In honor of International Women's Day ...
We are recognizing the skilled women who help develop our products and provide heroic customer service. Meet Kathie Drake, Senior Software Engineer.
Education
B.S. in computer science, Eastern Washington University
What is your primary job function?
I am the project lead for
Command Station, OpenEye’s thick
client. I’ve been here since 2013, when we wrote the first line of code for it.
That’s my baby.
What drew you to computer science?
It was a complete mistake. I was a stay-at-home mom, and I
started taking classes because I wanted to do something when they went to
school. I started pursuing engineering, but when I took my first computer
class, that was it. I just found my niche.
What do you like most about your job?
I love the problem solving. I like doing a good job. As
OpenEye is growing, we’re expanding our customer base and getting better use
cases. Salespeople might say, “If we had this feature, we could sell to these
businesses.” It brings our development team really great ideas we didn’t think
of. Object search, for example, was a cross-team effort. … It’s really
exciting.
What would you say to other women thinking of pursuing a career in computer science?
Women shouldn’t be afraid to try it. I think sometimes we’re
afraid to push ourselves or to put ourselves out there. Don’t let people tell
you that you can’t. You might find out you really have the knack for it. When
someone tells you no, push harder. “Oh, you think I can’t do this? Watch me.”