Laura Hanks
Laura Hanks
Laura is senior director of brand marketing. Prior to joining Mercury, she was director of strategy business development at ITT Interconnect Solutions and Ducommun Inc. Laura began her career as a software engineer and later moved into program management and product marketing roles. She holds a BS and MS in computer science from the University of Southern California.
What is your advice to young women entering the STEM field?
· Don’t be afraid to speak up, not everyone will hear you, but no one will if you stay silent.
· Take risks and have the courage to push yourself and see how far you can go.
· Look out for and bond with other women on your team and across your organization.
· Identify a few colleagues (male or female) that you can really trust and be each other’s coaches and confidants.
· Actively seek and leverage mentors.
· Keep a positive outlook, even ‘mistakes’ are learning experiences. If you’re not making mistakes, you’re probably not taking risks and pushing yourself.