Cloud Girls is honored to have amazingly accomplished, professional women in tech as our members. We take every opportunity to showcase their expertise and accomplishments – promotions, speaking engagements, publications and more. Now, we are excited to shine a spotlight on one of our members each month.
Our Cloud Expert of the Month is Cheryl Kleiman.
Cheryl Kleiman, Regional Vice President of Sales at Flexential, has over 25 years of executive leadership in sales and marketing in the information technology sector serving multiple industries. She has also served as Treasurer for the Tampa Bay Technology Forum, which earned her an ‘Outstanding Directors’ award from the Tampa Bay Business Journal. She also served as Chair of the organization’s Membership committee. Cheryl currently sits on the boards of March of Dimes, The Outback Bowl, and the Greater Fort Lauderdale Alliance
When did you join Cloud Girls and why?
I was introduced to Cloud Girls by Tamara Prazak in 2018. I immediately wanted to be part of the movement! I knew I could add value and make a difference.
What do you value about being a Cloud Girl?
I value the impact Cloud Girls has and can continue to have in the continued advancement of women in the technology sector, and the ability as a ‘team’ to truly move the needle to affect lives and produce positive outcomes. I also value the group’s common interests, goals, intellect, and knowledge sharing. And of course, the new friendships, both personal and professional, are important to me.
What are the best ways you’ve gained executive sponsorship?
- Inclusion and awareness into the goal or ask prior to executing
- Preparedness (do the homework)
- Performance/Results (do what I say)
- Accountability (own it)
- Hard Work (10X)
- Persuasion (never taking “No’ for an answer)
- And a Solid, proven business case
How do you avoid being complacent in your role?
Continuous learning, taking on new challenges, always being curious, setting stretch goals for myself, participating in charity work, and never getting comfortable.
What are the most exciting opportunities for women in tech?
I love technology, so I think any opportunity is exciting. However, I think the most exciting will be all about the data, the new gold. Social platforms evolve with BI, AI, ML, AR, VR, Cognitive Cloud Computing, Edge Computing, and of course IoT and DevOps. The opportunities will continue to expand as almost every aspect of our lives depends on technology.