I’m excited and proud to share that 8th Light’s Jen Udan was named a Moxie Award winner!
The 2023 selections were recently announced, and we could not be more proud of Jen. Jen is based in Austin, Texas, and has sparked exciting growth and change at 8th Light since joining our team in February 2020.
The Moxie Awards are a special annual celebration of women who are likely to ascend to the pinnacle of their careers in tech — and who are already on their way. The list is curated by BuiltIn and compiles a national list of those women who have led with outsized dedication, commitment or passion. For more information on the Moxie Awards please visit BuiltIn.
Here is an excerpt from Jen’s nomination, written by her manager, Kristin Keading.
Jen started and runs the People of Color (POC) chat, which takes place weekly. It is a space for the group to talk about anything from simple water cooler quips to more intentional educational subjects, including: “POC strategies for retention and promotion” and “Synthesising and balancing the Impacts of world events in the group’s day to day work.” Jen sought to create this space for others to share and talk about how to navigate microaggressions, which helped to form the foundation of 8th Light’s microaggression policy and training initiatives … Outside of work, Jen has done volunteer work with various nonprofit organizations related to reproductive justice, police accountability, stopping human trafficking, supporting domestic violence survivors, and other intersectional feminist causes.
Jen earned a nomination this year alongside three more incredible colleagues: Rani Zilpelwar, Caroline Cessaro, and Kristin Kaeding. Each of these women has impacted us with their continuous efforts to make 8th Light a better place for themselves and peers by demonstrating their impact and leadership.
These women at 8th Light join Jessica Chung, who was honored as a Moxie Award winner in 2022.
Congratulations to our winner Jen Udan, as well as all of the inspiring nominees.