It’s so interesting to me, how social media platforms and industry groups can facilitate new friendships and enhance networking.  We all hear that it is possible, though when you take a step back, how many relationships have you grown this way?  It takes deliberate effort and an openness to reach out to others.

This is how I met Sejal Amin, the current CTO of Shutterstock.  By commenting and contributing to LinkedIn conversations on the importance of value streams for modern software delivery, we followed one another and eventually,  agreed to connect.  What I didn’t know at the time was that Sejal is an influential member of the value stream management consortium (VSMC).   

What is a Value Stream?  A value stream is the sequence of activities necessary to deliver a product, service or experience to a customer, internal or external. Value streams cut across and connect siloed business capabilities.  For those in the software design and delivery realm, you may see a natural alignment to the concepts of DevSecOps and the ability to deliver value to the end user.  This is how I learned about applying value streams to software; as an umbrella to DevSecOps flow. 

In October of 2022, the Value Stream Management Consortium held their first conference in Las Vegas.  They chose the time and place carefully to dovetail with the yearly DevOps Enterprise Summit.  There were nearly 100 folks gathered to discuss the importance and advance the topic and I happened to walk in the door nearly last.  I had taken a wrong turn when I walked into Bally’s Hotel and Convention area.  As I walked into the main conference room, I was greeted by multiple folks I had been chatting with on social platforms and even through an occasional zoom call.

A fireball of a woman walked up to me and said, “I finally get to meet you, Trac!  I’m a fan girl!”  I was surprised and warmed by the welcome.  Her name was Sejal.  We took our seats to kick start the day’s sessions.  As the morning unfolded, and the experts shared their topics, I was stunned and excited to find out that Sejal was Sejal Amin, the CTO of Shutterstock who is leading their adoption of generative artificial intelligence.  

We share a love of technology and a love of building teams.  We also share one other attribute: we have lived our entire lives in the states where we were born.  I’m Pennsylvaina born and  bred.  Sejal Amin has lived her entire life in New Jersey.  

Sejal is first generation US born.  Her family immigrated to the US from India during the early 1970s.