Reston, VA | June 23, 2025–International Women in Engineering Day falls on June 23 each year, so in 2025, we spoke to several Brillient Women Engineers to commemorate the occasion.
Dolores Farley – Developer Manager, USDA
Tell us a little about yourself.
I’m originally from Rhode Island. I used to play violin, and I was very passionate about that. I was originally a music major, but at some point, it became too hard. I’ve always loved math and science, and found them easier than playing the violin. Also, my dad was an engineer, and I’m a very curious person, so I went into engineering.
What is engineering in your own words?
For me, Engineering is the ability to take math and science and medicine into practical applications. Engineering school teaches you how to use critical thinking, which is definitely something that we should incorporate into our daily lives.
What inspired you to become an engineer?
My dad was a electrical engineer. He worked at IBM, so he took his kids to take your kids to work day. I was the youngest at the time, and I learned my first program before kindergarten. That made an impression in my life. I always had that kind of can do attitude. If you say I can’t do it, I’m going to prove you wrong.
Could you describe what you do at Brillient?
I wear many hats. Sometimes I’m coaching somebody or running a scrum board, and other times I’m peer reviewing somebody else’s code, or doing presentations.
How has your job influenced the way that you approach other things in your life?
On the weekend, I usually have an entire laundry list of chores, but I can’t do all of it. I use Scrum and Agile to break those down into smaller, manageable tasks. So that’s been very helpful and you know that critical thinking, “Do I really need to do this right now, or can I pace it out over the next couple of days?”
What innovative technologies or advances in engineering excite you?
I’ve done neural networks before and I’ve seen it grow and shift into generative AI. It really surprised me, and it’s something I’d like to work on more.
What surprised you the most about your work in engineering?
Education has undergone a positive change in the engineering field and life in general. In the old days, if you didn’t know how to do calculus and you had a bad teacher, you either found another professor, or suffered through the class. Now, you can teach yourself, especially with YouTube, Khan Academy and even ChatGPT. Now everybody has a supercomputer on their on their phone! You don’t need an engineering degree to be technically savvy.
What types of practical experience are important in the field of engineering?
Doing internships during your college years is very helpful. I have an engineering background, but I don’t have a computer science degree, so I’ve had to enrich my engineering degree by taking classes at a Community College, in Python, Java and C.
What other technical skills or certifications are important for those pursuing engineering?
Math and statistics are important. Data analytics, machine learning, and AI are very big now.
What’s one piece of advice that you’d give to other women who are pursuing a career in engineering?
Everybody says go with your passion, work on something you’re passionate about. That’s good advice, but I also like to say, try to work on things that you might need improvement on. Reading, writing, or presentation skills can open up new doors you have not realized were there. So that’s some advice I try to live by.
Elena Spratling – Senior Consultant, IRS
Tell us a little about yourself.
I grew up in Siberia, Russia, where engineering is a very desirable profession. Both my parents were engineers, so I didn’t really consider anything else. I always wanted to be an engineer. I worked in Russia as an engineer, and graduated from Novosibirsk State Technical University (NSTU) with a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering.
Could you describe what you do at Brillient?
I work as an ETL (Extract, Transform, Load) processor, conducting data management processes and preparing information for data analysts.
Has your job influenced the way you approach other things in your life?
It changes how I approach a new subject. I consider what has been done before, then think of
how to improve it and reengineer it to make it work better.
How is engineering changing industry for the better?
Everything you see around you was created by engineers. Ideas have to be engineered to make them work.
Do you have an engineering role model who inspired you?
I was working with a lot of very bright and creative minds. I was very lucky and I learned from
the best.
What innovative technologies or advances in engineering excite you?
Faster access to information and best practices. I remember when finding an answer used to mean spending hours at a library. Now, with the help of AI, you just need to ask the right questions.
What technical skills, degrees, and/or certifications are the most desired in your field?
An Engineering degree. I went to school for Electrical Engineering and completed 5 years of study. When I started working in a radio factory, I began working with computers, so they sent us to information technology classes for two months. You can’t be an engineer without college. It is a lot of studying, and you are always learning something new.
What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to women considering pursuing engineering as a
career?
Doing internships during your college years is very helpful. I have an engineering background, but I don’t have a computer science degree, so I’ve had to enrich my engineering degree by taking classes at a Community College, in Python, Java and C.
What other technical skills or certifications are important for those pursuing engineering?
Math and statistics are important. Data analytics, machine learning, and AI are very big now.
What’s one piece of advice that you’d give to other women who are pursuing a career in engineering?
It’s a really great career. You have to be open to new ideas, think outside the box, and have a logical mind. You have to really love math, be able to analyze very quickly, and do a lot of research. You have to be creative. Don’t recreate the bicycle. Get familiar with what you have, gather information, and create something new.
Is there anything else you want people to know about engineering?
I wish more young people would consider this profession. Artificial intelligence can help them develop ideas, they just have to guide it through the process and check if it’s done right.
Thank you to Dolores Farley and Elena Spratling for sharing their stories with us, and thank you to all the engineers at Brillient who are shaping our world and building a better tomorrow.