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Clarity Attends Event for Women in Technology

The Michigan Council of Women in Technology hosts a dynamic discussion where everyone participates

Detroit, MI – Clarity Resource Group, a technology and business consulting firm with practice areas in Information Management, Application Development, and Finance and Accounting, participates today in the fourth annual “Café Conversations” hosted by the Michigan Council of Women in Technology (MCWT).

“Café Conversations is an excellent way to connect and converse with people who work and make decisions in the Michigan IT landscape,” said John Papadia, Clarity partner and Information Management Practice Lead, who will be attending the event.

At a time when so many companies are examining their internal operations with grave intensity, Clarity resolutely maintains its fully outward focus on the needs of the technology marketplace, as well as its accessibility to clients and the professionals who can bring talent to those clients. MCWT’s Café Conversations offers the kind of informal yet energetic venue where Clarity can listen—and express its commitment—to peers and potential customers face-to-face.

The event is modeled on the World Café format, an idea-sharing methodology founded on the belief that people want to talk together about issues that matter to them, and that greater wisdom is found only in the collective. MCWT’s implementation of this methodology involves 11 tables, each of which is furnished with plenty of paper and occupied by a discussion group that focuses on a particular topic and revolves every 20 minutes. It’s a format that turns out to be not only informative and revealing, but fun, says Tracy-Ann Palmer, Managing Board member and Director/Chair of Events for MCWT.

“Everyone gets to contribute their thoughts and ideas on paper,” explained Palmer. “If you have something to share, you leave it on the table. Then the next group to visit that table can see your thoughts and ideas.” After the evening is over, MCWT collects everything that attendees have written, compiles it into a document, publishes it in their newsletter, and sends it to their entire distribution list.

“Attendees talk about various topics such as education, how to find a job, how to deal with challenging people, the impact of social media, networking, project management, and the economic crisis,” said Palmer. “It’s a mix of both professional and soft-skill personal topics.”

Papadia is looking forward to learning about fellow attendees and representing Clarity at the event. “We are curious to see what IT initiatives the members of this group are working on, and what companies in Michigan are doing from a technology standpoint,” said Papadia. “Are they feeling the pressure to do more with less? That is where we excel,” he added.

The entirely volunteer-run MCWT offers a multitude of resources for women, men and students in the IT community, and for the companies that compete in that space. The organization also supports those who are not technology players per se, but who must handle technology or project management tasks in industries like retail and law. Even geography is no longer a barrier to MCWT benefits, said Palmer. “We don’t just serve Michigan. A lot of our members have global jobs; they don’t make their bread and butter from the Michigan market alone.”

Café Conversations will be held today from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the MGM Grand Casino in Detroit. For more information on this event or on MCWT, please visit www.mcwt.org. For more information on Clarity, please visit www.clarity-us.com.