Bhoomi Girish

Background in SWE:

I am currently a member of the PR team. Being part of it has honestly made me realize how much goes on behind the scenes to make SWE feel so put together and engaging. Through PR, I’ve gotten a better understanding of how communication, branding, and outreach directly impact how people interact with SWE, whether that’s attending the monthly events, following our lovelysocials, or feeling like they’re part of something bigger.

Outside of SWE, I’ve always gravitated toward leadership roles. I’ve led and organized initiatives through Girl Scouts [specifically empowerment events], a girls run club that I would host, and DECA, where I’ve had to coordinate events, manage teams, and keep people engaged. Through DECA, I competed at ICDC. Preparing for the DECA marketing events and completing the Business diploma at my High School taught me so much regarding all things marketing and strengthened my ability to think strategically about audience engagement and branding (which I now apply to on the PR team).

Being in SWE PR combined with my past leadership experience has made me really excited to step into a larger role where I can not only contribute ideas, but actually help shape how people experience SWE as a whole which can be backed up through my experiences at SWE.

Describe a leadership experience that challenged you. What did you learn from it and how would it influence your work on the SWE executive board?

The most challenging leadership experiences I’ve had was managing content and outreach for a large event/project where I had to coordinate multiple moving parts at once: social media promotion, timelines, and making sure people were actually engaging with what we were putting out. Additionally, in this specific context, the events that were being hosted were for children, however my marketing was for the parents so they could bring their kids.

At first, I thought it would be pretty straightforward: make posts, send messages, and people will show up. That was very wrong. I quickly realized that timing, consistency, and how content is presented makes a huge difference. There were moments where engagement was low or things weren’t getting the response I expected, and I had to rethink my approach ASAP instead of just sticking with what wasn’t working. This was stressful because we were on a time crunch.

I also had to balance working independently while still communicating clearly with others, which was harder than I expected. Small miscommunications could throw off the entire plan, so I learned how important it is to stay organized, follow up, and make sure everyone was aligned. I scheduled recurring meetings to just sync with each team.

What I took away from this experience is that leadership isn’t just about having ideas—it’s about adapting, being proactive, and actually executing those ideas effectively. Sometimes things don’t go as planned, and you have to be able to adjust quickly without losing momentum.

What I learned is that leadership is really about execution and adaptability. Anyone can have ideas, but actually following through, staying organized, and handling unexpected challenges is what makes something successful. I also learned how important communication is, because even small misalignments can affect an entire team. If I had to sum up my learnings from this experience in one word, it would be proactiveness.

On the SWE executive board, I would bring that same mindset. I would make sure that ideas are not only creative but also realistic and well-executed, and that communication stays clear across the team. I’m also very comfortable adjusting strategies if something isn’t working, which is especially important for areas like PR and member engagement where feedback is constantly changing.

What is one change or new initiative you would like to implement in SWE next year and why?

I would hope to implement more intentional and strategic social media/content system that focuses on consistency, trends, and engagement rather than just posting for the sake of posting and for fun.

Currently, a lot of organizations struggle with making content that people actually stop and interact with. I think SWE has a huge opportunity to grow its reach by leaning more into short-form content (especially TikTok and Instagram Reels) that aligns with current trends but is still informative and on-brand. SWE already has a strong reputation on social media, and I would want to build on that by making our content more engaging, recognizable, and consistently present in students’ daily feeds and for-you pages.

For example, instead of mostly posting informational graphics (which are helpful and cute but not always attention-grabbing), we could incorporate more dynamic content like:

“Day in the life” of SWE members
Quick and funny but relatable engineering content (everybody loves a good meme)
Event recaps that feel like experiences, not just announcements (like a vlog)
Trend-based videos that nonchalantly promote SWE

My goal would be to make SWE feel more visible, relatable, and active: not just something you hear about occasionally, but something constantly showing up in your feed in a way that makes you want to engage, and I mean that in two ways (by liking the TikTok and by joining SWE ;))

What ideas do you have to increase member participation/retention and build stronger community within SWE?

One of the biggest factors in retention is whether people feel like they belong, not just whether they attend events. One idea I would push is creating smaller, more tight-knit community structures within SWE (expanding on things like SWE Fams [totally didn't steal this from greek life]) where members feel personally connected rather than just being one of many attendees. When people have even a few strong connections, they’re much more likely to stay involved.

I also think participation increases when events feel easy to attend, worth attending, and socially rewarding

So I’d focus on:
Making events more interactive rather than just informational
Hosting events closer to where freshmen live (maybe in Denny Room)
Ensuring recurring events so people build routine
Promoting events in a way that actually excites people (not just “here’s the info”)
Highlighting members on social media so people feel seen (potential idea: SWE member of the month)

Also I know from personal experience that food always helps :) Beyond that, it’s about making SWE feel like a community people want to keep coming back to and find good pillars to lean on.

What challenges do you think women in engineering still face today, and how can SWE help address them at our university?

Women in engineering still face challenges like underrepresentation, imposter syndrome, lack of mentorship, and sometimes feeling like they have to constantly prove themselves in academic or professional spaces. I know I've felt these experiences and I'm just a student in engineering who is yet to go into the real field.

Even when women are fully capable, those environments can make them feel like they don’t belong, which can affect confidence, participation, and long-term retention in the field.

SWE plays a really important role in addressing this by creating a space where women feel supported, seen, and empowered. At our university, this can look like:
- Providing mentorship opportunities (especially peer-to-peer and upperclassmen guidance [example: talking about the ENGRUD process and hosting 1:1 question sessions])
- Hosting workshops that focus not just on technical skills but also confidence and professional development (having students practice interview skills, essay writing, etc. for internship applications and other potential opportunities)
- Creating a strong community where people feel comfortable asking questions and being themselves
- Highlighting successful women in engineering to provide visible role models

The biggest impact SWE can have is making sure no one feels like they’re navigating engineering alone, especially at a competitive school like ours where people often feel behind.

The SWE executive board works as a team to plan events and initiatives. How would you contribute to creating a positive and productive team environment?

A positive and productive team environment comes down to communication, energy, and how supported people feel within the team.

I’m a very collaborative and extroverted person, so I naturally like making sure everyone feels included and comfortable speaking up. In team settings, I tend to be the person who keeps conversations flowing, makes sure ideas are actually heard, and helps turn those ideas into something actionable. Fortunate for SWE, unfortunate for me, I'm super chalant.

I would contribute by being proactive with communication: making sure everyone is on the same page, following up when needed, and preventing small miscommunications from turning into bigger issues. I also think it’s really important to create a space where people feel comfortable asking questions or sharing ideas without feeling judged, especially in a team like SWE where everyone brings different strengths.

At the same time, I value productivity, so I like to keep things organized and efficient. I’m good at balancing being easygoing with actually getting things done, which I think is important for keeping a team both positive and effective.

Team culture matters more than people realize. Even small things, like keeping meetings engaging, recognizing people’s contributions, or just making the environment feel a little less formal, can make a big difference. I know Alisha did amazing by keeping the vibes up and having fun bonding events for our current PR team, I would definitely copy that (thanks, Alisha). I also bring good energy (and maybe a lot of humor) to make working together something people actually enjoy, not just something they have to do. Trust me, I'll make the exec board laugh.

If you could plan any SWE event with unlimited resources, what would it be?

I would create a “SWE House” experience: a fully immersive, physical space on campus where students can walk in and feel what being a woman in engineering looks like in real life.

I think a lot of people, especially underclassmen or people new to engineering, don’t struggle because they aren’t capable; they struggle because they don’t feel like they belong. So instead of just telling people “you belong here,” I would want to create an environment where they can actually experience that feeling.

The space would be designed like a walk-through experience:
- One area focused on real student experiences: honest stories about struggles, imposter syndrome, and growth. I'd love to have students of all ages be able to talk.
- One area showcasing different engineering paths, with interactive displays of what people actually do day-to-day, maybe also some guests in various types of engineering.
- A mentorship lounge (multiple areas so it doesn't get too crowded) where people can sit down, talk, and ask questions without it feeling intimidating
- A more relaxed, social space where people can just hang out and meet others in SWE (maybe eat some yummy food )

What would make it powerful is that it wouldn’t feel like a formal event: it would feel welcoming and real. Somewhere you can walk in alone and still leave feeling like you connected with people.

The goal is more so impact than attendance. I want people to walk out thinking, “I actually see myself here now.”