Elizabeth Ayer

@elizayer
1.4K Followers
414 Following
2.2K Posts

Hi! I do civic tech, product, and org design, currently in government.

My happy place is down a rabbithole, occasionally ejecting content as a proof of life. Posts usually about software, with some politics, history and philosophy thrown in, but secretly still about software.

Based in #Tacoma, superfan of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge and #infrastructure in general.

Pronouns: she/her
Countries: UK/US

#productmanagement #ProductLeadership #Leadership #SystemsThinking #TeamTopologies

Bloghttps://medium.com/@ElizAyer
Websitehttps://elizabeth-ayer.com/
Elizabeth Ayer19h ago

Love the renewed attention on Audre Lorde's The Master's Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master's House.

Bonus reminder: Black feminists have a lot of solid observations on cross-functional teams!

https://awpc.cattcenter.iastate.edu/communication/masters-tools-will-never-dismantle-masters-house-oct-29-1979

Show threadElizabeth Ayer1d ago

It was obvious enough to previous political generations that biased outcomes were something to be fixed.

And that they should be fixed, even if you couldn’t spot exactly where the biases had affected the process.

Equal opportunity was seen as American, not leftist.

Elizabeth Ayer1d ago

Just your regular reminder that it was not the left who brought equality of opportunity *in* to party-politics. It was the right who kicked it *out* of the agreed social contract.

For example, it was under Ronald Reagan that a Democratic House and Republican Senate enacted the first Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) clause in law to try to redress imbalances in government contracting.

Elizabeth Ayer1d ago
Show threadBen Berry1d ago
@elizayer no politics at all in his 3 books about government-funded space programs?
Elizabeth Ayer1d ago
mekka okereke 2d ago

RE: https://hachyderm.io/@mekkaokereke/116290338892571761

🤦🏿‍♂️Actually, nevermind.

Why is everything like this?

The author supposedly went on an anti-woke, right-wing podcast to promote the movie while trashing other books and movies that do have a "woke" message or that have inclusive representation? But... why?

Why was that necessary?

Elizabeth Ayer1d ago

"... and finally, God, please shield me from self-important people who think that art and technology can be apolitical. Ame-- OH COME ON"

https://www.westernjournal.com/project-hail-mary-writer-says-hit-film-worked-avoided-woke-political-agendas/

'Project Hail Mary' Writer Says Hit Film Worked Because He Avoided Woke Political Agendas

Following the release of "Project Hail Mary," Andy Weir, author of the book it's based on, said he avoids preachy politics in his work.  

The Western Journal
Show threadElizabeth Ayer3d ago

I'm especially fascinated by the Digital Services Expert role definition: https://www.usajobs.gov/job/862654300

It appears to be software engineering, ops, data science, design, and product all rolled into one. Is that what we're doing now?

I don't think they all *have* to be separate, especially for early stage products, but that's... really broad 🤔

USAJOBS connects job seekers with federal jobs across the United States and around the world as the official employment site for the federal government

The Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking Digital Service Experts to join the Office of Information Technology (OIT) or Division of Economic and Risk Analysis (DERA). Ideal candidates should possess deep expertise in modern Agile software development, securing systems, customer experience, DevSecOps, user research, cloud architecture, and other related disciplines. Strong people skills in dealing with a variety of different customers will also be essential.

USAJOBS
Elizabeth Ayer3d ago

New roles at the SEC!

Cloud engineers and digital services experts:

https://www.usajobs.gov/job/862653900
https://www.usajobs.gov/job/862654300

USAJOBS connects job seekers with federal jobs across the United States and around the world as the official employment site for the federal government

The Office of Information Technology is seeking Cloud Engineers to join the AWS Cloud Environment at the SEC (ACES) Branch. The roles will support and enhance the ACES platform, guide project teams on their cloud journey; act as an advisor on cloud technology, Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), and well-architected patterns; and help to streamline processes. These positions will require the rare combination of technical excellence, strategic vision, and exceptional communication skills.

USAJOBS
Elizabeth Ayer4d ago
TIL that the job market is lively in Tacoma, at least in -- or possibly only in -- the recreational marijuana sector.
Elizabeth Ayer5d ago
Mignon Fogarty6d ago

Heads-up for published authors:

The deadline to join the Anthropic class-action copyright settlement is March 30. If you have published a book, you may be eligible to receive ~$1,500 per book, so it’s worth your time to check it out.

I had been putting it off and finally completed my forms last week.

Learn more at the Authors Guild: https://authorsguild.org/advocacy/artificial-intelligence/what-authors-need-to-know-about-the-anthropic-settlement/

Start the process: https://www.anthropiccopyrightsettlement.com/

What Authors Need to Know About the $1.5 Billion Anthropic Settlement

Updated February 18, 2026 IMPORTANT: The Claims Deadline Is March 30 Background  Bartz v. Anthropic is one of the major copyright lawsuits brought by authors against an AI company for using books without permission to train large language models. It […]

The Authors Guild