barriers as a black woman achieving success in a male-dominated industry. Being a product of Chicago Public Schools, communities of color were always counted out. My journey serves as a template for what’s possible for women of color in tech, more organizations need to know how to support their team members and students of color.

Founded in 2016, The Tech Unicorn is a STEM social impact company on a mission to elevate voices, advance marginalized populations, and inspire professions and entrepreneurship in STEM-related sectors. Through our professional services and community impact programs, The Tech Unicorn offers practical tools to move beyond inspiration and execute real change to impact lives of those seeking opportunities in STEM. By providing inspiration to careers in STEM, this exposure serves as a blueprint for the possibilities in STEM and entrepreneurship.

Through public speaking, workshops and programming at universities, businesses and community organizations, The Tech Unicorn empowers undervalued communities to hold space in a male-dominated industries and educate organizations on how to support their team members of color.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

There are key qualities that played a key part of my journey, Resilience, overcoming obstacles, and odds. Failures are lessons that are a part of the journey.

Soft skills are key, no matter how technical or skilled you are. Soft skills also known as people skills will be the foundation of the experiences you share with others.

Lastly, statics show that women are often more qualified than men when pursuing opportunities. Don’t shrink to fit, celebrate your successes. It’s not bragging if you accomplished it!

One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?

Creating, maintaining and retaining STEM pathways for women and communities color are the cornerstone for The Tech Unicorn. We’d love to collabrate with conference organizers, colleges and universities, corporate employee resource groups to create STEM Impact. Please feel free to submit an inquiry to [email protected] We’d love to work with you!

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