May of 2016 has a “Ducks in Tech” theme and our 7th annual Career Conversations will feature these four panelists who are leaders in local technology companies. Here is a quick spotlight on our upcoming speakers and their respective careers. 

Heather Deibele '12, MBA, PE is Director of Manufacturing and Operations at Pacific Light Technologies, a local Portland start-up company that develops and manufactures semiconductor nanomaterials for the LED lighting and display industry. Prior to Pacific Light Technologies, she co-founded Zirna Consulting where she helped local start-ups and small businesses with operations and strategic development. Before starting Zirna Consulting, she held various leadership and technical roles at Bend Research, Inc., including the role as President and COO of the cGMP Manufacturing Division. Heather earned an M.B.A. from the University of Oregon's Oregon Executive M.B.A. program in 2012 and a B.S. in chemical engineering from Oregon State University in 1998. Her expertise includes the development and commercialization of innovative new materials in the high tech and pharmaceutical sectors. Heather was a key player in launching the Oregon Executive MBA Alumni Association in 2013, where she served as the co-chair and board member. She has also held other board positions with various non-profit organizations and professional associations. Outside of her career, Heather is the proud mother or two super active kids who love to play basketball, soccer, and lacrosse. 

Maggie Davis '96 is responsible for the optimization of go-to-marketing approach for the innovative PageWide Technology printers for business sold through the commercial and enterprise channels. Maggie develops strategies to achieve business goals.
Prior to re-joining HP, Maggie was the VP of Marketing and Communications for Greater Portland Inc (GPI), an economic development organization, where she was responsible for driving the brand for the Portland region to companies looking to expand or locate their business.
Prior to GPI, Maggie worked at HP as a Strategic Marketing Manager in the Managed Enterprise Solutions business, where she was responsible for creating marketing strategies for new mobility and cloud solutions. She also held other marketing positions at HP including the HP Eco Solutions Program, brand management and strategic messaging. In addition, Maggie held business development and marketing manager positions at Tektronix for oscilloscopes and logic analyzers.
Maggie has a bachelor of science in management and finance as well as an MBA from the University of Oregon. Maggie enjoys painting, new technologies, travel and spending time with her husband and son.

Sam Blackman '08 brings extensive management experience and technical expertise to the Elemental team as chief executive officer. He has grown Elemental into the leading provider of multiscreen video processing solutions. Prior to co-founding Elemental in 2006, Sam designed integrated circuit products for Pixelworks. Before joining Pixelworks, Sam held engineering positions at Silicon Graphics and Intel Corporation. He earned an M.B.A. from University of Oregon, an M.S. in electrical engineering from University of California at Berkeley and a B.S. in electrical engineering from Brown University. Sam is an avid Ultimate Frisbee player and passionate about protecting Oregon's environment and strengthening the state's education system. He has been recognized by the Oregon League of Conservation Voters as a Volunteer of the Year, by 1000 Friends of Oregon as one of "35 Innovators Under 35" and by the Portland Business Journal as the most admired CEO in technology and one of forty outstanding leaders under forty. Sam is also the recipient of the Tom Holce Award for Individual Achievement from the Oregon Entrepreneurs Network and was named startup CEO of the year award by GeekWire. Elemental became an Amazon Web Services company in October 2015. Sam and his wife Adriane are the proud parents of two boys who love soccer, animals and Little House on the Prairie books.

Todd M. Underwood '91 is vice president of Finance and serves as controller for Mergers & Acquisition Integration at Intel Corporation. He is responsible for leading the financial and business process integration for Intel’s acquisition of Altera. 
Before assuming his current role, Underwood was vice president of finance and controller for the Mobile and Communications Group with responsibility for financial management, analysis, controls and reporting for Intel's Tablet, Smartphone and Wireless Communications businesses. Prior to that he served as director of finance for Intel Capital, supporting Intel’s global investment organization responsible for corporate mergers & acquisitions and managing Intel’s equity investment portfolio. He joined Intel in 1992 as an accountant in the Corporate Accounting group. 
During his tenure with Intel, Underwood has received three Intel Achievement Awards for his contributions to Intel’s server business strategy, Intel’s platform security strategy and patent litigation work. Todd holds a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Oregon and earned his MBA degree from the University of Portland. Outside of work, Todd enjoys spending time with his wife, two daughters and son. He also likes to squeeze in a round of golf whenever possible. 

We hope you can join us, Wednesday, May 4th, at the White Stag in Portland, Oregon and hear from the panelist directly. Career Conversations is always a great event and this year you can glean insider information about the growing technology sector in Portland. Enjoy drinks and appetizers while you connect with fellow Ducks in Tech and those who aspire to be! This event is open to everyone including students, faculty/staff, alumni, parents, and the general public.