
Ajuna Kyaruzi
Manager, Technical Advocacy Datadog

Dharmita Lutz
Principal Software Performance Engineer SAS Institute

Yuanyuan Zhao
Senior Staff Software Engineer Datadog
Date
Time
-
Location
The Pavilion
Many companies have recognized that the best engineers don’t always make great managers. But as organizations separate management from individual contributor (IC) career tracks, many engineers are left wondering what it means to be a high level (staff, principal) IC and what engineering leadership looks like if you’re not leading or managing a team.
During this networking lunch panel, Datadog’s Ajuna Kyaruzi will chat with Lesley Cordero (New York Times), Dharmita Lutz (SAS) and Dr. Yuanyuan Zhao (Datadog) about their experiences with building trust, fostering collaboration, and navigating the complexities of leadership as staff+ women individual contributors. You’ll learn how to maximize your impact and become a leader without needing to exchange your title as engineer for manager.
This session is open to everyone but designed to cater to attendees who identify as women.