Columns

WiM publishes an article every month in IEEE Microwave Magazine sharing highlights and valuable insights from recent events and different perspectives from the members of the MHz to THz community around the globe.

What’s the Hesitation? 

Robert Goodwin said, “One reason people resist change is because they focus on what they have to give up instead of what they have to gain.” This article brings together some of the many accomplished women from Pakistan. These ladies are working across the globe (indicated on the map in Figure 1 ). They share their efforts and one of their points in life where they faced hesitation and how they managed to overcome that hesitation. Such stories are a means of motivation for women facing different challenges across the world. These stories give us a lesson that, once given a chance, these hurdles can be reduced in a woman’s life, and anything can be accomplished.

Read the full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10707030

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

IWS 2024 Women in Microwaves: Challenge Yourself and Be Proud

Women in Microwave (WIM) serves as a subset of Women in Engineering (WIE), specifically focusing on the field of microwave engineering. In China, WIM has organized numerous events, offering a platform for female engineers to connect, learn, and grow [1] . Each event typically sees around 40 participants, including engineers and students from various institutions. Four years ago, the authors had the privilege of attending the WIE session at the Conference on Numerical Electromagnetic and Multiphysics Modeling and Optimization (NEMO) 2020. It showed the powerful presence of women in engineering and inspired the authors to keep moving forward. Therefore, the authors were delighted to chair and assist in organizing the WIM session during the 2024 China Microwave Week.

Read the full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10682452

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

Empowering Diversity and Inclusion: The WIE Session at WPTCE2024

The Women in Engineering (WIE) session was successfully held on 10 May 2024, at the Uji Campus of Kyoto University, Japan, during the 2024 IEEE Wireless Power Technology Conference and Expo (WPTCE2024). The session was financially sponsored by IEEE WPTCE2024, the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) Ad Hoc Committee, as well as the IEEE Power and Electronics Society (PEL-S) WIE, and technically supported by the MTT-S Women in Microwaves (WIM). The event was organized by Prof. Qiaowei Yuan of the Tohoku Institute of Technology, Japan. The primary objective of the session was to underscore the significance of D&I activities for the broad IEEE community, shed light on the ongoing initiatives of the MTT-S and PEL-S, and explore the way forward in the future. Additionally, the aim was to discuss the interconnections among D&I activities and other affinity groups, such as WIM and Young Professionals. Two months before the event, the organizing team conducted a survey on both Google and the WeChat platforms to facilitate broad participation from users worldwide. The session was conducted both online and offline to ensure widespread participation.

Read her full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10627985

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

Exploring the Wilderness: Amateur Radio Adventures in Royal Belum, Perak and Kuala Keniam, Pahang 

Nurul Huda Abd Rahman is currently an associate professor at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in Malaysia ( Figure 1 ). She earned an M.Eng. degree in electronics from the University of Surrey, Guildford, U.K. in 2008, followed by a Ph.D. in electrical, electronic, and systems engineering from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in 2014. Prior to her academic role, she was a spacecraft engineer at Astronautic Technology (M) Sdn Bhd in 2008, where she contributed to various small-class satellite development and R&D projects. Currently, she leads the Antenna Research Center (ARC-UiTM), a prominent research lab at UiTM focused on pioneering research in antennas, electromagnetic analysis, and communication subsystems.

Read her full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10595578

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

The 2023 IEEE International Microwave Biomedical Conference in Leuven

The IEEE International Microwave Biomedical Conference (IMBioC) took place in Leuven, Belgium, in September 2023. The event brought together academics and professionals in the field of microwaves for biomedical diagnostics, therapy, and other applications to connect and exchange information on the latest progress in the field. The event hosted 110 participants from 23 countries, of which approximately 40% were female. The (almost) complete gender equality in terms of the number of researchers and professionals at the conference, both in the organizing committee and among the attendees, was refreshing.

Read the full article by Marie Mertens in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10550091

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

Women in (Wireless) Power

The IEEE Wireless Power Technology Conference and Expo is a prestigious event, gathering experts from both the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) and the IEEE Power Electronics Society community, working on wireless power technology solutions for a variety of applications, ranging from electric vehicles to Internet of Things and medical devices. Since its first edition in Perugia, Italy (my home region), in 2013, it has grown tremendously, attracting ever more people from industry and academia interested in the latest advances in the field.

Read the full article by Marie Mertens in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10523097

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

IEEE MTT-S Membership and Geographic Activities Women in Microwaves Subcommittee Update

Be sure to check out an article in the May issue of IEEE Microwaves updating recent activities of the Women in Microwaves (WIM) sub-committee within the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) Membership and Geographic Activities (MGA). As I step down from my long-time role as committee chair, I’ll be continuing as a vice chair alongside Jasmin Grosinger (Austria) and Wenquan (Cherry) Che (China), along with our coordinator, Kim Eilert (USA). Within this committee, we have established three working groups: Events, Publications, and Media.

Read the full article in Microwave Magazine with details on the plans for these working groups here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10506297

-Sherry Hess
WIM Media Working Group Chair 2024

Blog: Six Ways Women Can Champion Each Other and How WIM Supports These Calls to Action

After almost 15 years of serving on and/or co-chairing the Women in Microwaves (WIM) committee, I’m stepping down in 2024, so this article in the April edition of IEEE Microwaves Magazine will be my “swan song.” I thought it would be appropriate to do a quick recap of some of the important things WIM has accomplished over the years that map to one of my favorite articles from the Lean In organization, which helps women achieve their ambitions and work to create an equal world.  The article, “6 Ways That Women Can Champion Each Other At Work,” describes key ways women can support each other, something the committee and members of the WIM organization have increasingly taken to heart over the years I have been involved with the group.

Read the full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10460217

-Sherry Hess
WIM Media Working Group Chair 2024

Research by Women in Microwaves

Since its inaugural issue in 2022, the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) has each year published a focus issue on research by women in microwaves in IEEE Microwave Magazine. These focus issues highlight scientific articles by female researchers and spotlight their research. Through these focus issues, we hope to bring attention to these female researchers and their publications. From the perspective of gender science, we aim to undo/redo gender, counteracting the still-existing unconscious gender and publication biases [1] , [2] .

Read the full article by Marie Mertens in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10421755

– WIM Media Working Group 2024

WIM Panel at ICMAC: A Remote Connection

Author Aqeela Saghir, researcher at the LINKS Foundation within NUST, provides a detailed account of a unique joint Women in Microwaves and Young Professionals panel discussion that was held in the first International Conference on Microwave, Antennas & Circuits RF and Microwave Conference (ICMAC) in 2021 (Figure 1). Key points in the article are summarized below.

Read the full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10387985

-Sherry Hess
WIM Media Working Group Chair 2024

Blog: Moving Forward Together – Women Excellence in Engineering: 2023 ISAP WIM Special Session Recap

The January WIM column in IEEE Microwaves Magazine features a recap of the Women in Engineering (WIE) special session at the 2023 Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (ISAP) written by three Japanese women engineers: Yuko Rikuta, Nihon Dengyo Kosaku Co., Ltd., Nanaho Kawata, Antenna Giken Co., Ltd., and Qiaowei Yuan, Tohoku Institute of Technology.
The inaugural event WIE special session, titled “Moving Forward Together – Women Excellence in Engineering,” aimed to provide a platform for female researchers and engineers to interact, fostering their active participation and rich development, and supporting diverse career development opportunities at ISAP. The session showcased global diversity and inclusion (D&I) and WIE initiatives while highlighting the accomplishments of women in the electromagnetic (EM) field, particularly those from Japan and other Asian countries.

Read about the details of the event in Microwave Magazine and enjoy the photos here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10345400

-Sherry Hess
WIM Media Working Group Chair 2024

Breaking Barriers: Exploring the Perspectives of Engineering Female Students in Mexico

Aurea Edna Moreno-Mojica, is a student in the Department of Electronics Systems and Informatics (ITESO) at The Jesuit University of Guadalajara, Tlaquepaque, Mexico and a student member of IEEE.  In her December IEEE Microwave Magazine WIM article she interviews four exceptional female engineering students in Mexico, one studying her MS in microwave engineering at The Center for Research and Advanced Studies of the National Polytechnic Institute(CINVESTAV) and three undergraduate students studying electronic engineering at ITESO University, all of whom want to pursue a career in microwave engineering. In her interviews, she delves into the unique perspectives and challenges faced by female students in Mexico looking to further their careers in microwave engineering, highlighting their inspiring journeys.

Read her full article in Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10314689 

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

Empowering Women In Microwave Engineering: Inspiring Stories from Malaysia

The November 2023 issue of IEEE Microwave magazine features a WIM column written by Dr. Fauziahanim Seman of the Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM). Prof. Seman is a member of the WIM subcommittee and has kindly contributed her thoughts on what women’s empowerment means to her. She also shares the stories of two empowered women engineers in her country of Malaysia. Prof. Dr. Norbahiah Misran from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, the recipient of 2021 Top 10 Electronics and Electrical Engineering Scientist in Malaysia, who lost her mentor and was forced to take over his responsibility for a large amount of grant projects, including the Antarctica project, which is about polar geospace ionospheric magnetic storms and water vapor characterization for the advancement of space weather prediction. In addition, she took over student supervision and administrative tasks. This was not anticipated, hence very sudden personal life adjustments were needed.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Rosminazuin Ab Rahim, the recipient of 2021 IEEE Malaysia Outstanding WIE Volunteers, is passionate about promoting science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) outreach programs by inspiring students to explore the wonders of STEM and empowering young minds and promoting social inclusion.

Read more about these women’s fascinating stories in IEEE Microwave Magazine here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10274521

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

State of the Industry: Diversity in the Workplace 

I participated in the Women in Engineering (WIE) panel discussion held at the 2022 Design Automation Conference (DAC) last summer, which brought out some wonderful pieces of insight and advice from myself and fellow women tech leaders on the panel on the importance of diversity in the workplace (you can read the article here).

I recently read a report published last fall by McKinsey & Co. for Women in the Workplace in partnership with Leanin.Org that says the needs of women in the workplace are by and large not being met and they are leaving in unprecedented numbers, both older, experienced women in leadership roles and younger women just embarking on their careers. This information is disheartening, especially considering the years of work myself and fellow WIM members have done to promote diversity in our organizations and encourage young women to join the tech force

I’ve written an article connecting the McKinsey Report to the DAC panel female leaders and giving my call to action for the future. Please take a look and join our WIM movement to do more and do it better:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10183707

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

Real Advice for Today’s Women in Engineering 

I’ve written an article for the XX edition of IEEE Microwave Magazine in which I share some salient bits of advice from the 2022 Design Automation Conference (DAC) Women in Engineering (WIE) panel discussion on “Real Advice for Today’s Women in Engineering.” Panelists Radhika Shankar of Synopsys, Greta Pyne of Intuit, myself, and Susanna Holt of Autodesk, as well as moderator Ann Steffora Mutscher of Semiconductor Engineering, discussed the importance of diversity for companies and what we think can be done to foster greater diversity as well as engage young women from an early age to believe that engineering and science are for them.

Details of the discussion and panelists’ insights and advice can be found here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10209096

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

WIM: Community Building! 

In the July/August IEEE Microwave Magazine WIM column, I interviewed two of our newest
WIM subcommittee members, Marie Mertens and Aurea Edna Moreno-Mojica. These young
women, along with others who participate in the many events that MTT-S has to offer, were
so inspired by their collective experiences that they joined WIM as well as expanded their
involvement to aspects beyond the subcommittee. In this article, they talk about their
academic accomplishments, professional and personal interests, and experiences with WIM.

Learn more about these amazing young women who are the next generation of women engineers:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10183707

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

WiSE at Microwave and Radar Week 2022

WIM is flourishing around the globe! Malgorzata Celuch of QWED Sp/ z o.o., Warszawa, Poland, has contributed a wonderful article to the XX edition of IEEE Microwave Magazine describing the 2022 MIKON Polish microwave conference, part of the Microwave and Radar Week (MRW) 2022 presented by the Polish Academy of Sciences and the IEEE. This was the first time MIKON included a dedicated WIM event within the Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) matinee program that included distinguished microwave lecturer talks by Prof. Dimitra Psychogiou in a plenary session and Prof. Jasmin Grosinger in a WIM session, as well as technical presentations and discussions from different perspectives of women in engineering and science. ‘With so many perspectives, the main conclusions of the discussion that followed were common and… WISE: believe in yourself, work hard towards your goals, fight for your truth but take kindly the counsel of the years,” writes Malgorzata.

You can discover more details and many fabulous photographs of the event and the beautiful architecture of the Gdansk University of Technology venue in Malgorzata’s article here:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10183707

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

The Last, But Not the Least

Mohaira Ahmad shares her heart-warming journey in the world of microwaves for the June IEEE Microwave Magazine WIM column. She describes her experiences growing up in Pakistan and trying to pursue an engineering career in a culture that does not value women pursuing technical roles. Fortunately, her family was very supportive, and she was able to attend the National University of Science and Technology, subsequently earning her master’s and PhD degrees while simultaneously raising a family.

Mohaira believes: “Women in any area of the field should start shouting for other women; this will create a wave of good words, and women will get the required visibility. We women should learn the art of surrounding ourselves with positive and supportive people and saying NO to negative vibes. This type of mindset will help us to create a work-life balance, and we will be able to make happy human beings too.”

Read about Mohaira’s experiences as a woman microwave engineer in Pakistan.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10121517

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

Johana Yan and Jasmin Grosinger kindly contributed an article in the May issue of IEEE Microwave Magazine informing IMS2023 attendees about Women in Microwaves (WIM) events being hosted by MTT-S. The traditional WIM networking reception will continue on Tuesday, June 13 at the Hilton Bayfront Hotel from 6:30 to 9:00 p.m. This year’s reception will celebrate “Women in Leadership in Industry, Academia, and Government” snd will emphasize building a network among women engineers while while offering informal mentoring with young professionals.

There will also be a joint panel session of female tech leaders and entrepreneurs of the WIM and Young Professionals (YP) organizations discussing what YPs need to be successful in the industry. The panel will be held on Thursday, June 15 starting at 2:00 p.m int e Young Professionals Pavilion and will feature five WIM speakers.

Learn about the details by reading Johana’s and Jasmin’s article here and visiting the WIM web page here.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10098999

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

The Rich History of Women in Tech

In my January WIM column in IEEE Microwave Magazine, “IEEE MTT-S MGA WIM Subcommittee: Who We Are and What We Do,” I mentioned two WIM promotional videos that have been developed to educate and inspire women in engineering. In my April WIM column, I delve into more detail on these videos, hoping to encourage all of you to take a couple minutes from your busy day to watch them.

The first one, “History of Women in Tech/MTT-S” (three minutes) tells the stories of great American women engineers who made meaningful contributions beginning in the mid-1920s. It includes profiles on physicist Betsy Ancker-Johnson, actress and inventor Hedy Lamar, engineer and IEEE Fellow Zoya Popovic, electrical engineer and first female IEEE MTT-S president Dominque Screurs, and engineer and first MTT-S female president of color Rashaunda Henderson, to name a few.

The second video, “WIM Sizzle,” (just over a minute) highlights the challenges of being women in a man’s industry and inspires women engineers to keep pushing, supporting each other, sharing our knowledge and experiences, and guiding and mentoring those coming through the ranks.

To learn more about the rich history of women in tech, check out my April column.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10058773

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

Why I Am an IEEE Senior Member

The march issue of IEEE Microwaves features in our Women in Microwaves column an article,”Why I Am an IEEE Senior Member,” by Janine Love. Janine has been a longtime editor at publications such as Microwave Journal, Microwaves & RF, and Signal Integrity Journal and is now technical marketing program manager at Samtec, Inc.

When Janine received an invitation to become a senior member of IEEE, she reflected on how much she has enjoyed being part of the organization. She has met fascinating people and been able to further her passion of supporting women engineers. Perhaps of she became more involved, she could do even more to help other women, as well as further her recognition in the field, increase her networking, and likely improve her career advancement.

Read the full article to learn what is required to become a senior member and the many benefits Janine has experienced.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10035790

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

Distinguished Microwave Lectures: An Enriching Experience for MTT-S Members and Speakers

The February Women in Microwaves column in IEEE Microwaves Magazine spotlights the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) Distinguished Microwave Lecturers (DML) program, which enables chapters to host speakers who are experts in their fields. The women who contributed to this article noticed in the summer of 2022 that the DML schedule for 2023-2025 was the tenth program since 2009 to offer an all-male slate of speakers and that only five women had been speakers since 2009. This is due, in part, to a lack of nominations of female candidates.

Learn more as Dominique Schreurs, Jasmin Grosinger, Dan Jiao, Mona Jarrahi, and Natalia Nikolova elaborate on the nomination process and share their experiences as female DMLs.

Here is the complete article:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=10004799

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2023

The MTT-S MGA WIM Subcommittee: Who We Are and What We Do!

The IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) Member and Geographic Activities (MGA) Women in Microwaves (WIM) Subcommittee is dedicated to building a network of women in microwaves that attracts, scales, and connects. We do that by promoting women engineers/scientists in the microwave community, attracting women graduate students and professionals to join MTT-S, and increasing the visibility of women within MTT-S. In an article published in IEEE Microwave Magazine in January, I introduce the members of our committee and talk about the objectives we set out to accomplish throughout 2022 through print, events, and digital. You can catch up on all the details here.

In the print area, we had a WIM column appear in every issue of IEEE Microwave Magazine, as well as a two-part special focus column in February and March highlighting the research being done by 21 women within MTT-S. We welcome our readers and MTT-S members to reach out to us to contribute a column.

To support our second goal pertaining to events, whether live or virtual, the committee regularly organizes, presents at and/or simply attends a variety of WIM activities held at numerous conferences and technical events throughout the year.

Our third goal has to do with our always-on presence that can be found on our mtt.org site using the quick link mtt.org/wim. On this site you can find everything to do with Women in Microwaves, including background information on the organization and subcommittee members, as well as recent and archived WIM columns appearing in IEEE Microwave Magazine, monthly blog posts, upcoming events, recent news, and more.

Reflecting back on 2022, I’m very excited by the hard work, enthusiasm, energy, and ideas that the WIM community at large works toward in support of the goals of the WIM subcommittee. Looking forward into 2023, we will continue to grow and support our MTT-S women engineers through print and digital, as well as expanding our presence at MTT-S conference and events. Stay up to date on our latest articles, blogs, videos, and all future events by regularly visiting mtt.org/wim. Lastly, if you’ve not yet connected with a WIM member, reach out today and help us continue to grow our community of women within MTT-S.

Here is the complete article:

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9966382

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

‘RWW 2023 WIM Event: Distinguished Women in Microwaves’

The December 2022 Women in Microwaves (WIM) column in IEEE Microwaves Magazine featured an article by Jasmin Grosinger giving us a sneak peek at the exciting WIM event being planned for the 2023 IEEE Radio & Wireless Week (RWW) being held the week of January 22 in Las Vegas. Three distinguished women professionals who have considerably advanced the fields of microwave theory and technology and automatic radio frequency (RF) techniques will be spotlighted. Dr. Malgorzata Celuch, QWED, Warsaw, Poland, will present “Modeling-Based Characterization of Materials from Microwaves to Millimeter Waves.” Prof. Rhonda R. Franklin, University of Minnesota (UMN), Minneapolis, USA, will present “Advances in Wired and Wireless Interconnect Technology for Microwave and Sub-Millimeter-Wave Applications.” Prof. Qiaowei Yuan, Tohoku Institute of Technology, Miyagi, Japan, will present “Direction-of-Arrival Estimation and Array Antenna Beamforming With Mutual Coupling.”

Be sure to check out the full article at https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9933983, which describes in detail the topics these outstanding women will discuss.

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

‘IMS2023: Perspective from the Top’

Gayle Collins has written an insightful article for the IEEE Microwaves Magazine WIM column on some of her experiences as a woman engineer and how much she is looking forward to the International Microwave Symposium (IMS) 2023 in San Diego: “it will be the coolest show.”

The IMS2023 organizing committee is made up of a diverse group of people in the microwave community, reflecting a wide range of topics and ideas for 2023, including themes such as “Microwaves in Latin America,” “Model-Based Systems Engineering and Digital Twins,” “Space,” and “Biomedical Applications.”

“So make sure that you attend and see what kind of wily deeds occur!” Gayle admonishes.

You can read her complete and thoroughly entertaining article at https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/9910228

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

‘Innovative Competition at IMS2022 Showcases the Next Generation of RF/Microwave Designers’

I had the honor for the fourth year in a row of being the moderator for the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition at the International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in June of this year. Now in its sixth

year, at IMS, this unique event challenges engineering Ph.D. candidates and young professionals to stand up in front of a roomful of people and panel of judges and make a presentation appropriate to a nonspecialist audience in three minutes or less using a single static slide.

This year’s winners were Connor Rowe of the National Institute of Scientific Research, Ajibayo Adeyeye of the Georgia Institute of Technology, and Alexander Poßberg of the University of Duisburg-Essen.

This the combination of soft skills and solid technical knowledge is becoming more and more valued by employers who are now looking for negotiation skills, emotional intelligence, and people management skills in addition to technical ability. Competitions like IMS 3MT are a great way for our future technology leaders to hone their skills in these vital areas. Read the details of this year’s competition in the October issue of IEEE Microwave Magazine.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9877794

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

Fauziahanim Binti Che Seman is featured in the September issue of IEEE Microwaves Magazine discussing her experiences as a woman in microwaves, where she believes the keys to success include networking, making connections, reputation, and mentoring.

She states that networking starts within a small circle of people linked by mutual interests and meaningful communication, strengthened within the workplace, community, and beyond. Making connections comes through personal contacts, during external meetings, at conference, and at professional associations. Women should consistently participate in professional associations and events, doing something to create a positive reputation. When others become aware of your presence, continue to be active and grow your reputation. Finally, women’s mentoring is especially important for career success because mentoring relationships are more likely to be available to men than women in fields where men are predominant. Women generally have a higher commitment to the family; hence, they are looking for women mentors who understand these issues.

Hopefully, these four essential topics will help inspire IEEE women in engineering to shine by keeping, joining, and staying in their fields.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9847650

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

This August edition of Microwave Magazine features a question-and-answer session with me and Charlotte Blair, “2021 MTT-S President’s Task Force on Mentoring, Diversity, and Inclusion: A Conversation Between WIM Members”

Charlotte and I discuss our involvement with the 2021 MTT-S task force and talk about the strides that have been made in the past decade to expand awareness of and involvement in the Women in Microwaves (WIM) and Women in Engineering (WIE) groups within MTT-S and what we are working on presently to align with and implement the WIE Pledge: “IEEE WIE pledges to work towards gender-diversified panels at all IEEE meetings, conference, and events, including our own.”

We have been making a concerted effort to grow the WIM organization globally and expand the subcommittee through a diverse group of students, younger and older professionals, members of government and academia from Europe, Asia-Pacific, and the Americas. We worked hard during the pandemic to foster virtual meetings and events as well as to implement regular communications through an expanded website to keep members engaged despite the lack of opportunities to meet face-to-face at conferences.

As I conclude in the interview, every journey starts with a first step, and we have made huge progress in implementing inclusion and diversity within MTT-S. But of course, there is a long way to go. Please read the article to learn more about these important activities and get involved by signing up for our mailing list.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9819844

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

The July WIM column features a recap by Prof. Rodica Ramer, who organized the very successful WIM event at the 2021 APMC conference, which was to be held in Brisbane, Australia, but because of health restrictions, became a virtual event.

The hour-and-a-half event featured seven virtual speakers from around the world discussing their research, including Rodica (University of New South Wales, Sydney), Prof. Rashaunda Henderson (University of Texas, Dallas), Linda Katehi (University of California, Davis), Asimina Kiourti (Ohio State University), Daniela Dragomirescu (Institut National Des Sciences Appliquees, Toulouse, France), Alessandra Costanzo (University of Bologna, Italy), Zlatica Marinkovic (University of Nis, Serbia), Ye He (Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, China), and Stephanie Smith (CSIRO Space & Astronomy, Australia).

Despite the virtual limitations, the presenters and attendees celebrated the outstanding contributions of women in electrical and electronics engineering from the U.S., to Europe, to Asia. You can read Prof. Ramer’s article here to learn the fascinating details of these outstanding womens’ research.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9724657

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

As we head into IMS2022 and the 2022 IMS Women in Microwaves (WIM) event, I wanted to reflect for my WIM column in this June edition of Microwaves Magazine on how far we’ve come since my first WIM event back in 2010, gosh 12 years ago!

From a cocktail party in 2010, which, thanks to the hard work of myself and my team getting the word out, had more than 75 attendees (more than double the previous year) we have grown to events across the globe that have featured half-day technical tracks and panel discussions in addition to the traditional social event. This year’s event will take place at Denver’s Ellie Caulkins Opera House and will offer some unique activities thanks to the event committee headed by Prof. Prof. Zoya Popovic of the University of Colorado, Boulder that included not only her daughter but also numerous graduate students (both men and women).

WIM continues to blossom as the committee doubles down on efforts to attract more women who are realizing the value of mutual support, networking, and mentorship.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9769738

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

The Women in Microwaves (WIM) column in this May edition of IEEE Microwave Magazine features candid thoughts from members of the IMS2022 WIM event committee, comprising Prof. Zoya Popovic ́ of the University of Colorado at Boulder (CU) and her graduate students, both male and female. For this interview, I wanted to understand not only what motivated these women to write their article, but also why Prof. Popovic ́ chose an all-student committee, why the women students on the committee have chosen a career in the male-dominated field of microwaves, and what kinds of gender issues they have encountered as students at CU.

Prof. Zoya Popovic ́, her daughter Nina Popovic ́ Basta, and student Laila Marzall recently wrote an article for this magazine promoting the WIM reception at IMS2022, but also reflecting on the history behind gender imbalance in the industry in a humorous, lighthearted way. Included in the article are some amusing (or not so amusing, depending on your point of view) quotes from a 1952 document titled “How to Handle Women,” which reveals that apparently women were difficult to work with back then. The authors then solicited some anonymous quotes from well-established male colleagues on how they feel about working with women in 2022.

You can find the committee’s candid answers to my interview (here) and the article “Men and Women Together Make RF/Microwaves Better) by Prof. Popovic ́, Nina Popovic ́ Basta, and Laila Marzall (here). Take the time to read both, you’ll be glad you did.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9724657

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

Our April WIM article on Women, STEM, and South Asia was contributed by Tayyaba Farooqi, who is with the National University of Sciences and Technology in Pakistan. She wondered when she was invited to contribute whether the problems faced by women in technology in developing countries could be understood by an international audience because the unique ingrained social norms, or unconscious biases, within developing countries have made gender discrimination seem so normal that it goes unnoticed and is acceptable by both men and women. She explains that this is because in her culture education of male offspring is prioritized over that of females and parents instead encourage their daughters to attend female institutes, however, STEM courses are not offered in those schools. For females who are able to take technical courses, the majority of teachers in technical areas are male, leaving a communication gap between them and their female students. An additional hurdle for women is that the culture sets expectations that women should let their male counterparts take the lead in projects, so often the contributions of women go unseen. All of these factors serve to dissuade women from pursuing careers in technology.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=9724657

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

Valentina Palazzi of the University of Perugia, Italy has written an insightful article in this March issue of IEEE Microwaves Magazine on the positive impact the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition at the International Microwave Symposium (IMS) has had on her personal and professional growth.

She has taken part in this competition twice—in 2019 and 2021, and explains in her article that, at first, she thought it would be impossible to not only explain her research in three minutes, but also to avoid technical jargon.

“The beauty of a 3MT competition,” she says, “lies in the simplicity of its rules, which also makes it so tough: all contestants are given a maximum of three minutes to describe the results of their research to a nontechnical audience, with the support of just a single static slide. There is no room for shortcuts: only you, with your words and gestures, must succeed in catching the attention and the interest of a varied audience in less than three minutes.”

Valentina explains that her journey removed her misconceptions and disbeliefs and helped her embrace the concept that everything is relatable to any kind of audience in a given time—the key lies in planning and asking the right questions. She discusses in her article that competition had a profound effect on her in that it helped her understand a different way of expressing concepts and gave her a new perspective on how to communicate her results and prepare her lectures.

As moderator and Master of Ceremonies for the 2019 event, I was very impressed with this young woman and gave her my special MC award. You can read my blog from that competition, “Innovative Competitions Inspire Next Generation of RF/Microwave Leaders,” where I discuss the importance of 3MT and other IMS competitions that help jump start young engineers’ careers.

I was pleased to see Valentina competing again in 2021. This time, a fellow finalist invited her to help with the IMS2021 WIM session, which resulted in her making connections with some of the most well-known women leaders in IEEE and becoming part of the WIM community.

Be sure to read the details of Valentina’s experiences with both 3MT and WIM here.

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

Our February IEEE Microwave Magazine WIM column features an article from Dr. Kiki Ikossi, an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Science and Technology Policy Fellow at the National Science Foundation (NSF). As she points out in her introduction, Kiki and I have known each other for years and I’ve been encouraging her to share her wealth of experience as a woman in microwaves. Through this article, “Decades of Perspectives of Women in Microwaves,” Kiki tells us where she is now and how she got here, including her struggles to graduate from the National Technical University of Athens during a military junta and to earn her MS and PhD degrees in a male-dominated environment while raising a family.

Kiki recounts that NSF is where discoveries begin. AAAS- STP Fellows work across NSF on projects that shape the future of science and engineering with an eye towards promoting not only science, but diversity, equity, and inclusion in STEM fields.

After enjoying the summary version in the magazine, be sure to read on here for the longer, complete story of Kiki’s fascinating life, education, professional career, and research.

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022

Happy 2022!

With the new year comes a new IEEE MTT-S president—Prof. Rashaunda Henderson, our second female president of the society and the first female of color to take on this challenging role. I had the pleasure of chatting with Rashaunda about her motivations for deciding to run for society president in the first place as well as pivotal points in her career along the way that have helped to shape the person she is and her success in the field of microwaves.

Throughout the interview, Rashaunda shared many wisdoms she has internalized over the years that span her childhood through today. There were several phrases that resonated with me and perhaps will with you as well:
•  Not making excuses
•  Philosophy of serving others
•  Bring ideas to the table
•  Push through the fear

I encourage all of you to learn more about this truly inspiring person and her vision and goals for the Society which address educating our youth and young professionals, collaborating with other IEEE societies and mentoring all we meet along the way to ensure continuity of the community and future years of success.

Click here to read my interview of Professor Henderson in the January 2022 issue of IEEE Microwaves Magazine: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?arnumber=9632505.

-Sherry Hess
WIM Chair 2022