Randi Myers
Interview Posted By: Ashley Smith
1. Can you tell us a little about your background? i.e. Where you grew up, what education do you have, a summary of your resume, did you always want to do what you are doing now, when did you start to become interested in STEM, what internships/ volunteering
Growing up in the Santa Clara area I knew I wanted to go to college after high school, and after having taken four years of French in high school, being a foreign exchange student to France, and my love of all things French, my first bachelor’s degree is in Business Administration – International Business. My plan was to pursue work that would take me overseas and give me the chance to use my knowledge of French. I had been working at a bank for most of my college years, so while my initial plan was to continue in the banking field, I felt ready for a change upon completing my bachelor of science. I applied at Underwriters Laboratories Inc, a product safety testing company located in Santa Clara, in the role of technical writer. My plans didn’t include staying at UL for more than 25 years, but that’s what happened. Along the way, I went back to school and completed a degree in Industrial Engineering to allow for career advancement since I work at an engineering company. Pursuing an engineering degree with two small children and working 30 hours a week was a challenge. I quickly realized sleep was a luxury and that I should only use the soldering iron while completely awake.
Completing my engineering degree allowed me to take on increasing responsibilities at UL and to take on a leadership role. I like to mentor in STEM particularly for fellow females because it’s great to see other women in the technical fields. It used to be uncommon for another woman to be sitting in a meeting room or conference, but now it’s much more common. Mentoring girls at the middle school or high school grades is rewarding to me.
2. What exactly IS your job? What do you do on a day to day basis?
Developing and maintaining UL standards for safety – from information technology equipment to wind turbines to electric vehicle batteries and battery storage to electric tools. I manage a team of standards project managers, which includes engineers and other technical staff. We consult with manufacturers, UL project engineers, consumers, inspectors, etc to identify changes to a standard or the need for a new standard. Working at UL is interesting because we see the latest in product development. Even though I don’t work in the wireless or transaction security areas, and don’t work on clothes washers or fire extinguishers, UL is evaluating them all and from time to time we contribute on technical or safety aspects that crossover products. The bulk of my day is spent meeting with internal UL staff or external parties, either face to face or online meetings.
3. How does STEM relate to your job? How do you use the information you learned from your degree in your job?
The work done at UL and in developing/maintaining standards involves STEM knowledge and skills – we apply all of it. I learned a lot of hands-on practical knowledge in college which I’m able to apply routinely. At UL we need to apply engineering judgment every day and one’s education and experience prepare that skill set. Because of the work we do at UL, hiring is always done in the STEM fields, and today that includes some of the newer educational areas such as environmental engineering, sustainability, renewable energies, wireless/Internet of Things/interoperability/transaction security elements. UL will always be recruiting staff from the latest engineering and science disciplines because we work with innovators and manufacturers who are developing new and innovative technologies. We get to see it all at UL!
4. Have you faced any discrimination/ challenges being a woman in a stem field? If so, how did you deal with it? Do you have any advice for up and coming women in STEM?
I don’t recall that ever being a direct or obvious issue. People make assumptions initially, i.e. anticipating as a female I may be an administrative or support person attending a meeting or speaking up during a teleconference. Let your expertise, knowledge, experience, adaptability, innovation and communications pave the way for you.
5. What is the best and worst part of your job? What do you look forward to in your job on a day to day basis? What do you wish you could change?
Best – Working for a company that’s ensuring product safety – we keep people and property safe. Our mission is working for safe living and working environments. And I get a lot of satisfaction from doing a good job and being able to help a manufacturer expedite a product to market and know it’s safe!
Worst – Explaining to a manufacturer that their product failed a test, and worse that they need to re-engineer.
6. How do you balance your work and personal life? Any secrets or advice you’d like to share?
Organizations are good about encouraging work/life balance, but in practice today with cell phones and technology, there are pros and cons. We’re much more accessible than in the past, so this helps with avoiding delays and keeping getting an answer when it’s needed, but it’s also hard to draw the line between work and time off. I have to admit I’m not very good at maintaining the balance.
7. What do you define success as?
Knowing I’m making a difference, having impact, helping my customers (internal and external be successful), and always making the best effort. Recognition is important, but is hard to come by in reality, so one has to be able to find their work rewarding on an internal level. As a manager, it’s knowing that my staff are challenged, feel empowered, know I’m in their corner and feel recognized.
8. What is one personality trait that you think is universally important for a successful career?
Flexibility – now more than ever we know that change is an everyday event. You have to be flexible and ready for the challenges. Sometimes we don’t know the rationale for the change or there’s a lot of uncertainty, which means there’s risk, but we have to be nimble and ready/eager to take things on, even if it feels unstable or uncertain.
9. Who was a mentor to you throughout your career? (can be more than one!) What did they teach you? How did they impact your life?
Interestingly, my mentors have all been men. The VP of our operation is one person, as well as a previous direct manager. I learned that if I showed I was competent, flexible, reliable, innovative, etc I would be given more and more responsibility and opportunities. I appreciated that I was trusted to take on new assignments, I was allowed to be incredibly independent, and it was ok to make mistakes. I learned that it’s important to make personal connections with staff, to be honest even when it’s a difficult conversation or situation, to be approachable, and that it’s ok to present an opposing view.
10. What do you think is the best advice you've ever received ? What advice would you give your younger self if you had the chance? What’s one piece of advice you can pass on to us?
Believe in yourself and don’t be too hard on yourself. Looking back I can see that when I didn’t have confidence in myself and my capabilities, that held be back from achieving more and also influenced how others saw me.
Best advice I can give – You are the expert in your idea, your contribution, and yourself – so believe in yourself and own it!
Growing up in the Santa Clara area I knew I wanted to go to college after high school, and after having taken four years of French in high school, being a foreign exchange student to France, and my love of all things French, my first bachelor’s degree is in Business Administration – International Business. My plan was to pursue work that would take me overseas and give me the chance to use my knowledge of French. I had been working at a bank for most of my college years, so while my initial plan was to continue in the banking field, I felt ready for a change upon completing my bachelor of science. I applied at Underwriters Laboratories Inc, a product safety testing company located in Santa Clara, in the role of technical writer. My plans didn’t include staying at UL for more than 25 years, but that’s what happened. Along the way, I went back to school and completed a degree in Industrial Engineering to allow for career advancement since I work at an engineering company. Pursuing an engineering degree with two small children and working 30 hours a week was a challenge. I quickly realized sleep was a luxury and that I should only use the soldering iron while completely awake.
Completing my engineering degree allowed me to take on increasing responsibilities at UL and to take on a leadership role. I like to mentor in STEM particularly for fellow females because it’s great to see other women in the technical fields. It used to be uncommon for another woman to be sitting in a meeting room or conference, but now it’s much more common. Mentoring girls at the middle school or high school grades is rewarding to me.
2. What exactly IS your job? What do you do on a day to day basis?
Developing and maintaining UL standards for safety – from information technology equipment to wind turbines to electric vehicle batteries and battery storage to electric tools. I manage a team of standards project managers, which includes engineers and other technical staff. We consult with manufacturers, UL project engineers, consumers, inspectors, etc to identify changes to a standard or the need for a new standard. Working at UL is interesting because we see the latest in product development. Even though I don’t work in the wireless or transaction security areas, and don’t work on clothes washers or fire extinguishers, UL is evaluating them all and from time to time we contribute on technical or safety aspects that crossover products. The bulk of my day is spent meeting with internal UL staff or external parties, either face to face or online meetings.
3. How does STEM relate to your job? How do you use the information you learned from your degree in your job?
The work done at UL and in developing/maintaining standards involves STEM knowledge and skills – we apply all of it. I learned a lot of hands-on practical knowledge in college which I’m able to apply routinely. At UL we need to apply engineering judgment every day and one’s education and experience prepare that skill set. Because of the work we do at UL, hiring is always done in the STEM fields, and today that includes some of the newer educational areas such as environmental engineering, sustainability, renewable energies, wireless/Internet of Things/interoperability/transaction security elements. UL will always be recruiting staff from the latest engineering and science disciplines because we work with innovators and manufacturers who are developing new and innovative technologies. We get to see it all at UL!
4. Have you faced any discrimination/ challenges being a woman in a stem field? If so, how did you deal with it? Do you have any advice for up and coming women in STEM?
I don’t recall that ever being a direct or obvious issue. People make assumptions initially, i.e. anticipating as a female I may be an administrative or support person attending a meeting or speaking up during a teleconference. Let your expertise, knowledge, experience, adaptability, innovation and communications pave the way for you.
5. What is the best and worst part of your job? What do you look forward to in your job on a day to day basis? What do you wish you could change?
Best – Working for a company that’s ensuring product safety – we keep people and property safe. Our mission is working for safe living and working environments. And I get a lot of satisfaction from doing a good job and being able to help a manufacturer expedite a product to market and know it’s safe!
Worst – Explaining to a manufacturer that their product failed a test, and worse that they need to re-engineer.
6. How do you balance your work and personal life? Any secrets or advice you’d like to share?
Organizations are good about encouraging work/life balance, but in practice today with cell phones and technology, there are pros and cons. We’re much more accessible than in the past, so this helps with avoiding delays and keeping getting an answer when it’s needed, but it’s also hard to draw the line between work and time off. I have to admit I’m not very good at maintaining the balance.
7. What do you define success as?
Knowing I’m making a difference, having impact, helping my customers (internal and external be successful), and always making the best effort. Recognition is important, but is hard to come by in reality, so one has to be able to find their work rewarding on an internal level. As a manager, it’s knowing that my staff are challenged, feel empowered, know I’m in their corner and feel recognized.
8. What is one personality trait that you think is universally important for a successful career?
Flexibility – now more than ever we know that change is an everyday event. You have to be flexible and ready for the challenges. Sometimes we don’t know the rationale for the change or there’s a lot of uncertainty, which means there’s risk, but we have to be nimble and ready/eager to take things on, even if it feels unstable or uncertain.
9. Who was a mentor to you throughout your career? (can be more than one!) What did they teach you? How did they impact your life?
Interestingly, my mentors have all been men. The VP of our operation is one person, as well as a previous direct manager. I learned that if I showed I was competent, flexible, reliable, innovative, etc I would be given more and more responsibility and opportunities. I appreciated that I was trusted to take on new assignments, I was allowed to be incredibly independent, and it was ok to make mistakes. I learned that it’s important to make personal connections with staff, to be honest even when it’s a difficult conversation or situation, to be approachable, and that it’s ok to present an opposing view.
10. What do you think is the best advice you've ever received ? What advice would you give your younger self if you had the chance? What’s one piece of advice you can pass on to us?
Believe in yourself and don’t be too hard on yourself. Looking back I can see that when I didn’t have confidence in myself and my capabilities, that held be back from achieving more and also influenced how others saw me.
Best advice I can give – You are the expert in your idea, your contribution, and yourself – so believe in yourself and own it!