About Me
Making a measurable positive difference.
Passion
I currently manage large-scale enterprise projects as an employee-owner at Lullabot.
I maintain the Certified ScrumMaster® and IAAP Certified Accessibility Professional designations.
I believe we have the opportunity to use technology to solve problems, connect communities, and build more effective change-making teams, and I'm committed to do at as large a scale as possible.
Board Service:
Drupal Association (2022-2024)
DC FemTech (2020-2022)
Green America (2018-2020), Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion board committee chair (2018-2020)
Awards:
Hack for Good (2021)
Impact Award, Lightning Awards (2021)
NTENny Award (2019 & 2018)
Community:
Keynote, Drupal Diversity Camp (2021)
Pantheon Hero (Nov 2019 - Aug 2024)
updated: Aug 12, 2024
Biography
M. "Nikki" Flores facilitates the development of digital products as a technical project manager, on staff at Lullabot since 2019. She earned her Certified ScrumMaster® status in 2020 and certification badge from the International Association of Accessibility Professionals in 2022.
She supports U.S. & international organizations on how to connect with their online communities, make sales, & share information. Flores has built 200+ websites, and champions the use of technology eto solve problems, bring people together, build effective change-making teams, and create a better world.
Flores builds and leads teams, prioritizes specifications to budget, creates data architecture, & implements systems. She speaks, writes, and presents on technology and how to build websites using Drupal on Pantheon.
Flores is the recipient of the 2021 "Hack for Good" Award, the 2021 "Lightning Award" from Pantheon, and the 2018 and 2019 NTENny Award, for those "who have gone above and beyond in their commitment to our sector, driving our community forward and tirelessly working for excellence."
VALUES
Communication
I make space for a diversity of opinions, freely expressed and carefully considered, by a wide variety of individuals.
Thoughtful input typically creates a better end outcome.
Communication means brainstorming, sharing, and evaluating all options to find the best solution.
There are no stupid questions.
Honesty
When I face challenges and obstacles, being honest means I evaluate, accept where I currently stand, create a plan, and move forward --with others-- to make things better.
One day at a time...
One moment at a time.
The truth always sets me free.
Integrity
I strive to uniquely hone my gifts, determine what makes alignment with others, and think about the greater good.
I solve for my current project's pressing needs.
"Don't compromise yourself. You're all you've got." - Janis Joplin
EXPERIENCE
Flores has worked in technology for 20+ years, leading digital platform development for national and international teams.
She is currently a co-owner and staff project manager at Lullabot, supporting product launches, digital delivery, and customer engagement for well-known brands and organizations.
Additional Experience
- January 2004 - January 2014: Principal Developer/Managing Director, delivering 200+ websites for public agencies, membership groups, e-commerce, non-profits
(Drupal 6, 7, 8) (view list)
- 2002-2004: Policy Analyst evaluating community-based organizations serving children, youth, families for the City & County of San Francisco through JMPT Consulting
Founder/Co-Founder Experience
- 2010-2017: Co-founder, Gramercy & Co. e-commerce for home & fashion
- 2006-2012: Founder of A Successful Woman for success-oriented women
- 2004-2005: Founding board member, APA for Progress
(1st internet advocacy group for Asian Pacific Islander Americans)
Educator Experience
2000-2002: The Odyssey World Trek for Service and Education, leader for pilot Mexico visit, travel team backpacking worldwide for 18 months creating educational curriculum (K-12 CA Standards)
http://bit.ly/monicasfloresbooks
- January 2004 - January 2014: Principal Developer/Managing Director, delivering 200+ websites for public agencies, membership groups, e-commerce, non-profits
Articles
Blogging since 2007.
Highlighted
- What Equity Means to Us
(Lullabot, 08/05/2022) - From Pandemic to Community Power: Mutual Aid Network Wins FutureHack for Good
(New Relic Blog, 06/09/2021)
- Using Technology to Solve Community Problems
(Pantheon Blog, 06/07/2021)
- How we Determined Lullabot's Engineering Values
(Lullabot, 06/19/2020)
- Using Drupal Permissions to Manage Access in Central Organizations with Subsidiary Groups
(Lullabot, 06/11/2020)
- Fostering Inclusion in Technology
(Lullabot, 03/06/2020)
- Ten Tips for Effective E-commerce
(The Nook Online, 10/10/2019)
- Twelve Tips for Planning
your .edu Drupal Development
(Lullabot, 09/27/2019)
- Top 12 Hiring Tips: Find Better Candidates for your Available Job
(The Nook Online, 09/27/2019)
- Mental Health on Campus - Five Ways to Support One Another
(Fund Your College, 08/05/2019)
- 7 Truths about Being a Mom Entrepreneur
(AmazeM, 01/02/2018)
- 5 Steps to Implement a Diversity and Inclusion Plan at your Nonprofit
(Make a Positive Difference, 11/08/2017)
More Posts
- Seven Tips for a Successful Website Redesign Process
(NTEN, 09/12/2017)
- 300 Reasons to be Grateful
(Make a Positive Difference, 07/11/2017)
- 5 Learnings about the Website Redesign Process
(Medium, 04/19/2017)
- An Open Letter to my 5th Grade Teacher
(Make a Positive Difference, 10/04/2016)
- Building My Facebook Messenger Bot
(Chatbots Magazine, 10/3/2016)
- 10 Ways to Build Community
(Green America, 09/15/2016)
- My Advice, in 28 Tips for Living (Github, 02/01/2016)
- 25 Tips on How to Behave (FemaleFounders.info, 08/19/2015)
- Five Things all Founders Need (LinkedIn Pulse, 03/04/2015)
- 8 Steps to Narrow the Cone of Uncertainty (Pulse, featured in Software Engineering, 12/28/2014)
- The Difference between being Racial and being Racist (Pulse, 12/13/2014)
- Failure is always an Option (LinkedIn Pulse, 12/05/2014)
Archives
- 22 Excellent Tips for New Drupal Developers
(2012, Six Revisions, now WebFX)
- 20 Drupal Modules to Boost your Website's Functionality (2012, Six Revisions, now WebFX)
- 4 Steps to Building a Portfolio Website with Drupal (2012, Six Revisions, now WebFX)
- 6 Ways Green Businesses Make a Difference
(Women on Business, 10/19/2012)
- How to make your Workplace Millennial-Friendly: What We can Learn from Vin Diesel (Vistage, 09/09/2010)
- Chatbots Magazine - Writer
- Women in Social Enterprise - Editor
- Hashtag Female Founders - Contributor
- WomenonBusiness.com - Guest Blogger (2009-2012)
- TheGreenGirls.com - Guest Blogger (2010-2012)
- BlogTalkRadio - Interview (2012)
- What Equity Means to Us
Recent Speaking Engagements
#Belonging - Beyond Inclusion: Building a Culture of True Equity, at DrupalCon 2023 Pittsburgh
Speaker with Ellie Fanning about belonging and inclusivity
a11y talks: Fostering Inclusion in Technology
Ten tips for fostering more inclusion in technology, based on a compilation of tips presented through a previously-published blog series.
Drupal Diversity & Inclusion Camp - Keynote 2021
Building a Mutual Aid Network on Drupal (on Pantheon)
The Women in Technology World Series 2021
Online Festival, 2021: Introduction to Drupal on Pantheon
Florida Drupal Camp 2021
Case Study: Converting an Environmental Nonprofit to Drupal
DrupalGovCon2020
100% Remote - Tips for Managing a Fully-Distributed Workforce
Introduction to Drupal on Pantheon
Setting up Drupal on Pantheon
slides - bit.ly/introtodrupal
video - http://bit.ly/drupalonpantheon-videoFuture of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - GEW 2019
Panel discussion on #diversity, #equity, and #inclusion
#LGBTQIA in Tech - GEW 2019
Moderator for panel discussion on #LGBTQIA in technology
- Case Study: Converting to Drupal: Architecture, timeline, requirements to move a website onto Drupal 8. link
- Five Tips to Increase Leadership Capacity: For women in leadership link
- Developing Good Data Practice
Data structures, content types, and planning for data collection link
- Action Plan for Diversity, Equity,& Inclusion
How to integrate Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion into an organization link
- Case Study: Converting to Drupal: Architecture, timeline, requirements to move a website onto Drupal 8. link
Public Engagements
Speaker Highlights
- Co-Speaker, Beyond Inclusion, DrupalCon 2023, Pittsburgh
- Speaker, National Center for Employee Ownership Conference 2022, Seattle
- DrupalCon 2022, Organizer, Non-profit Summit, Portland
- Drupal Diversity and Inclusion Camp '21, Keynote
- Women in Technology World Series '21
- DrupalCon '21
- Florida DrupalCamp '21
- Pantheon Inclusive Leadership '21
- Tech Rebalanced '21
- MidAtlantic Women in Tech Summit, Speaker '20
- The Future of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Technology: Panelist, Global Entrepreneurship Week DC '19
- Raleigh Women in Tech Summit, Speaker '19
- Startup Weekend DC '16 Speaker and Judge
- STEEAMnista NYC Speaker Panel '16
- Net2DC Speaker '16
- DC Web Women '15 Entrepreneurship Series
- Working Mother Video Series '15 #WorkMom
- Philly Women in Tech Summit, Panelist '15
- DrupalCamp Hawaii Speaker '11
- WordCamp Hawaii Speaker '08
Moderator / Host / Judge / Advisor
- Organizer
Non-Profit Summit
DrupalCon 2022 Portland - Organizer
DrupalCamp Hawaii '20
(cancelled due to COVID-19)
- Moderator
Holding Space for LGBTQIA Inclusion in Technology: Global Entrepreneurship Week DC '19
- Host emcee
GIST Tech-I Pitch Competition Bahrain '19
- Advisor
DC Startup Week '17
- Judge
Princeton Social Impact '18, '17, '16
- Social media ambassador
NASA Goddard '15 social media coverage
- Organizer
DrupalCamp Hawaii '11
Community Involvement
- NTEN Coaching, '21
- DC Fem Tech Leadership Team, '20 and '21
- NTENny Awardee '18, '19
- Session Advisory Committee, NTEN '19
- Campbell Elementary PTA VP Programs '19
- Board Chair, Green America Subcommittee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion '18
- Green America Board Member, '18, '19, '20
- Girl Scouts Leader: 2008-2017
Videos / YouTube
- Why Being a Role Model is So Important for Women in Tech
- What Career Opportunities Exist for Girls Interested in Tech?
- What’s Most Fulfilling About a Career in Tech?
- My Best Advice for Girls Considering a Career in Tech
- What Motivated me to Launch a Tech Career?
- How can a #WorkMom Thrive in a Tech Career?
- What Special Qualities do Working Mothers offer?
- Co-Speaker, Beyond Inclusion, DrupalCon 2023, Pittsburgh
EDUCATION
Cornell University
B.S. in Environmental Systems Technology,
Division of Agricultural and Biological Engineering
Cornell UniversityTeam win for contest in student engineering: "A Learning Car for Kids" - technology for children with developmental disabilities
Activities: Work Study
Entrepot Deli, Risley Dining, Blauvelt Lab, PEWS ILR
Pianist at Catholic Mass
Praxis Literary JournalInstitute for Shipboard Education
Spring Semester at Sea, University of Pittsburgh
Travelled to 10 port cities in 100 days on the SS Universe
Itinerary:Nassau, Bahamas
La Guaira, Venezuela
Salvador, BrazilCape Town, South Africa
Mombasa, Kenya
Madras, India
Penang, Malaysia
Hong Kong
Keelung, Taiwan
Kobe, Japan
Seattle, Washington, USA
Activities: Yearbook, Shipboard Auction
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