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I have already addressed the topic of diversity. I have an ambiguous attitude towards her, since a good, in general, prank was brought to absurdity by the desire of the performers on the ground. However, it is worth noting that Intel has always had a lot of smart women. And I am grateful to fate that I was lucky enough to work with them. This section will be devoted to their stories.

Mandy

Our first heroine is called Mandy Mock. I met her in the early 2000s. Then she headed the productization unit in the Developer Products Division. Release Engineering and Infrastructure (REI), as it was then called. I already wrote that the development of software at Intel was a difficult story. Part of the problem was the position of programmers in the railroad, another part was that Intel initially treated its software (compiler, libraries, debuggers) as a side product. And perhaps it was Mandy who played a key role in changing this attitude. Working from the inside out, she began creating validation, packaging, and release processes for Intel software products. The attitude towards development tools as an honest product was first formed within REI. And then “great Intel” (not even) admitted that software is the same product as iron.

Mandy herself made a charming impression, despite the fact that she was by no means beautiful. A small sprout (below 160) with long, very early gray hair. At the first meeting, it seemed to me that she was around fifty, while she was probably not even 35. However, appearances are often deceiving. For all the miniature scale of Mandy’s personality, it was impossible to borrow. She was the only woman on Bill Savage’s staff. And she enjoyed undeniable respect not because of the notorious diversity (there was no such thing then), but solely because of her personal qualities. Even such sharks as Kevin Smith, Sanjeev Shah and Bill himself appreciated Mandy for her intelligence and charm.

Charm, perhaps, was her most characteristic quality. However, at first Mandy seemed to me to be a kind of “blue stocking”, but mine, which has made a very successful career, is experiencing problems in her personal life. And the appearance only strengthened this impression… However, here too I was wrong. In 2004, SSG received news that Mandy Mok was getting married and was going on maternity leave. I was a little intrigued – it was interesting to look at her husband. However, this thought quickly flew out of my head.

But a year later such a chance presented itself. As I remember now, that Friday in August at the Intel office in Hillsboro (Oregon). The second half of the day – Americans sum up the results of the week in order to leave for the weekend with a clear conscience. Suddenly I hear some activity in the office, I even got distracted from changing the memory in my desktop and got out of the cube. I look at Mandy walking along the rows – who will be kicked jokingly, who will be kicked. It feels like a person has come to his favorite job. 😊 And the faces of colleagues also brightened – “Oh, finally Mandy is back.” But even that didn’t make the biggest impression on me. At some distance from Mandy, a man about two meters tall followed. Everything is as it should be – blond hair, blue eyes… And two children – the sons of a happy couple – were sitting on the slanted shoulders. Sinner, at first I thought Mandy picked up a broke gambler from Las Vegas… Now I’m thinking what a fool I was then… ☹️

In general, Mandy had a great time both at work and in her personal life. She enjoyed the well-deserved love of her colleagues and reciprocated them. And the career prospects seemed bright. Under the normal development of events, in 3-5 years she was waiting for the title of vice president of Intel. And suddenly, everything changed in an instant…

Rene

Renee James – then the director of the Software and Solutions Group has repeatedly become the heroine of our stories. My attitude towards her is far from unequivocal, but one cannot help but admit that she made a truly great career. She started as a Technical Assistant to Andy Grove himself. I think working with the “evil Hungarian” was another hell, but it was a great school. Renee then headed the newly created Software and Solutions Group together with Richard Wirth. And after Richard’s departure, she established herself as its sole leader. If Mandy managed to turn software development tools into real products, it is to Rene’s credit that SSG turned from a “second-rate organization” into a “full-fledged participant in the process” at Intel. Renee’s strengths have always been strategy and public speaking. That is why in 2013, after the departure of Paul Otellini, a strange two-headed structure was formed: Brian Krzanich (aka BK) took the position of CEO, and Rene was appointed President of Intel. Rene was expected to be responsible for strategy and presentation, and BK for execution. However, this structure did not last long and in 2014, Renee left the office to lead the Ampere startup. Which has now become one of the leading players in the market of server platforms based on the ARM architecture. Agree, not bad for one career.

And so in 2006, I read an announcement — Mandy Mock will be a Technical Assistant to Renee James. At first, this decision did not raise any particular questions for me. The position of TA in a big boss is certainly a good springboard for a career. One example was Renee herself, and we will see the other a little below. However, later there were more and more doubts. Generally speaking, TA is a dog’s job, you have to follow your boss around the world 24×7 and do whatever he wants. Was it necessary for Mandy, who was fine without it? There cannot be two kings in one kingdom. During Rene’s tenure as director of SSG, the divisions of the business group were managed exclusively by men, she did not particularly like women. Last and most importantly, the relationship between the boss and the TA requires perfect psychological compatibility. Because it is possible that they spend more time together than with their legal spouses.

And here, as they say, she found a scythe on a stone. Mandy’s mind was, if I may say so, very masculine—logical and rational. She never lost her temper, calmly and methodically defending her position. That is why she felt like a fish in water among the men at DPD. Rene, on the other hand, was a “woman-woman”. She lived more with emotions that constantly demanded an outlet. She was able to create a scandal on the spot, which could easily ruin someone’s career. She probably needed an emotional response from TA more than dry numbers. And in this sense, they were incompatible with Mandy. It turned out like this.

– Look, Rene. Here is the schedule, here is this… We invest so many millions, after three years we get so much…

“What the hell do I need these millions for?” I am in a bad mood today because the heel of my favorite shoes broke. And you’re still blowing my brains out with these dragonflies…

Everyone understands that working at TA is not easy, so the standard term of their position is 1 year. But Mandy couldn’t stand it. And she left. That is, she remained at Intel, but her position was much lower than before the appointment of TA. Basically, Mandy went nowhere.

Alexis

Renee Mandy succeeds Alexis Crowell as TA. She, too, is already familiar to the reader of this history book — “so far, boys!” 😊. In terms of rational intelligence and specific business knowledge, it seems to me that Alexis was inferior to Mandy, and severely inferior (at least at first). But more importantly, she was doing a much better job of building a relationship with Renee. Maybe the stars just aligned to make Alexis the perfect TA for SSG’s boss. But I would give credit to Alexis’ emotional intelligence here. She somehow learned to predict these “explosions” of Rene, as well as to extinguish and warn. I remember her warning gesture with an open palm forward.It is better not to touch her today. All the same, you won’t achieve anything, but you can easily cheat“. If Renee has not one or two ruined careers, Alexis has several saved ones. Anyway, Technical Assistant Renee James Alexis worked for a long time. Two (or maybe even three) standard terms. And this position became a real career springboard for her. Alexis’ next assignment was the Open Source Technology Center at SSG. And now she is the Vice President of Sales and Marketing Group.

Marina

Maryna Alekseeva took Mandy’s vacant place at the helm of DPD’s release infrastructure. I think that Mandy herself offered her as a replacement (perhaps for this reason she did not return to DPD), as the most competent specialist. Mandy was sure that Marina would handle the technical part of the job, and Marina, of course, did. However, she had a very difficult time from another point of view. She, like Mandy, was the only woman on Savaga’s staff. In addition, she was the only Russian among the Amers. And if Mandy was among all these men “her board”, then Marina had to win her place under the sun practically from scratch. And she coped with this task as well.

One more difficulty should be mentioned here. It was in Bill himself, or rather in his authoritarian leadership style. By and large, all major decisions at DPD were made by one person. And the others had a choice either to adapt to Bill or to enter into a confrontation with him. I have always been allergic to dictatorial schemes, and I immediately chose the second path for myself. It was senseless… It was like a calf with an oak tree and success in this activity was variable, none at all. 😢 He raked, got a cap, but didn’t give up. And for that he received again. Then relations normalized a little, but not more. Marina acted more wisely. If all decisions in the organization depend on one person, then it is necessary to adapt to him. And somehow very gradually, step by step, she won his trust. As? – Sorry, I don’t know. But at least in part, Marina talked about these principles in her book. So, after 10 years, Savaga hardly made any decisions without consulting Marina. After listening to another proposal, he drummed his fingers on the table, looked around the audience and shouted.

– Well, in principle, I see a certain sense in this. But what will Marina say?

Not immediately, but somehow very organically, Marina took her place in the DPD staff. She played a significant role in the fact that Intel did not leave Russia in 2014. She replaced me as the director of the Russian RND in 2015. In 2017, she became vice president. The first (and perhaps the only) in Russian history Intel.

And again – Mehndi

So, Mandy went nowhere. For the position of either an individual contributor or a line manager. (I had to go the same way after being fired from the post of Russia RND GM). And nothing is heard about her for a long time. It surfaced in 2020 just before my (and Marina’s) departure from Intel. Intel Architecture Graphics and Software Group announces Mandy Mock as newly appointed Vice President. Mandy managed to make a comeback and climb to the top again. Not many manage to do this. She became the vice president later than Marina and Alexis (although she had much earlier), but she became one. And this, in my opinion, is absolutely deserved. And when I (like many men) want to be bored “But I would… But I could… But if not“- I remember these women’s stories. Everyone gets what they deserve in life.