Kristen Gallett, Application Engineer, B&R Industrial Automation
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering Purdue University
Kristen Gallett joined B&R in 2019 after graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Purdue University. She is now an Application Engineer based out of the Chicago suburbs in Illinois. In this position, she supports several regional customers with troubleshooting, day-to-day support, and solution development using a variety of B&R technology. Her current primary focus is long-term customer care and the development of maintainable software architecture in ongoing projects.
What makes your company culture inclusive?
The culture at B&R is collaborative and generally friendly. Within my region, individuals create a supportive environment by getting to know and value each other as people rather than just employees. On a broader level, B&R is a member of the ABB group which has a network of Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) called Encompass. These groups lead diversity initiatives and support an inclusive environment for a variety of identities, many of which are underrepresented in engineering and automation. I serve as communications chair on the board of the Encompass Pride ERG specifically for the LGBTQ+ community to help expand inclusivity and sense of belonging for all employees.
What first drew you to engineering and the automation industry?
In high school, I was guided towards engineering because of my interest in math and science. Upon entering college, I did not have a clear end goal for my career, but I knew I loved learning how things worked, so I chose mechanical engineering for its versatility. I appreciated that an engineering education would give me the skills to approach all sorts of problems, regardless of where I decided to apply my efforts in the future. When it came time to look for jobs, I enjoyed a range of experiences from multiple internships and gravitated towards automation and manufacturing to continue solving problems within a variety of industries.
What is your biggest career challenge?
My biggest career challenge has been personalizing my place in engineering. I have found that more technical spaces tend to be less welcoming towards underrepresented groups. Whether conscious or not, familiar voices are often given priority and authority while less established voices are met with skepticism and scrutiny. In these situations, I must work to earn the baseline amount of respect that others gain just to fit into expectations. For example, there was a period when I was bypassed by team members, and my contributions were ignored or attributed to other co-workers. Situations like this arise for any minority group, and the day-to-day effort of defending yourself makes it more difficult to confidently establish yourself in a technical career. By necessity, I have become more confident in advocating for myself and disrupting biases. I have learned to focus on my teammates’ support, and I have become more involved in DEI initiatives to support others whenever possible.
What career advice would you give to your younger self?
Explore a variety of opportunities. Talk to friends, family, colleagues, and strangers about what their jobs are really like. Seek out areas of work that you enjoy and topics that spark your interest. Identifying those pieces of any job will help you craft a unique career that focuses on what is most valuable to you.
Filed Under: Engineering Diversity & Inclusion